How do we best manage forest resources?

targets

Have you heard the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears? Papa Bear's chair was too big. His porridge was too hot. His bed was too hard. Mama Bear's chair was too soft. Her porridge was too cold. Her bed was too lumpy. But Baby Bear's chair, porridge, and bed were just right.

Similarly, animals need just the right place to live.

A habitat such as a forest is an area in which an animal normally lives—where it finds what it needs to survive. The amount and quality of each part of the habitat (water, shelter, food, space) have to be just right, and they have to be arranged so that the animal can use them. If one part is out of balance, life may not work as it should for that species of animal.

Habitats can change over time, sometimes over many years, and sometimes very quickly. Sometimes changes happen naturally, for example beaver can dam a stream and flood a forest. Other animals may have to move. When the beaver leaves, the pond dries up and the forest returns. Nature itself causes changes through forest fires, invasive species, or beetle attack. Sometimes humans introduce change.

The more diverse an ecosystem, the better it copes with change. There are varying views about how to help forest ecosystems adapt to change.