Two-age silviculture is of conservation significance because
early-successional habitat is provided for species
declining regionally, and in extensively-forested landscapes,
managed areas are becoming increasingly important for
early-successional species (Yahner, 2003; Fink et al., 2006).
Additionally, young two-age harvests are used by mature-forest
species, and species richness and abundance of late-successional
species increase as these stands mature. However,
early-successional bird abundance drops greatly over time,
especially in two-age harvests. Thus, if management for
early-successional species is desirable, shorter rotations are
needed to revert land back to a suitable vegetative structure
(which is lost after 10–15 years). Miller et al. (1995) suggested
that shorter rotations are also desirable from a forest management
perspective, because this increases the quality and
regeneration of trees within two-age stands.