Assisted Migration Adaptation Trial

Approximately 275 million seedlings are planted in British Columbia each year. When those trees are harvested 60 to 80 years after they are planted, the climate could be 3 or 4 degrees warmer than when the seedlings were planted, exposing the trees to maladaptation and health risks.

Consequently, government researchers have initiated a large, long-term climate change research study: the Assisted Migration Adaptation Trial (AMAT). The AMAT helps forest managers understand tree species’ climate tolerances so they can select seedlots best adapted to current and future climates.

AMAT Test Site and Seed Source Locations as of December 2013

Design

Seeds from 15 species growing in B.C. and neighbouring American states were planted between 2009 and 2012 at 48 reforestation sites from northern California to southern Yukon.

The growth and health of the seedlings will be monitored and related to the climate of the plantations, enabling researchers to identify the seed sources most likely to be best adapted to current and future climates. The information will be used to revise B.C.’s species and seed source selection guidelines, helping to ensure maximum health and productivity of planted forests well into the future.

Species ID	Common Name	Latin Name
Bl	sub-alpine fir	Abies lasiocarpa
Ba	amabilis fir	Abies amabilis
Bg	grand fir	Abies grandis
Cw	western redcedar	Thuja plicata
Cy	yellow cedar	Callitropsis nootkatensis
Hw	western hemlock	Tsuga heterophylla
At	trembling aspen	Populus tremuloides
Ep	paper birch	Betula papyrifera
Ss	Sitka spruce	Picea sitchensis
Sx	interior spruce	Picea glauca X P. engelmannii
Lw	western larch	Larix occidentalis
Fd	Douglas-fir	Pseudotsuga menziesii
Pli	lodgepole pine	Pinus contorta
Pw	white pine	Pinus monticola
Py	ponderosa pine	Pinus ponderosa