Forest Status Across Micronesia from an Assessment of Micronesia Challenge Terrestrial Measures and Forest Inventory and Analysis Data

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Forest Status Across Micronesia from an Assessment of Micronesia Challenge Terrestrial Measures and Forest Inventory and Analysis Data

Peer-reviewed article discussing the results of 2018 Forest Inventory and Analysis plots monitored across Micronesia and forest health for the Micronesian countries.

The Micronesia Challenge (MC) is an agreement initiated in 2006 by the

region’s political jurisdictions to conserve both marine and terrestrial natural resources. To

assess the success of the terrestrial goals of the challenge, the Micronesia Conservation

Trust (MCT) coordinated the compilation of a list of terrestrial measures and utilized them

to summarize data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest

Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program. The MCT and FIA programs added

and measured additional forest plots within conservation and special management areas on

Guam, within conservation, special management areas or previously unsampled islands in

the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), and on previously unsampled islands in the

Republic of Marshall Islands (RMI). Data from these forested plots show that the special

management areas (MC areas) generally exhibited preferred forest conditions compared to

unmanaged areas (Non-MC areas) across Micronesia. In Guam and FSM, MC areas had

less forest area disturbed by people, less forest area with invasive plant species, higher ratios

of endemic to invasive tree species, and taller trees than Non-MC areas. In RMI, MC areas

had higher basal area and canopy cover than Non-MC areas. Among all jurisdictions, the

Republic of Palau had the highest species diversity and endemism and the highest average

canopy cover; the Mariana Islands (Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands and

Guam) had the smallest trees, the lowest basal area, the highest stem density, the lowest

average canopy cover, and the highest levels of disturbance and invasive species coverage;

FSM had the highest diversity of forest communities, the largest trees, the lowest stem

density, and the highest average basal area; RMI had the lowest levels of disturbance and

invasive species coverage. Results from this analysis can be used to understand the role of

management based on indicators of forested areas across the region.