FOREST ECOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION AND MAPPING - THEIR APPLICATION FOR ECOSYSTEM MANAGEMENT IN NEWFOUNDLAND

A prerequisite to sustaining ecosystems is the inventory and classific ation of landscape structure and composition. Ecological classificatio n and mapping involves the delineation of landscapes into easily recog nizable units. Topography, soils, vegetation, physical landscape form, and successional pathways are delineation criteria commonly used. Dam man (1967) developed a forest type classification system for Newfoundl and using vegetation, soil and landforms as the defining criteria. Dam man's forest types were used in combination with mensurational data to assign forest types to timber volume productivity classes. Since each of the Damman forest types is associated with characteristic soils, p arent materials, moisture regime and topographic position, the mapping units are similar to Canada Land Inventory (CLI) mapping units. Field work to confirm the correlation between Damman forest types and CLI c apability classes was initiated in 1993. CLI maps were recoded in 1994 and Damman forest types were determined; resulting ecosystem-based ma ps provide a common framework to assess forestry/wildlife interactions in an ecosystem planning process.