Conservation in a Call: Harnessing the Beauty of Blue-Stain Timber

In the spring of 2023, the NWTF launched an ambitious pilot program as a part of the 20- year national master stewardship agreement with the USDA Forest Service. This program, referred to as the Timber Transport Pilot, aimed to tackle the ongoing wildfire crisis in the western United States, while also contributing to the conservation of wild turkey habitat in the West.

From this work, a call was born that captures both our passion for the hunt and the conservation of the wild turkey. The NWTF will launch this custom-made pot call, crafted in collaboration with WoodHaven Custom Calls, in 2025. It will be an exclusive piece of the banquet package, a collection of outdoorscentric products available for auction at more than 1,100 NWTF banquets nationwide. This exclusive pot call features a sound chamber made from premium teak wood and a custom blue-stain timber sound board that is connected to the Timber Transport Pilot and Rocky Mountain Restoration Initiative habitat work in the West. The call will also feature a crystal surface and a hickory striker, and will proudly display the NWTF’s feather logo.

Northern California, including the Klamath National Forest, is known for devastating wildfires, a problem exacerbated by forests that are densely packed with trees. Previous Forest Service reports found that numerous areas within the Klamath National Forest have tree densities exceeding 500 trees per acre. This results in interlocked crowns and stunted growth, leading to suppressed and weakened trees. Consequently, these trees become highly susceptible to stress and mortality caused by insects and diseases. The presence of these small ladder fuels, combined with the accumulation of ground fuels from fallen dead trees, significantly increases the risk of catastrophic wildfires.

In total, approximately 6,000 acres of work was completed to enhance wildlife habitat, improve forest health, reduce wildfire fuel loads and increase the hunting and recreation value within the national forest. Under the Wildfire Crisis Strategy, the Timber Transport Pilot was tested as an innovative method for addressing the challenges posed by overstocked forests. This pilot program focused on transporting sawlogs from areas with an excess supply of timber to regions equipped with sawmilling infrastructure.

Before the harvested logs were transported by rail to Wyoming, they were first sent to Gilchrist Forest Products in Oregon for debarking. This crucial step was taken to prevent the spread of forest insects, such as the western bark beetle, five-spined ips beetle and California flatheaded borer. These insects pose significant threats by causing tree mortality and decreasing the economic value of harvested timber. Debarking the logs before transport ensured that these pests were eliminated.

Bark beetles carry a blue-stain fungus from tree to tree. As these insects bore into the wood, the fungus begins to grow inside it. This fungus discolors the wood with a distinct blue tint, marking the presence of the infection and often leading to further deterioration of the tree’s health.

Once the beetle kills a tree, it becomes known as dead-standing timber. If harvested within five years, industry can still use the tree for wood products and sequester its carbon storage. However, if the trees are not harvested within this timeframe, they eventually fall and begin to decay. This process transforms them into vast amounts of kindling within our forests.

Timely harvesting of dead standing timber is crucial not only for maintaining forest health but also for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and reducing wildfire risks. This underscores the critical importance of the implementation of the Timber Transport Pilot, particularly emphasizing the need for an expedited restoration process.

Blue stain can also result from wildfire-burned landscapes, where the heat causes the discoloration, said Tom Spezze, NWTF national director of field conservation and state policy. This staining occurs at the tree’s cambium layer, which is the tree’s nutrient transport system. Both heat-induced blue stain and beetle-induced blue stain are symptoms of warming/drought conditions, poor forest stand health or inadequate forest management leading to intense and frequent wildfires.

In areas like Colorado, where the Rocky Mountain Restoration Initiative focuses on restoring priority wildfire landscapes, the NWTF has sourced blue-stained spruce from wildfire-affected areas. This effort helps remove excess fuels from the landscape, store carbon and supply timber to mills in need.

Many consumers notice the bluish discoloration in blue-stain timber and become concerned that the wood is moldy. However, it is important to understand that the blue stain is not mold. This blue staining does not pose any health risks and the wood remains safe to handle.

This blue-stain wood is of less commercial economic value due to the grading guidelines set up by markets. Boards milled from blue-stain timber are usually graded as lower quality and have less value than bright or green boards. Blue stain is also harvested for low value biomass (such as particle board or pellets), simply to remove it from the forest.

“From a forest management perspective, blue stain tells a story,” said Patt Dorsey, NWTF director of conservation in the West. “Beetles are native and a natural component of western forests, but beetle epidemics indicate stressed trees and unhealthy forests.”

The upside is that there can also be positives to blue-stain timber, and in some markets the aesthetic is sought after.

“If you get enough blue stain and it can be sorted and put into a pattern, there can be an added value product,” said Dan Buehler, resource manager for Neiman Enterprises Inc., a timber production company that focuses on forest health.

Beyond its origins and impact on tree health, blue-stain timber represents a broader narrative of resilience and transformation. Through projects like the Timber Transport Pilot, blue stain timber becomes a tangible marker of progress, embodying the NWTF’s commitment to sustaining both forest ecosystems and the wildlife that depend on them. This wood, marked by its distinctive color, carries with it the story of a landscape’s struggle and recovery, and the collaborative efforts to turn adversity into opportunity.

During this project, 2,746 acres of forest products were harvested and processed into boards by Devils Tower Forest Products in Hulett, Wyoming. If these salvaged trees had not been milled, they would have been left to accumulate and eventually burned, releasing even more carbon into the atmosphere. By milling the timber, the NWTF has effectively captured and stored carbon, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions and supporting broader conservation and climate goals.

Each WoodHaven Custom Calls pot call, interwoven with blue staining in the pine or spruce soundboard directly under the see-through crystal surface, auctioned at NWTF banquets in 2025 will tell the story of forest restoration and habitat enhancement. These blue-stain calls are an artifact of a poor forest stand condition and a reminder of the NWTF’s engagement across the country to address forest health issues, reduce wildfire risks, and repurpose what might be considered waste into valuable resources.

Each call will come with a unique plaque for display, showcasing the individual call number along with the NWTF and WoodHaven logos. This collectible item will highlight the craftsmanship of WoodHaven Custom Calls and symbolize the NWTF’s innovative use of the Timber Transport Pilot to move wood resources long distances in confronting the wildfire crisis.