WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT

AND CONSERVATION

Don Barker State Wildlife Biologist USDA-NRCS

 INTRODUCTION
Objectives:

 Understand the principles of wildlife

management and how to
incorporate that into our jobs as
conservation planners.
 WHAT IS
WILDLIFE?

Wildlife traditionally refers to

undomesticated animal species, but has come to
include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area
without being introduced by humans. Wildlife can be
found in
all ecosystems. Deserts, forests, rainforests, plains, gra
sslands, and other areas, including the most
developed urban areas, all have distinct forms of
wildlife. While the term in popular culture usually
refers to animals that are untouched by human factors,
most scientists agree that much wildlife is affected
by human activities.
 WHAT IS WILDLIFE
MANAGEMENT?

 Wildlife management is the

science of manipulating habitat
to improve conditions for wildlife
resources and
man(Conservation Practices)
 1947 – A BIG YEAR FOR WILDLIFE
CONSERVATION

 Legislation created The North Carolina Resources

Commission.
 The goal of the Commission is to conserve and
sustain North Carolina’s fish and wildlife resources
through research, scientific management, wise use
and public input.
 State title to ownership of wild birds and animals.
Ownership of land does not include ownership of
wildlife.
 RESTORATION OF RESOURCES
1970’S - PRESENT

 Began to employ/
expanded numbers of
trained wildlife biologists.
 Deer and turkey
populations beginning to
increase as a result of
restoration efforts.
 FEDERAL AID TO WILDLIFE
RESTORATION FUNDS

 Pittman-Robertson Act(1937)
11% excise tax on arms and ammunition
 Provided to states on 3:1 match
 Can only be used for programs such as
wildlife management, surveys, hunter
education, species restoration, and range
development
 Gave state agencies a dependable and
consistent funding source.
 PEOPLE AND WILDLIFE SHARE
THE ENVIRONMENT

 Both need food, water, shelter, and enough space

to survive.
 All of these make up habitat.
 Is the amount of available wildlife habitat
increasing or decreasing?
 Decreasing!
 MAN’S ACTIVITIES CHANGE HABITAT.

 We have changed
the arrangement of
food, water, and
cover which has
affected habitat
quality and carrying
capacity.
 CARRYING CAPACITY

 The number of animals that a given unit of

area can support in healthy condition each
year.
 When properly done, timber
harvesting is of benefit to many
wildlife species. However,
harvesting operations should be
kept to small tracts to maximize
wildlife benefits. Good timber
management is good wildlife habitat.
(CP666 or CP647)

Generally speaking, habitat quality

improves with the degree of
interspersion of habitat types. A
single aged mono-typical forest is
of poor habitat quality and low
carrying capacity. (Pine Plantation)
 DO ALL WILDLIFE SPECIES REQUIRE
THE SAME FOOD AND SHELTER?

 No
 Each species has particular needs for food and shelter.
 For example, gray squirrels require mature forest habitat
with a large portion of mast(nuts and berries) producing
trees.
 Bobwhite quail require early successional habitat such as
weedy borders that provide nesting cover, insects, seeds
and other food sources.
 PRINCIPLES OF WILDLIFE
MANAGEMENT
1. Wildlife management must be based on fact.
2. Man affects wildlife.
3. Management must help the habitat to benefit
wildlife populations.
4. Conservation is the wise use of resources. Using
Conservation practices to improve an area
Preservation is the non-consumptive use of
resources. Long Term Easements
DEFINING WILDLIFE
HABITATS
 WHAT ARE THE
DIFFERENT HABITATS
FOR WILDLIFE?
 Habitat for animal wildlife can be classified based on
ecosystems.
 Ecosystems are in areas known as biomes. A biome is a
large area with a distinct combination of animals and
plants. There are five kinds of terrestrial biomes found in
the United States.
 BIOMES OF THE WORLD

 Tropical
 Temperate Forest
 Grasslands
 Tundra and Taiga
 Desert
 BIOMES OF THE WORLD

 Tropical areas are near the equator.

