The Good Tree

Everyone loves a good tree. You know what I mean when I say a good tree; it reaches towards the sun to an incredible height, its spreading branches cast a cool shade for you in the late summer. That's a good tree. Now imagine that tree has a large dead branch or maybe its hollowed out, with half of the tree being dead. Hell, just imagine that there is barely a tree left; it's just a handful of branches and the bark is sloughing off. Is the tree just as good now? Did you cringe when I described this dead tree? Most people are probably thinking, "this tree is bad and honestly, it's ugly." The next steps to be taken by most people would be to get rid of this tree. What if you didn't cut the tree down? What if I told you that the aesthetically displeasing toothpick is actually an important piece of an ecosystem? These shells of trees are referred to as snags and most people discredit them as merely an ugly part of nature and potentially a hazard. But without them, we may see the disappearance of many creatures that utilize them as homes or refuge.

Let's first look at what I believe to be the most obvious users of snags: birds. There are at least

33 species of birds that are considered cavity nesters which means they make their home in the holes of dead trees or limbs. The first group of birds that comes to mind are probably Woodpeckers.

These strong-billed birds generally excavate dead limbs/trees for both food and shelter. In a sense they also act as home builders for other birds as well, because some birds, despite their desire to dwell in cavities, do not possess the ability to excavate their own home.

This means birds like Swallows, Bluebirds, Owls, American Kestrels, and even some ducks are dependent on either naturally occurring cavities (think rotted out trees) or cavities created by woodpeckers. Consider ducks; ducks really have no way of creating their own cavity, and some people may not even think of ducks as being birds that may nest in trees. However, there are at least six duck species in North America that nest in cavities, such as Wood Ducks and Common Mergansers. These ducks may nest in holes that were previous woodpecker residences or cavities created by abiotic events.

BUT WAIT A MINUTE. Snags also provide many birds with perches to look out upon their world, i.e. birds of prey. I have personally seen many a Red-tailed hawk, Bald Eagle and Osprey surveying the land for potential prey while atop a snag.

Birds are not the only critters hanging out in dead trees either. Mammals such as raccoons, opossums, and squirrels are cavity dwellers in North America. While I understand that most people don't want anymore Trash Pandas (raccoons) hanging out in their neighborhood, at least consider opossums. They really get a bad rap, and while I don't think animals should be saved based on their contribution to human society; these marsupials (yes, marsupials! Like Kangaroos!) eat ticks, rarely get rabies, and are immune to a few venomous snakes.

Oh hey, speaking of snakes...if any of you read the blog posts about my trip to

Florida, you'll recall a moment where I peeled back the bark on a snag to reveal a snake! Yes, oh yes, snakes are well known to use the loose bark on dead trees as a way to help regulate their body temperature. I have also seen lizards (unconfirmed species) scurry out from bark while I was inspecting trees in California.

Okay, so you've been sold that dead/dying trees provide habitats for a variety of creatures, but isn't it potentially hazardous to have something like a dead tree in your yard? Well... Maybe. The answer is not so simple. What you need is an ISA Certified Arborist who is preferably Tree Risk Assessment Qualified as well. These tree professionals have been trained to judge how much risk a tree may present. Assuming this person isn't interested in making a quick buck off of you for removing the tree, they should be able to look at your dead/dying tree in an objective manner. They'll be able to look at things such as Targets (what could the tree hit), Occupancy Rate (how often is the Target around the tree), can Targets be moved, etc.

All of these considerations need to be taken into account before removing a tree you think is a risk. A good arborist may also recommend things other than removal of a hazardous tree. For example, if you have a dead tree with branches hanging over targets, maybe the branches could be removed so that they don't fall on targets but the trunk could remain because it wouldn't cause any damage. The point is that there's always options when considering removal of a dead or dying tree.

When we are faced with a time where Purple Martins almost exclusively nest in man-made birdboxes and Ivory-Billed Woodpeckers are believed to be extinct, all due to habitat destruction, we need to make a larger effort to protect not just living trees, but non-living trees as well. When a tree dies, it's story is not over. Watch it as the woodpeckers move in to raise a family, peel back the bark to see what reptiles could be finding refuge; maybe in time you'll find that Eastern Bluebirds have moved into the former woodpecker's home. Yes, eventually, your tree will fall, but refuge will still be found by all sorts of creatures.

What is evident is that a good tree never ceases to be a good tree.