Colorado Statewide Forest Resource Assessment

amount of biodiversity. Ownership of these forests is dominated by privatelandowners (190,358 acres) but the state (23,584 acres) and BLM (11,146acres) also control notable portions. Where plains riparian systems supportforests, those forests typically are dominated by plains cottonwood inassociation with several species of willow and a variety of shrubs, grassesand forbs. Like montane riparian forests, plains riparian areas have adisproportionate benefi t to wildlife species relative to their size. Native prairiefi shes and amphibians (especially leopard frogs) are typical indicators ofhealthy plains riparian systems. Bald eagles occur here year-round andneotropical songbirds are common inhabitants during migration and breedingseason. Other typical species include deer (white-tail and mule), Merriam’sturkey and a variety of owls.Low-elevation riparian systems often are subjected to heavy grazing and/orother agricultural use, and can be signifi cantly degraded. This degradationleaves them vulnerable to invasion by non-native grasses, forbs and shrubs.Tamarisk and Russian olive are particularly prominent. Riparian forestsalso may be seriously impacted by pollution, surface water diversions andgroundwater depletions. Overall, prairie riparian and wetland ecologicalsystems (along with shortgrass prairie) are the most altered of Colorado’secosystems. Not surprisingly, rivers and streams of the Eastern Plains areidentifi ed as high-priority habitats of concern in Colorado’s State WildlifeAction Plan (CDOW 2006).Plains Working Forests (Agroforestry)Scattered across the plains of Colorado are small acreages of forest thathave been planted for a variety of conservation purposes. Though designedand planted for specifi c purposes, these areas can be defi ned as workingforest lands that provide the same environmental services as the naturallyoccurring working forests. Their small size and wide distribution make itdiffi cult to include them in a statewide assessment, but their establishmenthas been a high priority since the plains were settled. These forests providea disproportionate benefi t to those that have chosen to live and/or make theirliving through agriculture on the plains.Since the Dust Bowl days of the 1930s, several state and federal programshave supported conservation tree and shrub plantings on both private andpublicly owned lands. Through a cooperative interagency program, morethan 200 living snow fences were planted along county, state and federalroads in Colorado to keep snow from drifting onto roadways. These werepurposely designed to provide multiple benefi ts such as livestock protection,erosion control and wildlife habitat enhancement. Several are located onthe Pawnee National Grasslands. Colorado Division of Wildlife and localPheasants Forever chapters worked together to establish more than 1,350windbreak/shrub thicket combination plantings to benefi t the economicallyimportant ring-necked pheasant population. A signifi cant proportion of theearly Stewardship Incentives Program, Agricultural Conservation Program andGreat Plains Conservation Program funding provided cost-share to privatelandowners to establish windbreaks, shelterbelts and habitat plantings on theplains.Presently, the Continuous Conservation Reserve Program provides incentivesfor establishing livestock and farmstead shelterbelts, fi eld windbreaks andliving snow fences on crop land, in addition to riparian forest buffers oncrop land and pasture land adjacent to water courses and water bodies.13