Typically, they are those in forest or
grassland with high temperatures.
 Temperate forest habitats cover much of the southern
U.S. and occupy many pine trees. The precipitation
varies from moderate to heavy. Berries, acorns, fruit,
and cones are produced for squirrel, deer, rabbit, and
quail.
 Grasslands and savannas host the predominant
vegetation of grass. The precipitation is too low to
support trees. There are many grazing animals such as
deer, elk, and bison, and many other small rodents,
reptiles, and birds.
 Tundra and taiga are both cold climates found in North America.
 Tundra is in the Arctic area or at other high elevations. Tundra is
characterized by low temperatures and permafrost. Permafrost is
permanently frozen ground. Many lichens, mosses, a few shrubs, and
some grasses grow in tundra.
 Taiga areas have large conifer forests that can withstand low temperatures
and heavy loads of snow.
 A desert is a sandy area with very dry habitat with little or no
rain. Temperatures range from very hot to very cold. Moist areas
may grow shrubs or scrub trees.
 THERE ARE FOUR AQUATIC BIOMES
THAT MAY INVOLVE FRESHWATER,
SALTWATER, OR BRACKISH WATER
HABITATS.

 Lakes and ponds are natural or artificial

reservoirs of earth that usually hold freshwater.
 The water temperatures vary with the surrounding
climate and source of the water. Algae, insects, and
other small creatures are sources of food for fish,
shellfish, and other aquatic wildlife.
 A stream is flowing water that moves from higher to lower elevation.
 Some of this water is from ground runoff, springs, or released by users. Creeks are
small streams; rivers are large streams.
 Oceans and seas result from the flow of freshwater streams into their saltwater
body. Some species prefer the mix of fresh and saltwater as habitats, called
brackish water.
 Wetlands and estuaries have a big effect on land areas and serve as important
habitats for some species of animal wildlife.
 Swamps and marshes are wetland area along inland streams. Many kinds of
waterfowl use these areas. An estuary is the area where a stream flows into an
ocean. The wildlife that live in an estuary can tolerate both freshwater and
brackish water.
 WHAT ARE THE HABITAT
REQUIREMENTS
FOR WILDLIFE?

 All living organisms require food.

 Food provides the nutrients needed to
live, grow, and reproduce.
 FOOD PREFERENCES

 Deer and other herbivores have feeding patterns.

 These patterns are called Food Preferences.
 Wildlife preferences can be put in four categories.
 FOUR FOOD PREFERENCE
CATEGORIES
 Preferred- animals first choice, but not always available for
consumption(CP 420, CP 386)
 Staple- foods eaten regularly that meet the animals
nutritional needs(CP 420, CP 340)
 Emergency- meet animals short term needs, eaten when
staple foods are absent
 Stuffers- low nutrition, only eaten because there is no other
available food
FOODS
 HABITAT

 Whitetail deer require

640 acres with a mixture
of trees, plants and
shrubs for food and
cover, and a source of
water.
WHAT ARE THE STAGES
OF HABITAT
SUCCESSION?
 A habitat does not remain the same over time. It
progresses from a stage where there is just bare
ground to a stage where there are mature trees.
This process is called habitat succession and
takes many years to happen.
 The first stage is bare ground. As the name implies,
this stage is characterized by ground with no
vegetation.
 In the next stage in succession, annual forbs and
grasses replace bare ground. Forbs are low growing
broadleaf plants. An annual is a plant that completes
its life cycle in one year.
 Stage three consists of perennial forbs and grasses. A perennial is
a plant that lives for several years.
 In stage four, shrubs are the dominant type of plant. Shrubs are
medium height plants that consist of many woody stems, as
opposed to a single trunk like a tree.
 The next stage consists of young trees and woodland.
 The last stage, often called the climax stage, consists of large,
mature trees. This stage usually will last for very long periods of
time. Occasionally, these large trees die (perhaps from fire,
logging, etc.), which will cause the habitat to move back to one of
the other stages. Depending on the geographic location or
climate, the climax stage may be reached in stage three, four, or
five.
 WHAT IS HABITAT MIX?

 Many animal wildlife species require

more than one stage of succession in their
habitat.
 Interspersion supports a greater variety of
wildlife.
 Interspersion is mixing lots of different
stages within an area.
 Without dispersal, animals have limited
access.
 Edge is a concept also known as ecotone.
 Edge is the area where two habitats meet.
 Habitats with a large amount of edge provide more food,
water, and cover for a variety of species than areas of the
same vegetation type.

