Appendix K Snag Creation.docx

SNAG CREATION

The purpose of this BPA call is to secure services to create wildlife trees with or without habitat features for use by cavity nesting, denning and roosting wildlife species. Services may include 1) chainsaw topping, 2) high girdling, 3) platform installation, 4) bat flanges/slits, and 5) cavity creation. The Contractor shall furnish all equipment, supplies, and materials except those designated as government furnished tools, labor, supervision, transportation, and incidentals to perform all work specified herein. This work may also be ordered as a silvicultural treatment to control mistletoe infected overstory trees in plantations. When work is ordered for mistletoe control, the individual trees to be treated would be identified by the Government in the field and on a map.

PROJECT LOCATION

Location/Description: All work will be performed on the Deschutes, Ochoco and Fre-Win National Forests and Crooked River National Grassland in central Oregon. Vicinity maps showing project location and access will be attached and made part of this contract with task orders.

Accessibility: Work areas may be reached by Forest roads that are accessible by a standard two-wheel drive pick-up during the summer months. Spring road conditions usually necessitate the use of a 4-wheel drive vehicle. No vehicles will be permitted to operate off system roads without approval of the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR). Inaccessibility due to snow, fallen trees, slides or washouts on roads may or may not be corrected at the option of the Government. If road access is blocked, the Government may, under the Changes Clause: (a) provide an alternate access route; or (b) delete the inaccessible unit. Units may also require a short walk-in to access the unit. Specific information for individual units is contained in the Remarks column of Supplemental Specifications with any task order.

Boundaries: The boundaries, other than for easily identified ground features shown on the contract map, have been plainly marked by the Forest Service as follows:

· With blue “Boundary of Cutting Unit” signs and blue flagging with white or orange paint, or

· With white tags and/or yellow ribbon, or

· With pink and black striped ribbon

There may be portions of other lines or boundaries in the area. These may be marked with flagging, aluminum tags, different posters, or a combination of flagging, tags, and posters. These should be disregarded by the Contractor and only boundaries marked as described above should be used.

DEFINITIONS

Clump – A snag clump is a 3 to 6 tree group within 30 feet of one another and arranged in a circular, non-linear fashion.

DBH - Diameter at Breast Height. Outside diameter of the tree stem at a point 4 ½ feet above ground level, measured from the high side of the base of the tree.

Kerf – The width of cut a saw blade makes when it’s cut through wood.

Snag - Dead Tree

SNAG CREATION

The general intent is to create snags, however staggering the rate at which the tree dies may be finessed by the treatment type and leaving live limbs.

CHAINSAW TOPPING

A climber tops the tree and then uses the saw to cut notches out of the perimeter of the flat tree so tree looks like a “crown”. This is done to provide more exposed wood to collect air-borne spores of fungi that cause heart-rot. Depending on the desired condition, limbs may or may not be left. Tops on the ground will, at a minimum, have limbs on one side of the bole cut flush so the bole will be in contact with the ground. Limbs should be piled away from the bole. This treatment would likely be ordered when the project objectives are to control mistletoe.

HIGH GIRDLE

Girdling can be done by power tools or by hand. High girdling is generally at or above 20 feet above the base of the trees where the tree diameter is at least 12 inches. This treatment should not occur in recreational areas as it creates a hazard.

LOW GIRDLE

Girdling can be done by power tools or by hand. Girdling would be done at dbh. Diameter at girdling should be equal to or greater than 16” dbh. No other treatment is to be done with this treatment. This treatment can be done for long-term down wood recruitment.

HABITAT FEATURES

Habitat features are made after the tree is topped or high girdled to provide immediately useable habitat and may include platform installation, bat flanges, bat slits, or cavity creation. One or more features may be installed on a single tree, depending on supplemental specifications.

PLATFORM INSTALLATION

These are generally installed for great gray owls or other raptors. However the size of the platform may differ for different species. Specifications will be included in the BPA calls.

Great Gray Owl – Platform would be 20-50 feet high in the interior of unit. Platforms would also be created for osprey or eagles. Platform specifications will be included in the BPA calls.

BAT FLANGES

Generally trying to mimic loose bark of a dead tree where gaps are created that bats crawl into. Minimum diameter for flanges are greater than 12 inches at a height of 20-50 feet. Flanges are shallow cuts that are generally wider at the bottom end and taper toward the top end. Flanges should be a minimum of 2 feet long.

Other Specs:

· Locate flanges between SW and SE aspect on the tree (generally facing south)

· Height of flanges should be between 20-50 feet high on tree

· Keep flange cuts as shallow as possible

· Keep these features 3+feet away from remnant branches

HORIZONTAL BAT SLIT TRIO

Generally, three slits for bats. Bat slits are cut near the top of the tree after it has been topped. Slits are approximately 3-4 inches long, cut in at as steep an angle as possible.

