Variable retention harvesting in Great Lakes mixed-pine forests: emulating a natural model in managed ecosystems

Ecological Processes

Table 1 Examples of organizations and agencies that recommend some form of retention in their red pine management guides

Entity	Ecological objectives	Retention consideration
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resource https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/ForestManagement/guidelines.html	Provision of wildlife habitat; production of diverse ecological benefits	Retain some mature red pines at harvest if shoot blight is not a concern; retain snags that are not a safety concern
Minnesota Forest Resources Council http://www.mn.gov/frc/forest-management-guidelines.html	Retaining habitat structure after harvest	Leave some live trees during harvest as either 5% of harvest unit in clumps (> 0.1 ha) or 15–30 scattered trees per hectare or a combination of these; retain all snags and large logs
Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry https://www.ontario.ca/document/tree-marking	Maintenance of stand and landscape biodiversity	Protection of (trees containing) stick nests, cavity trees, mast trees, super canopy trees