Great opportunity on cropland and some pastureland to

increase the quality of the habitat.
 WHAT ARE THE GOALS OF
HABITAT PRODUCTION?

 Habitat management influences the kinds and diversity

of species attracted to the area.
 The first basic goal of wildlife habitat management is to
provide a habitat for a specific wildlife species.

 Most habitat is managed for a featured species or for species

richness.
 WHAT ARE THE GOALS OF
HABITAT PRODUCTION?

When managing a habitat for a featured species, it is important

to manage a habitat to provide for the needs that are in shortest
supply. This may be water, food, or cover.
In selecting habitat management practices, the effects of
practices on species other than the featured species should be
identified. We don’t want to have a negative impact on another
species.
 The second basic goal is to provide habitats for many
different wildlife species.
 1. Species richness is the number of different species found
in an area.
 2. The following are a part of the wildlife management plan
to promote species rich-ness: a mixture of successional stages
is present; unbroken block sizes are of 10 to 40 acres; the
edges have high contrast; and a wide variety of vegetation
layers is present within each area containing only one
successional stage.
 3. When managing habitat for species richness, the goal is to
provide some habitat for as many species as possible.
 WHAT ARE SOME SELECTED
MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
FOR SMALL AREAS OF
HABITAT?

 There are several practices used in managing habitats for wildlife.

The major practices include:
 Vegetation management is using practices that promote the
growth of desired plant species.(314/315)
 Vegetation management can involve removing understory
to promote habitat for large animals. Understory is the
vegetation that grows beneath trees in a woodland.
MGT. PRACTICES CONTINUED

 Creating clearings is done by clear-cutting small areas within

thickly-wooded areas to attract deer, small game animals and
songbirds. Clear-cut means that all the trees in an area are cut.
 Thinning an area is done by selectively removing some of
the trees in a wooded area.
 This creates holes in the tree canopy and allows more room for
smaller trees to grow.
 Establishing food plots by seeding promotes wildlife populations into an area if it
is addressing a need that is lacking.
 Seeding is used to increase the plant population.
 Using species preferred food helps target desired populations into an area.
 Some common plants used in seeding include: grasses, forbs, and trees.
 Try to increase the plant diversity in the area
 Animals must have water sources in order to live.
 Ponds, streams, and even lakes are good sources of water for many types of wildlife
animals.
 It is important to keep these areas free of pollution in order to insure a healthy
population.
 Carefully planned fires are a benefit to habitat growth.
 Fires should never be used in dry areas because wildfires can develop.
 Firebreaks are areas void of vegetation(bare ground) or areas that are green during the
prescribed fire and they outline the fire in order to assure that it is controlled.
 Fire removes twigs, leaves, and other dead vegetation on the ground that has
accumulated over the years.
 Properly using fire helps to renew understory and allows for browse to grow and
increase herbaceous plant diversity.
Thinned and Burned
WILDLIFE HABITAT

Objective: Describe the basic requirements for

wildlife species and explain methods to
improve habitat for and wildlife.
 HABITAT

 Each species of wildlife requires a specific environment or

habitat in which to live.
 Forest and farm owners must be aware of those parts of the
environment that wildlife need to survive and reproduce in
order to properly manage land for wildlife.
 HABITAT

 Wildlife have specific requirements including Food, Cover,

Water and Space.
 These components must be arranged in an accessible
fashion.
 These four components must be present in sufficient
quantity and quality in the species home range.
 HABITAT

 Whitetail deer require

640 acres with a
mixture of trees,
plants and shrubs for
food and cover, and a
source of water.
 FOOD

 Food is an obvious components for wildlife habitat.

