Logging legacies in the Australian tropics: 56-years of skid trail recovery

Alexandra Catling; Vitoria Derisso; Lief Erikson Gamalo; John Herbohn; Calum McRae; Matthew Mooney; Charlotte Raven; Jenny Vivian; Francis Putz

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2026.124075

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Logging legacies in the Australian tropics: 56-years of skid trail recovery

Journal article

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Logging legacies in the Australian tropics: 56-years of skid trail recovery

Alexandra Catling, Vitoria Derisso, Lief Erikson Gamalo, John Herbohn, Calum McRae, Matthew Mooney, Charlotte Raven, Jenny Vivian and Francis Putz

Forest Ecology and Management, Vol.619, pp.1-11

2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2026.124075

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Abstract

Tropical forestry

Conservation planning

Selective logging

Soil compaction

Skid trails

Recovery

Given continued selective timber harvests from >500 million ha of tropical forest, forest managers need to know about its short and long-term avoidable and unavoidable consequences. Here we focus on long-term ecological impacts from an unavoidable disturbance, the soil and vegetation damage on skid trails used for log extraction. We studied recovery of main skid trails in the Australian Wet Tropics 56-years after 86 m 3 /ha (18 trees/ha) were harvested with bulldozers. Due to use of what are now known as reduced-impact logging practices, the main skid trails covered only 3.9% of the surface area and were mostly on ridge tops. Soil bulk density fully recovered since logging, and small-statured vegetation was denser and vertebrates more common on skid trails than in adjacent forest. Most animal activity on skid trails was by feral pigs (Sus scrofa), where predatory beetles were also scarcer and less diverse than in adjacent forest. The most prominent logging legacy was the absence of trees >20 cm diameter at breast height (DBH) on main skid trails, with basal area half that of adjacent forest. Skid trails commonly supported ferns and sedges, and saplings that declined in density with skid traffic intensity, but there were no pioneers, invasive plants, lianas, or terrestrial bryophytes. Terrestrial LiDAR scans confirmed slow recovery of upper-story vegetation and higher mid-and lower-story densities on skid trails. Given the permanence of main skid trails, emphasis is needed on their planning, use, and closure to maximise the conservation contributions from managed tropical forests.

Details

Title: Logging legacies in the Australian tropics: 56-years of skid trail recovery
Authors: Alexandra Catling (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Vitoria Derisso (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Lief Erikson Gamalo (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
John Herbohn (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Calum McRae (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Matthew Mooney (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Charlotte Raven (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Jenny Vivian (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Francis Putz (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Publication details: Forest Ecology and Management, Vol.619, pp.1-11
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date published: 2026
DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2026.124075
ISSN: 1872-7042
Data Availability: Research Link Provided.
Grant note: This research was undertaken with financial support provided by the University of the Sunshine Coast. V. D. Derisso was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - Brasil (CAPES) - Finance Code 001 and thanks the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) for the grant (process #2023/15981–9).
Organisation Unit: K'gari Research Cluster; Tropical Forests and People Research Centre; Forest Industries Research Centre; School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991245300002621
Output Type: Journal article

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