Download Habitat, a biological definition - Oregon State University Extension

Dana Sanchez
Extension Wildlife Specialist
Assoc. Prof. in Dept. of Fisheries and Wildlife
[email protected]
http://fw.oregonstate.edu/content/extension-wildlife
extension.oregonstate.edu
Habitat, a biological definition
Habitat is the combination of factors
• biotic
• abiotic
necessary to produce
– Occupancy, survival, and reproduction by members of a
given species
1
Needs provided by habitat:
•
•
•
•
Food
Water
Cover
Other species-specific needs
Conflicts arise when:
• Animals get into & occupy structures
• Animals eat what we don’t want them to:
– Ornamentals
– Personal food
– Production crops (plant or animal)
• Animals cause structural damage or loss
– Structures or crops
• Animals pose a physical risk
– direct or indirect
2
Basic tactics to avoid & manage
conflicts
•
•
•
•
Block
Deter
Remove the animal(s)
Change the game –
– Remove the “draw” or increase the risks/costs to
the animal
Thinking about animals in space
Home range
of an individual
Range or
location of
a local
population
Geographic range of the species
(pygmy rabbit, Brachylagus idahoensis)
Is shaded in gray.
Selection of
specific resources
within a home
range
3
Thinking about animals in time:
Ground squirrels as an example of seasonality
When to Use Specific Controls
based upon activity periods and food sources of the California Ground Squirrel
Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall
Major activity periods
Adult
Reproduction
Juveniles
Major food sources
Green forage
Seeds
Best time for control
Fumigation
Baiting
Trapping
What critters might we host: Think about the
perils of fragmentation & too much edge
• Reduced interior area
• Increased edge area
• Incursion of exterior conditions
in the interior
• Increased permeability of
interior to predators,
competitors, invasives
• Species-specific minimum patch
size may be lost
• Lost connectivity among patches
4
Big drivers of spatial and resource selection
• FOOD, FOOD, FOOD
– Win the game by maximizing your diet quality
– Evolution gave you (animal) mental, visual, & olfactory “search
images” that make it so you will recognize food and food quality
– Evolution also equipped you with teeth, senses, behaviors, and
digestive systems to deal with a wide or narrow range of foods
• Omnivores
• Generalist herbivores
• Specialist herbivores
• Carnivores, including insectivores:
– specialization dictated by body size and equipment
• Other specialists: Pollen-, nectar-, fruit-, etc.
Food for Wildlife
• Plant native food sources when possible
• Supplement food?
– Example, bird feeders
– Where’s the cover? Think seasonal needs:
– Example: See the Xerces Society’s website on
native pollinators
http://www.xerces.org/pollinator-conservation/gardens/
5
Water for Wildlife
• Provide sources year round
• Bird baths, ponds, creeks, wetlands
**Beware of what else comes to water
–Invasive species concerns
–Mosquito breeding risk
Big drivers of animal behavior
• FOOD vs. safety
– “landscape of fear” for prey animals
– Costs of violating territories
• Mates & conspecifics
6
Habitat Arrangement
Structure:
Complex can be good!
“hard” vs. “soft” edges
7
Types of cover
•Hiding
or escape cover
•Thermal
•Reproductive and/or
structures for reproductive
activities (e.g., nests)
Ecological traps
• It “looks” like habitat or a resource to an
animal, but either:
– Something crucial is missing
– Something is present that reduces or prevents survival and
reproduction
• Animals don’t “know” that it is a trap
• Animals falling victim to ecological traps are
lost from the population:
– abundance, genes, connectivity of populations
8
How do you prevent & manage wildlife
conflicts?
• Learn about the life cycle of wildlife species
• Assess your level of tolerance, resources, and
possible neighborhood solutions
• Think ahead and implement exclusionary measures
for long-term success
• Use multiple tools tailored to your situation
Assessment
• Are there health or safety concerns?
• How serious is the problem?
- insignificant, tolerable, beyond acceptable
• What is the context?
- For example is the problem limited to certain seasons?
– Scale (your yard, your neighborhood, focal path or
resource)
• Is the conflict or problem likely to reoccur?