 Animals with enough food and proper nutrition are larger
and healthier.
 Well nourished wildlife have higher reproductive rates,
produce healthier offspring, are more disease resistant, and
better able to escape predators.
 FOOD

 On the other hand animals

without food have low
reproductive rates and are
highly susceptible to
disease.
 If disease depletes the
population of small
mammals predators may
starve
 COVER

 Cover is a habitat component that provides the protection

necessary for the animals survival and reproduction.
 It provides shelter from bad weather and escape or screen
while they feed, rest, and care for their young.
 COVER

 Cover is very important and relates to the functional needs

of the animal.
 Quail need about 40% forest, 50% cropland/pasture, and
10% brushy thicket.
 Quail numbers have dropped in the southeast due to
changes in the availability of cover.
 One potential cause is large scale clean farming. We have
depleted the brushy/unkept areas that they used for
escape/nesting/brood habitat.
 COVER

 Prescribed burning
clears out the
underbrush in the
forest and promotes
new fresh growth
that can be used for
food. Timing of the
burn will promote
different vegetation.
Summer/Winter
 COVER

 Patch burning is an
alternative in which small
patches are burned off
instead of the whole forest
 COVER

 Some animals can use any type of cover, like opossums.

They can live in cities, dumps, or farmland.
 Other animals are more selective, however many of these
can benefit from the same cover.
 Rabbits, birds, and ground nesting wildlife will all benefit
from cover established for quail.
 TYPES OF BRUSH
PILES

 There are many different

types of brush piles
 Could be logs, brush,
rocks, junk, fallen trees, or
a combination of these.
(649 Structures for
Wildlife)
 WATER

 Animals need water for digestion, metabolism, and

cooling off.
 Around 80% of an animal’s body is water. It is clear
that water is very important.
 In North Carolina springs creeks, rivers, and farm
ponds generally provide enough water.
 Some animals get their water from lush vegetation
which has a high water content.
 Also small mammals get water from morning dew.
WATER SOURCES
 SPACE

 Each species requires a certain amount of space. The space

in which an animal lives is often called it’s home range.
 There are many factors that determine how much space a
wildlife species needs.
 DETERMINING FACTORS FOR
SPACE

 Body Size- bigger animals require more space

 Dietary Practices- Carnivores require more space than
herbivores
 Carrying Capacity- the amount of wildlife the land will
support(low/high)
 Mobility- some animals travel long distances
 Territorial Behavior- some animals will share territory,
others will not
 ARRANGEMENT OF
HABITAT COMPONENTS

 Interspersion- mixing of forest, pasture, and cropland.

Creates Horizontal Habitat Diversity.
 Vertical Layering- different layers at which plants grow.
Creates Vertical Habitat Diversity.
 Edge- a boundary at which two different plant
communities meet. Like forest and pasture.
 Ecotone- the mixture or transition of the two habitats
 EDGE ADAPTED SPECIES

 Edges are great wildlife habitat, many species prefer these

areas.
 These species include rabbits, quail, robins and the
common flicker.
EDGE ADAPTED SPECIES
 IMPROVING
HABITAT

 First evaluate the existing conditions.

 Does your farm or forest have cover, food, water, and
space?(single species or species richness)
 Are there any edges and ecotones?(forest/cropland)
 Are there vertical and horizontal layers in the forest?
(midstory and understory)
 Are there thickets and brush piles for rabbits and quail?
 IMPROVING HABITAT

 After your evaluation,

make improvements to the
areas which need work.
(Food, Water, Shelter,
Cover)
 For example you might
want to plant the edge of a
field to NWSG for cover
and brood habitat.
 IMPROVING HABITAT

 Old fence rows make good

cover.
 If there are no fence rows
you could make a brush
pile.
 IMPROVING
HABITAT

 Do you have an
overstocked pine forest
that needs thinning? (666
Forest Stand
Improvement)
 Great opportunity to
discuss with LO to get
FMP or FSP.
 IMPROVING
HABITAT

 Landowners and participants can make a great impact on

their habitat by simply understanding what they have and
what it the potential of their land.

 You as planners can help them see the potential and the
limitations.
 VARY WHAT YOU DO!!

 Be creative, keep records and experiment.

 Different stand shapes & sizes.(break up large blocks into more
management areas)
 Different stand treatments(fire/herbicide or combination).
 FIRE, FIRE, FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!!!!!!
 Talk with LO conversations are the key to success.
Don Barker
State Wildlife Biologist
Don.Barker@USDA.GOV
919-722-9727 Cell
919-873-2112 Office(currently FWD to Cell)