Although use of coarse woody debris (CWD) by herpetofauna and shrew species has been well documented in the Pacific Northwest and southern Appalachian Mountain regions of the United States, little information exists regarding the importance of CWD to herpetofaunal and shrew assemblages in pine forests of the southeastern Coastal Plain. Furthermore, few manipulative studies have assessed response to increased CWD volume. The primary objective of my study was to assess the response of herpetofauna and shrews to CWD manipulations in upland loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) stands of the South Carolina Coastal Plain physiographic region as part of an interdisciplinary study undertaken to better understand the ecological role of CWD in southeastern pine forests.
