Retention of wooded ecosystems and plant and lichen diversity on a First Nations Reserve compared to three other land uses in the Central Boreal Mixed-wood of northeast Alberta, Canada

Abstract

This thesis represents the first inquiry into the retention of wooded ecosystems and plant and lichen diversity in a First Nation compared to three other land use units within the boreal mixed-wood of Canada. Forest retention was highest in the Provincial Park, followed by the Métis Settlement and the First Nations Reserve, as compared to the surrounding agro-environment. The Park stands were mostly coniferous yet stands in all other land use units were predominantly deciduous. The First Nation was primarily unforested. The Park site housed two distinct forest types, accounting for the highest floral diversity levels. Next to the Park, fragmentation metrics in the Settlement were most favourable to the protection of regional diversity and the First Nation plots contributed the most rare species. We conclude that forest stands in the two aboriginal land use units offer valuable contributions to the flora of the region.