ECOLOGY AND THE LAND STEWARD

A good understanding of ecology helps landowners be better land stewards.

8 TEXAS WILDLIFE FEBRUARY 2017

 ECOLOGY AND THE
LAND STEWARD
Article and Photos by STEVE NELLE
A
ll landowners are practicing
ecologists, whether they realize
it or not. Ecology is not about
hugging trees, environmental activism
or even the love of nature. Ecology is the
study of the interrelationships between
and among all parts of the environment.
These parts include the soil, water, plants,
animals and atmosphere in all of their
diverse forms. Ecology is a science—not
an emotional endeavor.
And of course, we know that ecology
includes human beings. People have great
influence over these interrelationships. We
practice good ecology when management
operates in sync with the nature’s inner
workings. We practice bad ecology
when management chronically upsets or
interrupts the natural processes. Ecology
at the farm and ranch level involves
the understanding and application of
ecological principles, ecological processes
and ecological practices.
ECOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES
There are certain general principles that
govern how nature works. These principles
apply to most situations including the
management of farms, ranches, forests,
watersheds and wildlife habitat. These
principles can be thought of as rules of
thumb for understanding ecology.
Everything is Connected
Although the various parts of nature
can each be studied separately, they
only function when they are connected
to everything else. For example, soil
can be studied to determine particle
size, aggregation, porosity, density,
structure, mineral composition, fertility,
water holding capacity and many other
attributes, but soil can only be understood
when it is studied in context with the
microorganisms that live in the soil, the
plants that grow in the soil and the animals
that feed on the plants. Studying one part
when disconnected from the others results
in an incomplete understanding.
Side Effects
Everything that is done on a piece of
land produces side effects. Some of the side
effects are predictable and well understood,
while others are still poorly understood.
Every land management practice should
be evaluated on the anticipated benefits
and the unintended consequences they
may produce. Herbicide use, mechanical
brush control, prescribed burning, high
fencing, introducing exotics, supplemental
feeding and grazing practices—these are
a few of the practices that produce side
effects. The challenging thing about side
effects is that they may behave differently
on different ranches and in different years.
Understanding and evaluating the side
effects before the practice is applied is
ecologically wise.
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 ECOLOGY AND THE LAND STEWARD
One of the strengths of TWA is the active program of education, teaching people about the ecological basis of land management which sustains the natural
resources of Texas.
Diversity Provides Stability
Natural diversity is not only a sign of healthy ecological
condition, but it also promotes improved stability. In general,
the more native plant and animal species, the more stable an
ecosystem will be. As natural diversity declines, instability
increases.
No Simple Solutions
There are numerous ecological problems facing Texas
landowners. The proliferation of exotic grasses and exotic
ungulates; over-population of white-tailed deer; subdividing
of large tracts into many smaller tracts; over-pumping of
alluvial water tables causing the drying of creeks and rivers;
and overgrazing of ranges resulting in soil erosion and loss of
native plant diversity. Ecological problems are often complex,
multifaceted and difficult to fix. The solution to a brush problem
is rarely as simple as brush control. The solution to poor soil
is not as simple as applying fertilizer. The solution to under-
developed antlers is not as simple as killing spikes or introducing
supplemental feeding. Simple solutions seldom work for complex
problems.
Resiliency
The wonderful thing about nature is that it is normally very
10 TEXAS WILDLIFE FEBRUARY 2017
resilient. There is a lot of elasticity among the parts and processes
that tend to bring things back toward a balance following
a disturbance. This is why vegetation rebounds following a
wildfire, drought, hurricane, flooding or other natural disasters.
If an ecosystem is healthy and functioning, it tends to bounce
back better after disturbances. If an ecosystem is weak and
wobbly, the resilience and elasticity is greatly reduced; it may not
bounce back very well.
Ecological Paradox
Nature sometimes plays tricks on people; what seems bad from
one perspective can actually turn out to be good from another
viewpoint. Take mesquite for example. Mesquite is a native plant
that belongs in Texas and has naturally occurred in varying
amounts for millennia. Due to mismanagement over the past
150 years, mesquite has become a severe brush problem across
millions of acres, reducing forage production and making it
difficult to manage livestock.
Many landowners still believe that the only good mesquite
is a dead mesquite. But we now know that mesquite, a legume,
enriches the soil beneath it, adding nitrogen, improving soil
structure, infiltration and organic matter content. A similar
thing happens under dense mature cedar. Although not a legume,
cedar rebuilds topsoil on severely eroded and degraded areas.
 ECOLOGY AND THE LAND STEWARD

Even though both species are viewed negatively, they both play
positive and beneficial ecological roles. Seeking to understand
brush and weed ecology should precede our attempts to control
them.
ECOLOGICAL PROCESSES
Although it is an oversimplification, there are four main
processes that govern the health of the land. Landowners have a
high degree of influence over these processes. We can cooperate
with them or we can hinder them. Although these four processes
can be described individually, they are all connected to each
other and do not function independently.

