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The Hoosier- Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area

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The Hoosier- Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area United States Department of Agriculture The Hoosier- Forest Service Shawnee Ecological North Central Assessment Research Station General Frank R. Thompson, III, Editor Technical Report NC-244 Thompson, Frank R., III, ed 2004. The Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment. Gen. Tech. Rep. NC-244. St. Paul, MN: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Research Station. 267 p. This report is a scientific assessment of the characteristic composition, structure, and processes of ecosystems in the southern one-third of Illinois and Indiana and a small part of western Kentucky. It includes chapters on ecological sections and soils, water resources, forest, plants and communities, aquatic animals, terrestrial animals, forest diseases and pests, and exotic animals. The information presented provides a context for land and resource management planning on the Hoosier and Shawnee National Forests. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Key Words: crayfish, current conditions, communities, exotics, fish, forests, Hoosier National Forest, mussels, plants, Shawnee National Forest, soils, water resources, wildlife. Cover photograph: Camel Rock in Garden of the Gods Recreation Area, with Shawnee Hills and Garden of the Gods Wilderness in the back- ground, Shawnee National Forest, Illinois. Contents Preface....................................................................................................................... II North Central Research Station USDA Forest Service Acknowledgments .................................................................................................... III 1992 Folwell Avenue Saint Paul, Minnesota, The Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment: Objectives, Approach, and Major Findings 55108 Frank R. Thompson, III ............................................................................................... 2 Published 2004 Ecological Regions and Soil Conditions in the Hoosier-Shawnee www.ncrs.fs.fed.us Ecological Assessment Area Felix Ponder, Jr. ........................................................................................................... 9 Current and Historical Forest Conditions and Disturbance Regimes in the Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area George R. Parker and Charles M. Ruffner.................................................................... 23 Native Plants and Communities and Exotic Plants within the Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area Steven D. Olson, Michael A. Homoya, and Elizabeth L. Shimp ..................................... 59 Freshwater Resources in the Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area Matt R. Whiles and James E. Garvey........................................................................... 81 Fishes, Mussels, Crayfishes, and Aquatic Habitats of the Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area Brooks M. Burr, Justin T. Sipiorski, Matthew R. Thomas, Kevin S. Cummings and Christopher A. Taylor ........................................................................................ 109 Terrestrial Animal Species in the Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area Clark D. McCreedy, Kelle A. Reynolds, Cynthia M. Basile, Matthew C. Nicholson, Katie M. Dugger, Megan E. Gross, and Gary M. Mohr, Jr. .......................................... 172 Native and Exotic Insects and Diseases in Forest Ecosystems in the Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area Dwight Scarbrough and Jennifer Juzwik .................................................................... 222 Exotic Aquatic and Terrestrial Animals in the Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Area Brooks M. Burr, Cynthia M. Basile, Ginny L. Adams, and Matthew C. Nicholson ........... 236 I Preface Initiated by the Hoosier and Shawnee National Forests, this report is a scientific assessment of the characteristic composition, structure, and processes of ecosystems in the southern one-third of Illinois and Indiana and a small part of western Kentucky. Data and findings from the assessment should provide a helpful context for land and resource management planning on the two national forests; however, the assessment makes no management decisions or recommendations. The report is organized into nine chapters; the introduction and chapters addressing ecological sections and soils, water resources, forests, plants, aquatic animals, terres- trial wildlife, forest diseases and pests, and exotic animals. II Acknowledgments The following individuals made contributions to the Hoosier-Swanee Ecological Assessment as members of the Steering Committee, authors, reviewers, or in other roles. Cynthia Basile, Hoosier National Forest Richard Guyette, University of Missouri-Columbia