9
When you need help:
Your District Bio and Wildlife Control Operators
• Call ODFW HQ with your address to get District Biologist
contact info: 800-720-6339 or 503-947-6000
• WCOs are trained and licensed by OR Dept. of Fish and
Wildlife
• Private individuals/companies that charge for services
• Check for locale, specialties, estimates
• http://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/license_permits_apps/wildl
ife_control_operator_contacts.asp
Blibbler, 2003
Joseph Blowers, White River
Canyon, OR 2014
10
Prevent the conflict:
An excellent solution, when possible
• Institute exclusion solutions before the problems develop
– Primary access point
– Border of entire area
– Around specific area of concern
• Keep all food and garbage indoors or in wildlife-proof
containers
• Do not leave pet food out unattended
• Don’t leave any foodstuff (living or non living) unattended
• Consider short- and long-term solutions. Remember that
hazing and/or trapping are only temporary solutions
Why not just move them?
• Low survival
– Intra-specific aggression
– Vulnerable to predation
– Homing behavior = risks along the way
– Likely to starve, do poorly
• Disrupt resident population of natives
• *Moving non-native invasives
• Illegal in many cases
• Disease transmission
• Ethical issue of “moving the problem”
11
Raccoons: A case study in applying
the basic tactics
Prevent the conflict:
Do not leave pet food out –
It creates an excellent invitation!
How to keep raccoons out
• Install hardware cloth
– bury at least 6 inches down and 6 inches out from the building
• Replace and reinforce damaged screen vents
• Keep crawl spaces tightly covered
• Secure pet doors at night or use electronic pet doors. Use
one-way doors.
• Secure openings in chimney caps
• Adopt a noisy dog* to patrol the yard
12
Fencing out deer family members
•
Should be a minimum of
6 ½ feet tall
•
Consider building to 8’
high
•
Metal fences are longerlasting and sturdier than
polypropylene
•
Also:
–
–
–
Consider height
Topography
Maintenance
A single electric wire along the top
discourages deer from jumping over
Charge has to be on for it to work
Fence excludes predators as well
Maintain bottom edge of fence: Fill
in openings > 6”
13
Deter by taste
• Commercial products are
available
– Most need reapplication
after rain
– Vary in effectiveness
• *Non-commercial options
may be available
(hydrolyzed casein)
• Check out the research by
APHIS - A great source of
current research!
Scarecrows – localized deterrence
 Motion activated water deterrent
 Element of surprise
 Can be effective against birds,
deer, turkeys
 May need multiple scarecrows to
cover your garden area
 Assess foot traffic and wind…
 Must maintain battery or solar
panel
14
Hazing: Deter with shock and awe
• Water scarecrows
• Rubber bullets (permit from ODFW)
• Bangers, screamers, shell-crackers,
propane cannons.
• Need a permit from State Fire Marshal,
signed by ODFW biologists.
• Call Oregon State Fire Marshal at:
(503) 373-1871, x272 or x274
Species ID matters when removing animals:
Gophers
Moles
Botta’s pocket gopher; Photo by
Skip Russell, CCL 2010
Photo by: Guaranteed Pest Control,
http://guaranteedpestcontrol.net/identify_your_pest/roden
ts/moles.htm
15
Removing animals: Toxicants as tools
• READ THE LABEL. FOLLOW THE LABEL.
• Fumigants or gas cartridges, when lit, burn through rodent
tunnels producing carbon monoxide which kill rodents.
• Please keep in mind secondary impacts of pesticides, because
chemicals have no knowledge of what has swallowed them.
– Improper application of zinc phosphide bait for voles kills
1000s to >10,000 geese per event – Usually 1-2 events per
year in OR
– If rodents are likely to have sub lethal doses of toxicants
onboard, think about what other (living) tools you’re trying
to employ (Your dog? Owls? Hawks? Foxes? Etc.)
Keep Wildlife WILD!
16
Let’s not love wildlife to death:
Habituation can be deadly, damaging, and
dangerous
• “Fed bears are dead bears”
• A wild animal is always a wild animal
• Habituation often centers on food
– Decreased fear of humans
– Increased aggressiveness for food or space
– Competition/elimination of domestic “competitors”
– Disease or waste products
– Prey species attract predators
SQUEAL ON PIGS!
888-268-9219
http://www.dfw.state.or.us/conservationstrategy/invasive_species/feral_swine.asp
17
Steps to opportunity enhancement
• Discover what exists and where
• Keep species and scale in mind
•
•
•
•
•
– Mapping can help: structures, soil, light, existing
vegetation
Evaluate
– What are the possibilities?
Visualize and sketch
Strategize
– Time, energy, $, and scale
Implement!
**Keep an eye to NOT CREATING ecological traps or
advancing invasions
18