Issue 13

The Return of Longleaf Pine

by Zoë Hoyle

Longleaf pine forests once dominated an estimated 92 million acres in the Southeastern United States. Since the 1770s, logging, naval stores production, conversion to other land uses, and fire suppression have effectively reduced longleaf pine forests and the unique ecosystems they harbor to a mere 3 percent of their former range. Today, there’s growing interest in restoring not only longleaf pine, but the unique forest ecosystems the tree supports. In the past, research conducted on several experimental forests managed by SRS played a critical role in the revival of longleaf pine as a viable choice for timber. Today, longleaf pine stands are rarely established for timber production alone, but most often to restore the ecosystem within its native range and to provide habitat for the rare and endangered species—redcockaded woodpecker, gopher tortoise, Louisiana pinesnake, and others—it uniquely shelters.