Lesson 8: Other Considerations

Other living things call the forest home as well. For instance, the venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) calls the coastal plain of North and South Carolina home. It is found nowhere else in the world! This plant is carnivorous, catching and digesting insects when they land on its sticky leaves. Since this plant naturally occurs in one small area (within 60 mile radius of Wilmington, NC), forest managers need to take a careful approach to managing stands of timber where it is found. Luckily for this species, it tolerates burning quite well, and seems to even need periodic fires to reduce competition for resources. Let's apply something we learned a few pages ago.... Consider the fact that this plant is found along the coastal plain of North and South Carolina, and these are prime pine growing locations. Now, answer the question below and print it for your teacher.

Apply what you have learned!

The venus flytrap is found naturally only on the coastal plain of North and South Carolina. It tends to grow very well in the pine forests there that are comprised of wet, sandy soil that is relatively poor in nutrients. What management strategy commonly used on pine plantations would greatly benefit the venus flytrap and why?

There are many other plants and animals that live in forests that benefit well from management strategies. In the Croatan National Forest, there are pitcher plants [text annotation indicator] and wild blueberries [text annotation indicator] growing right in among the venus flytraps and the pines. Both of them seem to do quite well in this fire-dependent ecosystem. There are also lots of red-cockaded woodpecker nests and many other critters running (or slithering, hopping, flying, etc!) around. All in all the Croatan is a very well managed system, and very healthy.

Activity:

Do an online search to find other plant and animal species that benefit from good forest management practices. Make a list of these organisms that details where they are found and what strategies are used for them. Copy of the following table to make your list.

Species	Found Where?	Management Strategy Used