Description: Each cut is done with a tip boring cut to minimize the length of the slit opening to just over the width of the opening to just beyond that of the chainsaw bar, about 2.5-3 inches. The climber bores into the center of the tree being careful not to cut out the sides or back of the tree and sweeps the tip only. This creates an almost fan shape inside the tree that is at that point only a kerf wide at the opening. The climber pulls the saw almost all the way out of the cut, slightly angles the bar steeper and does another sweeping bore cut. This results in a fan shaped cut that is wider (about 2-4 kerfs) inside the tree but still narrow at the opening. This is then repeated approximately two more times within a few inches of the first set of boring cuts. On the outside it looks like three simple slits; on the inside there is a much bigger cavity that is almost connected with each other.

Other Specs:

· Locate bat slits between SW and SE aspect on the tree (generally facing south)

· Can install two groups of 3 slits each in one location

· Keep plunge cuts as shallow as possible; cuts should almost connect inside the tree to create a larger cavity

· Install these at the top of the tree if possible to avoid leaving a weak spot in the tree/snag

VERTICAL BAT SLITS

Description: Similar concept to the horizontal bat slits. However, instead of plunging up into the tree, a vertical plunge cut is made and then repeated so that the front kerf is minimized but a wider cavity is excavated in the back of the cut. USE CAUTION. This method seems more likely to result in kickback and the vertical nature of the opening laves a path for the saw to move back toward the operator.

Other Specs:

· Locate bat slits between SW and SE aspect on the tree (generally facing south)

· Cuts should connect inside the tree to create a larger cavity

· Install these at the top of the tree if possible to avoid leaving a weak spot in the tree

· Slit should be greater than 1 foot in length vertically

CAVITY CREATION

Varies depending on species. Target species will be identified in the Supplemental Specifications with any task order.

Description: A steep and very shallow cut is made to separate the face of the feature from the tree. Minimize the amount that is being cut into the wood. The face is then cut off and sent to the ground to have a hole installed. In the tree, excavate using a saw or drill a cavity that is at least 4” wide by 4” long vertically. If possible, make the vertical portion at least 6” long. Reattach the face piece over the cavity and secure in place with nails.

Other Specs:

· Locate bird features on the NW to NE (generally north) side of the tree to minimize heat exposure

· Cavity should be larger vertically than it is wide

· Install these features a minimum of 3 feet away from remnant branches to reduce access by predators

· Height of bird cavities is species specific but may be between 10 and 30 feet up on trees

CONTRACT PROVISIONS

· The Contractor will select and mark with flagging trees to be treated. Government will inspect and authorize a sample of trees for each unit prior to topping.

· The Contractor will furnish all supplies such as paint, flagging, signing material and aluminum nails. The Government will furnish “Wildlife Tree” signs and numbered tags.

· Contractor will map location of each tree or clump in each unit with GPS. Location accuracy shall be within 30 meters. Coordinates are NAD 83, UTMs. Contractor must provide an electronic and written (See example Tree Register Form) file of coordinates. All methods shall include coordinates and corresponding unit name, unit number, and number of each tree/clump.

· Contractor will tag each tree with a Wildlife Tree tag and numbered tag and record corresponding information on the Tree Register Form.

· The Contractor is required to submit a weekly or biweekly plan of work at least two days before implementing each plan. This plan shall be submitted to the project COR for approval. Work will not begin until this plan is approved. This plan may be important for COR to coordinate contractor’s work schedule with other work in the area.

· The Contractor is required to inform the project COR within 7 days of when a unit has been accomplished and provide a completed tree register form with signature and a map showing accurate location of trees or clumps of treated trees and their corresponding numbers. See example of completed map and tree register form.

TREE SPECIFICATIONS

· Trees should be selected based on their physical characteristics, not their location, prior to being topped. Trees with low vigor, infected with mistletoe, or otherwise under stress should be selected if they exist rather than healthy, full-crowned, productive trees. Snags can be distributed evenly throughout the unit or in clumps.

· Trees need to be a minimum of 150 feet from numbered roads and does not include skid trails.

· Tree tops need to be fully severed from the bole and on the ground so as not to present a safety hazard to forest users and may not block an open road. If the top does block any portion an open road, the contractor will, at their own expense and using their own equipment, clear the road of the obstruction.

· Each tree to be topped shall be a mix of trees available within the stand and may include, but is not limited to, white fir, grand fir, Douglas fir, or ponderosa pine. White fir and grand fir shall be selected over Douglas fir and ponderosa pine where they occur, unless otherwise specified.

· Trees need to be between 18 and 22 inches in diameter at breast height (dbh), with an occasional tree between 22 and 30 inches dbh. No trees greater than 30 inches may be topped. Variation from these specifications must be agreed upon by the Contractor and COR prior to work being conducted in the unit.

· Most limbs should be removed from trees to ensure mortality; a range of 2-7 is acceptable. This will be specified in the Supplemental Specifications.

· Trees will be a minimum of 30 feet tall. There is no maximum height requirement, generally the taller the better.

2020 CORP 2.0 Appendix K Snag Creation

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