Energy Flow
Energy flow is perhaps the most fundamental process of
ecosystems. We know that the sun is the basic source of energy,
and plants are the means of converting sunlight energy into other
forms. In order for this flow of energy to function efficiently on
a piece of land, sunlight energy should be intercepted by green
leaves on as many square feet and as many days of the year as Healthy land is resilient. This well-managed ranch has responded well
possible. following the drought and wildfires of 2011.
Having only warm season plants that go dormant for five
months of the year is not an efficient use of sunlight. Maintaining
a diversity of cool season and warm season plants, including
grasses, forbs and woody plants efficiently converts sunlight into
plant energy.
Scientists have discovered that soil microbes depend on actively
photosynthesizing green plants. Soil microbes need a constant
supply of energy transported to the root system every day. Having
the greatest variety of plants including many deep rooted species
and cool season plants is the best way to feed the microbes, which
in turn keeps the soil healthy.

Water Cycle
The water cycle is another important ecological process. The basic
premise behind creating a healthy water cycle is keeping the land
covered by vegetation and plant litter, which increases the rate of
infiltration and retards runoff. Healthy soil, with high porosity,
high organic matter and good structure will absorb rainfall faster
and store more water than poor degraded soil.
With a good cover and healthy soil, rainfall is naturally
processed by the land. Some of the water is evaporated back into
the atmosphere, some is used by plants, some seeps downward
into aquifers, some comes out as springs and seeps, and some
Understanding basic ecological processes helps landowners carry out
becomes runoff to help sustain creeks, rivers and estuaries. management that keep the land healthy and productive.
A good hydrologic cover on the land can include taller grasses
mixed with forbs, shrubs, brush and trees and usually a mix of
these. Contrary to traditional belief, we now know that cedar, the soil where they can be continuously recycled. Such breakdown
mesquite and other brush species are not necessarily detrimental of plant material happens best when the dead plant tissue is in
to a good functioning water cycle. Landowners can rest assured close contact with the soil and its microbes.
that they can still be good watershed stewards when they choose Grasses that are ungrazed for long periods sometimes
to retain significant areas of moderate to thick brush. accumulate several years of standing dead leaves and stems. If
these do not decompose, they tie up important nutrients and
Mineral Cycle inhibit sunlight from reaching the green leaves. Animal impact
The mineral cycle involves the timely decomposition of dead through planned grazing is one good way to help accelerate
plant and animal material, returning essential elements back into decomposition and nutrient cycling.

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 ECOLOGY AND THE LAND STEWARD

Cattle grazing can be a good tool to promote the mineral cycle and
energy cycle by reducing the undesirable excess buildup of old dry grass.
Luke Clayton
Plant Succession
Plant succession is the fourth basic ecological process that
landowners influence by their management. Plant succession
refers to the somewhat predictable order of replacement of one
group of plants by another.
For example, when palatable tall grasses are subjected to long-
term overgrazing, these grasses decline and are replaced by less
preferred grasses. If overgrazing continues, these secondary
grasses also decline and will be replaced by even less desirable,
less productive grasses. If the process continues, you end up
with bare ground, weeds and unpalatable grasses. This form of
downward succession is called retrogression and represents a
worsening ecological condition and compromised productivity.
With good grazing management and rotational grazing, this
process can be reversed. The vegetation will go through stages of
improvement from short, unproductive grasses, to mid grasses,
and with enough time and skillful management, the range can
often be restored back to a predominance of desirable taller
grasses and forbs.
Succession and retrogression also happens with woody
plants in relation to browsing animals. Plant succession works

differently in each region of Texas, with different plants, soils and

rainfall.
Skinner

ECOLOGICAL PRACTICES
Although ecology is a complex science, the basic practices that
Nateby

support stable, healthy lands are straightforward and are being

Photo byPhoto

carried out by many Texas landowners.

One of the cardinal ecological principles is that everything is interconnected.
When management is based on ecological principles and guided by
stewardship ethics, wildlife populations will be diverse, healthy and
abundant.
1. Keep the ground covered. This includes grasses, shrubs,
trees, broadleaf forbs and a layer of plant litter and
decaying plant mulch. This is the cardinal rule of land
management. Nature hates nakedness.
2. Promote plant diversity. The first step is to learn the plants
on your land so that you will recognize diversity when you
see it. Rotational grazing at conservative, flexible stocking
rates and keeping deer and exotic numbers in balance will
promote plant diversity.
3. Moderation. Try new ideas first on a small scale; observe
and evaluate the results to see if they provide the expected
benefits.
4. Do no harm. Nature will restore healthy ecological
condition better and faster if we don’t do anything that
hinders the natural processes. Continuous grazing, high
deer numbers, indiscriminate large-scale brush control or
herbicide use, and burning under extreme conditions are
examples of management that will hinder natural recovery.
Modern ranching and wildlife management increasingly works
to cooperate with nature rather than conquer it or change it. Aldo
Leopold described the landowner as a botanical and zoological
engineer, who “lubricates the engine we call ‘Nature.’”
This is a good way to think about conservation—understanding
of ecological principles and appropriately lubricating ecological
processes with our day-to-day practices. Land stewardship
provides the inspiration, motivation and conviction to do these
things wisely.

12 TEXAS WILDLIFE FEBRUARY 2017