Physical and biological aspects of two second growth streams of southeast Alaska’s Prince of Wales Island were compared to two similar old growth systems using data collected 25-30 years after logging.  Several comparisons were drawn to data collected 5-10 years after logging.  Comparisons focused upon 1) the amount and distribution of large woody debris (LWD) in and around the channel, 2) the distribution and characteristics of pool and riffle habitat, 3) the abundance and composition of the invertebrate drift community, and 4) the composition of juvenile coho diet.

Thirty years after logging, despite excessive inputs of LWD during logging, accelerated depletion of wood from small second growth streams had resulted in LWD levels comparable to levels found in old growth reference sites.  Pool and riffle structure were found to be similar among old growth and second growth streams.

Macroinvertebrate communities of the four study streams displayed differences in composition and abundance, though few trends were seen between second growth and old growth study streams.  Similar trends among streams between 1997 macroinvertebrate drift community data and 1979 drift data, gathered 5-10 years after logging, may indicate relative stability in the macroinvertebrate communities of these small second growth streams, even shortly after logging.  High variability of invertebrate composition and abundance among study streams during all sample years implied that other watershed variables may play a large role in shaping these stream communities.

Examination of stomach contents of juvenile coho salmon (Oncorhyncus kisutch) in old growth and second growth reaches found little difference in feeding preference of juveniles in different forest types.  In both old growth and second growth settings, juvenile coho showed a preference for prey found high in the water column.

The likelihood of low recruitment of LWD from the second growth riparian, coupled with the likelihood of continued accelerated loss of LWD from second growth streams, may warrant the addition of LWD to these second growth streams over the next two decades, in an effort to provide and stabilize valuable spawning and rearing habitat for juvenile salmonids and maintain a variety of habitat for macroinvertebrate colonization