Brooks Burr, Southern Illinois University Rick Hokans, USDA Forest Service, Eastern Region Kevin Cummings, Illinois Natural History Survey Steve Hupe, Shawnee National Forest Debra Dietzman, USDA Forest Service, North Central Jennifer Juzwick, USDA Forest Service, North Central Research Station Research Station John Dunning, Purdue University Julian Lewis, J. Lewis and Associates Bryan Fitch, Shawnee National Forest Biological Consulting James Garvey, Southern Illinois University Patrick Merchant, Hoosier National Forest Megan Gross, Cooperative Wildlife Research Gary Mohr, Jr., Cooperative Wildlife Research Laboratory, Southern Illinois University Laboratory, Southern Illinois University Cloyce Hedge, Indiana Department of Matthew Nicholson, U.S. Envirnmental Natural Resources Protection Agency Mike Homoya, Indiana Department of George Parker, Purdue University Natural Resources J.C. Randolph, Indiana University Dick Johnson, Shawnee National Forest Charles Ruffner, Southern Illinois University Robert Lawrence, Missouri Department Guenther Schuster, Eastern Kentucky University of Conservation Elizabeth Shimp, Shawnee National Forest Clark McCreedy, Hoosier National Forest Justin Sipiorski, Southern Illinois University Mary McCorvie, Shawnee National Forest Christopher Taylor, Illinois Natural History Survey Rose-Marie Muzika, University of Missouri Matthew Thomas, Southern Illinois University Steven Olson, Pike-San Isabel National Forests, Melvin Warren, Jr., USDA Forest Service, Southern Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands Research Station Felix Ponder, Jr., USDA Forest Service, North Michael Welker, Shawnee National Forest Central Research Station Steve Widowski, Shawnee National Forest Kelle Reynolds, Hoosier National Forest Alan Woolf, Cooperative Wildlife Research Laboratory, Dwight Scarborough, USDA Forest Service, Southern Illinois University Intermountain Region John Shuey, The Nature Conservancy of Indiana Lucy Burde, USDA Forest Service, North Central Chad Stinson, Shawnee National Forest Research Station Regis Terney, USDA Forest Service Bob Carr, USDA Forest Service, Eastern Region Frank R. Thompson III, USDA Forest Service, North Dan Dey, USDA Forest Service, North Central Central Research Station Research Station Dale Weigel, USDA Forest Service, North Central Kathie Dugger, Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Research Station Unit, Oregon State University Matt Whiles, Southern Illinois University Jeff Ehman, Indiana University Karl Williard, Southern Illinois University Jim Fralish, Southern Illinois University Wayne Geyer, Kansas State University III The Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment Frank R. Thompson, III, Editor 1 The Hoosier-Shawnee Ecological Assessment: Objectives, Approach, and Major Findings Frank R. Thompson, III About the Author: The landscapes of southern Illinois and Indiana consist of a mix of private, State, Frank R. Thompson, III and federally owned land used in a variety of ways. The area is comprised of nearly Project Leader and Research equal proportions of forest and open or agricultural lands. It includes species and Wildlife Biologist, U.S. Department of Agriculture, communities that contribute significantly to global biodiversity and other communi- Forest Service, North Central Research Station, 202 ties that exist in small remnants of their former distribution or in a highly degraded Natural Resources Bldg., state. Keystone species such as the American chestnut have disappeared, and now Univ. of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211-7260. abundant species such as oaks may be threatened by exotic pest species and alter- Phone: 573-875-5341; ation of historic disturbance regimes. Nearby urban areas put large recreational e-mail: [email protected] demands on these landscapes. The way in which these lands are managed will affect the benefits people derive from them. The USDA Forest Service initiated the Hoosier- OBJECTIVES Shawnee ecological assessment and collaborated This report is a scientific assessment of the with other agencies, universities, and individ- characteristic composition, structure, and uals to review the information available on processes of ecosystems in the southern one- ecological conditions in the assessment area. third of Illinois and Indiana and a small part of The purpose of an assessment is to gain an western Kentucky. It describes the ecological understanding of current conditions and trends integrity of the area under current policies and regarding the land, resources, and people and across ownerships but focuses on information to place this within a relevant historical context. most likely to be relevant to land management Assessments focus on measures of ecosystem planning on the Hoosier and Shawnee National integrity because ecosystems with high integrity Forests, the area’s two national forests (fig. 1). maintain their characteristic species diversity The assessment
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