This document discusses strategies to help songbirds and forests adapt to climate change in the Cold Hollow Woodlots region. It notes that 50 Vermont bird species are projected to lose at least 25% of their summer range due to climate change. The strategies proposed include maintaining native tree diversity, promoting structural enhancement of young forests, and planning for early successional habitat. Landowners in the Cold Hollow Woodlots project expressed support for coordinating forestry practices across properties to benefit bird habitat over a larger landscape in the face of climate change impacts.

1. Forest Interior
Songbirds and Climate
Change on Private Land

2. Importance vs. Threat (Current HF) at 10 km2 scale
FIVE PRIORITY CONNECTIONS

4. Northern Green
Mountains
Linkage Area

6. All Community ValuesOutreach & Education –
Community Values mapping

7. Number of Community Values

8. Overlap of Community Values & Wildlife habitat

9. Strategic Vision
Core Forest
Habitat Blocks
Connecting Lands
Conserved lands
Goal: To permanently
protect 40% of the
identified un-fragmented
habitat blocks in our
region by 2030
Vision document and letter Mailed to
landowners with 200 acres or more or who have
connecting landscapes
Approximately 20,000 acres are
already conserved, our goal is to
double that number.

10. Cold Hollow Woodlots: Cross Boundary Management

11. Climate Change Assessment
USFS Pilot: Climate Change Adaptation Strategies and Approaches
(www.forestadaptation.org/node/360).
Landscape level Climate Change
assessment of 12 ownerships in the
Cold Hollow Woodlot
Cross Boundary project.
Part of USFS Pilot Project

12. 3.3―Alter forest structure to reduce severity or extent of wind and ice
damage
 Crop tree release or other pre-commercial work recommended. The
CTR will allow the best trees to expand crowns for a healthier more
resistant tree: 11 of 12 plans
 Improvement cut reducing the poor quality overstory and releasing
advance regeneration. More vigorous trees and advance regeneration
can withstand wind and replace disturbance: 11 of 12 plans
 Patch or gap cuts allow for natural regeneration: 10 of 12 plans
 Regeneration is diverse and abundant throughout the property
providing resiliency to severe weather: 8 of 12 plans
Strategy 3: Protect forests from severe fire and wind disturbance
USFS Pilot: Climate Change Adaptation Strategies and Approaches
(www.forestadaptation.org/node/360).

13. Climate Threatened
Black-throated Blue Warbler
“The handsome, maple-loving Black-throated Blue Warbler nests in the moist
hardwood forests of northeastern North America. Audubon’s climate model
projects a 100% shift in stable summer range (by 2080).”
50 Vermont bird species are projected to
have at least 25% of their summer range lost
due to climate change

14. Increase in non-native invasive plants =
decrease in abundant insect food resources
Expansion of non-native insect pests =
decrease in tree species diversity
Increased intensity and frequency of extreme
weather = increase in young forest habitat

18. Plan for Early-
Successional
Habitat
• 2-5 acre patch sizes
• 3-5% of landscape
• Structural retention

19. Maintain and Promote Native Tree
Species Diversity
• Sugarbushes
• Provides for a greater diversity
of bird species
• Bird/Tree species relationships
• Promote red oak through
appropriate silviculture and
planting

20. Promote Structural
Enhancement
• Pre-commercial work
• Crop Tree Release with Canopy
Gap Formation
• Vigorous and structurally-
enhanced young forests

21. “We are very pleased to be part of the sub group ‘ Cold Hollow Woodlots’,…
(to explore)opportunities to co-ordinate our forestry management practices
considering the coming affects of climate change for the benefit of bird and
wildlife habitat over a much larger area than just our individual properties.” –
Cold Hollow Woodlot Landowner
“Hope” is the thing with feathers – Emily Dickinson
“Every Morning I wake torn between the desire to save the
world and an inclination to savor it. This makes it hard to
plan the day.” - E.B. White