Conservation Assessment for Tetraphis geniculata Grig. ex Mitt. Photo by Martin Hutten 13 July 2005 Judith A. Harpel Ph.D., Richard Helliwell USDA Forest Service, Region 6 and USDI Bureau of Land Management, Oregon and Washington Updated by Camille Duncan in February 2010 (Update added Attachment 1: Photos) Preface: Converting Survey and Manage Management Recommendations into Conservation Assessments Much of the content in this document was included in previously transmitted Management Recommendations developed for use with Survey and Manage Standards and Guidelines. With the removal of those Standards and Guidelines, the Management Recommendations have been reconfigured into Conservation Assessments to fit Special Status/Sensitive Species Program (SSSSP) objectives and language. Changes include: the removal of terminology specific to Survey and Manage Standards and Guidelines, the addition of Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center ranks for the species, and the addition of USDA Forest Service and USDI Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Special Status/Sensitive Species status and policy. Habitat, range, and taxonomic information have also been updated to be current with data gathered since the Management Recommendations were initially issued. This document does conform to recently adopted standards for the Forest Service and BLM for Conservation Assessment development in Oregon and Washington. Assumptions about site management In the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) (USDA and USDI 2004a) and Record of Decision (ROD) to Remove or Modify the Survey and Manage Standards and Guidelines (USDA and USDI 2004b), assumptions were made as to how former Survey and Manage species would be managed under Agency Special Status/Sensitive Species policies. Under the assumptions in the FSEIS, the ROD stated “The assumption used in the final SEIS for managing known sites under the Special Status Species Programs was that sites needed to prevent a listing under the Endangered Species Act would be managed. For species currently included in Survey and Manage Categories A, B, and E (which require management of all known sites), it is anticipated that only in rare cases would a site not be needed to prevent a listing…. Authority to disturb special status species sites lies with the agency official who is responsible for authorizing the proposed habitat-disturbing activity.” This species was in Category A at the time of the signing of the ROD, and the above assumptions apply to this species’ management under the agencies’ SSSSP. Management Considerations “Management Considerations” are discussed within the “Conservation” section of this document. “Management Considerations” are actions and mitigations that the deciding official can utilize as a means of providing for the continued persistence of the species’ site. These considerations are not required and are intended as general information that field level personnel could utilize and apply to site-specific situations. Management of the species covered in this Conservation Assessment follows Forest Service 2670 Manual policy and BLM 6840 Manual direction. (Additional information, including species specific maps, is available on the Interagency Special Status and Sensitive Species website.) 2 Executive Summary Species and Taxonomic Group Tetraphis geniculata Grig. ex Mitt., Bryophyte Management Status Tetraphis geniculata is listed as Sensitive on the Region 6 U.S. Forest Service (R6) Sensitive Species List, and is considered a Bureau Assessment species by the Oregon-Washington Bureau of Land Management (http://www.or.blm.gov/isssp/). In Oregon this species is ranked S1, List 2 by the Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center (http://oregonstate.edu/ornhic/data/nonvasc.html). In Washington it is ranked S2 (http://www.dnr.wa.gov/nhp/refdesk/lists/plantrnk.html ). Range & Habitat Tetraphis geniculata is known from the Russian Far East, Japan, Western and Eastern North America. In the Pacific Northwest it is known from British Columbia, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Tetraphis geniculata occurs on the cut ends and sides of decay class 3 and 4 rotten logs and stumps. Threats Direct impacts result in the degradation or destruction of individuals or populations of T. geniculata. Because this species is located on down wood, potential direct threats include: damage to the structural integrity of existing occupied logs through recreation or vegetation management actions, removal of the logs for placement in streams, or prescribed or wildland fire. Indirect impacts result from vegetation management actions that remove future potential down wood recruitment, and/or result in changes to the microclimate. Management Considerations Protect the structural integrity and microclimate around logs with populations of T. geniculata during vegetation management, trail or recreational site construction, and in- stream log acquisition. Directionally fell trees away from occupied sites to minimize disturbance to existing down logs and reduce damage to the canopy. Avoid designating skid trails in the vicinity of down log concentrations to minimize disturbance to logs. Encourage leaving hazard trees felled for safety reasons or create additional down logs on site to provide future substratum for T. geniculata. Consider bucking felled retention logs into sections over 3 m long to provide future substratum for colonization. Avoid firewood cutting within occupied sites. At occupied sites, if a large down log must be impacted by the project, consider cutting a passage in the log at angles and leaving the cut section adjacent to the existing log. 3 Research, Inventory, and Monitoring Opportunities What is the southern extent of the range of T. geniculata? How long can the species persist at a site without recruitment of new substrates? What are the vectors for propagule dispersal? Why is Tetraphis pellucida more common than T. geniculata in the Pacific Northwest when both species have seemingly identical habitat requirements and reproductive biology? How does T. geniculata respond to a created edge in the vicinity and how rapid is the response, if any? How quickly does habitat recover to a colonizable condition after a disturbance? Monitor sites where mitigation has been applied to determine efficacy of the measure. 4 CONTENTS Preface .......................................................................................................................................2 Executive Summary ................................................................................................................3 Introduction ..............................................................................................................................6 Goal ......................................................................................................................................6 Scope ....................................................................................................................................6 Management Status ..............................................................................................................6 Classification and Description ................................................................................................7 Systematics and synonymy ..................................................................................................7 Species Description ..............................................................................................................7 Biology and Ecology .................................................................................................................7 Life History and Reproductive Biology ...............................................................................7 Range, Distribution, and Abundance ...................................................................................7 Population Trends ................................................................................................................8 Habitat ..................................................................................................................................8 Ecological Considerations ...................................................................................................9 Conservation ...........................................................................................................................10 Threats................................................................................................................................10 Conservation Status ...........................................................................................................10 Known Management Approaches ......................................................................................11 Management Considerations ..............................................................................................11 Research, Inventory, and Monitoring Opportunities .........................................................12 Definitions ...............................................................................................................................12 References Cited.....................................................................................................................13 Attachment 1: Photos ............................................................................................................15 5 Introduction Goal The goal of this Conservation Assessment is to summarize