Forest management is the maintenance and management of not only trees in the forest, but also streams, habitat, watersheds, and even decaying trees or logs on the forest floor . Managing our forests is not only important for wildlife, but also for our future economy and way of life. We must continue to save Oregon's forests and help the ecosystems within them because humans are part of the ecosystem too. By using forest management, some species of wildlife can be helped. Some bird species, such as the pileated woodpecker, require large obstacles to build nest cavities(7). But the worst approach to preserving a wide diversity of species would be to manage every hectare of forest the same way. Any change in forest habitat creates “winners”; and “losers.”; As forests go through natural cycles of growth, death, and regeneration, species may inhabit or be absent from a given area partly in response to natural changes in the structure of trees and other forest vegetation (4). The same happens when forest stands are managed by humans. Unless future credible research indicates otherwise, efforts should be made to manage a wide range of forest structures. The best way to preserve diversity would be to use a wider range of management tools. These would include harvesting on federal lands – not simply thinning – and increasing commitment to old-growth features on private forest lands through techniques such as maintaining large trees and snags. As long as federal lands are substantially committed to providing late successional habitat, private forest lands can be substantially committed to younger and more intensively managed stands, provided critical habitat features are available. Federal lands make up more than 50-60% of the forests in Oregon(3). Because timber harvest is now dramatically reduced on federal lands, such lands represent a sizable and well-distributed pool of both old-growth forests and forests that may become old-growth, providing habitat for those species associated with old-growth forests. While much of the federal land is committed to supporting species that require old-growth plants, the difficult question remains: How much is enough? Leaving these forests completely unharvested causes unacceptable large-scale insect infestations and catastrophic fires (6). Because federal lands comprise nearly 50-60% of Oregon's forests, practices on these lands have a major impact on forest-dwelling vertebrates (2). These lands are well distributed throughout the state. Private land ownership represents approximately 40% of state forests(5). Of this private property, over half is industrial property and the rest is held mainly by small forest owners(7). Since 1992, harvesting on federal lands has declined dramatically.