Download Intro to Wildlife Management

WILDLIFE
MANAGEMENT
UNIT 11
Introduction to Environmental and
Agricultural Sciences
Characteristics of Wildlife
• Wildlife — animals that are adapted to live in
a natural environment without the help of
humans.
• Vertebrates
– Vertebrate — animal with a backbone.
• Wildness
• Allows the animal to survive without interference
or help from humans.
• Contributes to human interest for hunting, fishing,
bird watching and wildlife photography.
Characteristics of Wildlife
• Must be able to adapt to whatever they have in
terms of food and the environment or they will
perish
• Must possess natural senses that allow them to
avoid predators and other dangers
– Predators — animals that feed on small or
weaker animals.
– Prey — animal eaten by another animal
• Ability to avoid over-population
– Wildlife can naturally avoid over-population by establishing
and defending territories.
– The stress of over-population can cause some animals to slow
or stop reproducing altogether.
Types of Wildlife
Relationships
• Parasitism
• Parasitism — one type of wildlife living and feeding on another
without killing it.
• Wood ticks, which can live on almost any warm-blooded animal
– Warm-blooded animals — animals with the ability to regulate their
body temperature.
• Mutualism
• Mutualism — two types of wildlife living together for the mutual
benefit of both.
• Tick picker birds that pick ticks off wildlife for nourishment.
• Plant seeds that will germinate only after having passed through
the digestive tract of a specific bird or animal.
Types of Wildlife
Relationships
• Predation
• Predation — a way of life where one type of wildlife
eats another type.
• Foxes keep down populations of rodents & other
small animals.
• Commensalism
• Commensalism — one type of wildlife living in, on, or
with another without either harming or helping it.
• Vultures waiting to feed on the leftovers from another
animal’s kill.
Types of Wildlife
Relationships
• Competition
• Competition — two types of wildlife eating the same
source of food.
• Foxes and owls compete for rodents & other small
animals.
Relationships Between
Predators and Prey
• When predators are in abundance, prey
becomes scarce because of overfeeding.
Predators
Prey
• When prey becomes scarce, predators may
starve or move to other areas.
Prey
Predators
• This allows the population of prey to
increase again.
Types of Relationships
Between Humans & Wildlife
• Biological
• Humans are animals very similar to wildlife
• Ecological
• Humans are but one species among nearly 1 million
species of animals that inhabit the planet earth
• Economic
• Originally humans were dependent on wildlife for
food, clothing and shelter. Today there are six
positive values.
Positive Values of Wildlife
Relationships with Humans
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Commercial
Recreational
Biological
Aesthetic
Scientific
Social
Commercial
• Commercial
– harvesting and sale of wildlife and/or wildlife
products, raising wild animals for use in hunting,
fishing or other purposes
Recreational
• Recreational
– hunting and fishing, watching and photographing
wildlife.
Biological
• Biological
– pollination of crops, soil improvement, water
conservation and control of harmful diseases and
parasites.
Aesthetic
• Aesthetic
- inspiration for artwork
Scientific
• Scientific
- observation of wildlife by early humans to determine
what was safe to eat
Social
• Social
- ability of the wildlife species to increase the value of
their surroundings simply by their presence
How has Man Abused
Wildlife?
• Overhunting
 Senseless killing
 Reduced habitat
 Pollution of air and water
 Removal of a beneficial animal
(example: wolf)
• Introduction of a foreign animal
Classifications of Wildlife
Management
• Farm wildlife
 Forest wildlife
 Wetland wildlife
 Stream wildlife
 Lakes and ponds
Farm Wildlife
• Approved Practices
• Leaving unharvested areas in corners of fields
• Planting fence rows with shrubs and grasses to proved winter feed &
cover
• Leaving brush piles when harvesting wood lots
• Leaving crop residues standing over the winter to provide food & cover
• Planting crops attractive to wildlife
• Providing water supplies for wildlife during dry periods
• Harvesting
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Hunting has little impact on spring breeding populations
Excess population not harvested, usually die during winter
Heavy hunting seldom causes severe damage to populations
Sale of hunting rights increases income for farms and ranches
Forest Wildlife
• Survive best in forests that are of mixed-age trees
• Factors Influencing Wildlife
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Type and age of trees in the forest
Density of the trees
Natural forest openings
Types of vegetation on forest floor
Presence of natural predators
• Approved Practices
• Making clearings in the forest so that new growth will make twigs
available for deer to feed on
• Selective harvesting so that trees of various ages exist in the forest to
make a more suitable habitat for squirrels & other species of wildlife
• Leaving piles of brush for food & cover
• Managing harvests of forest products so that existing supplies of water
are not contaminated.
Wetland Wildlife
• Wetlands include any land that is poorly drained
• swamps, bogs, marshes, shallow areas of standing water
• Wetlands — a lowland area often associated with ponds or
creeks that is saturated with fresh water.
• Specifics of Wetlands for Optimum Use
• Open water areas = 1/3 of the wetlands
• Depth of standing water should not be more than about 18 inches
• Approved Practices
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Impounding water
Establishing open, grassy areas around wetlands
Planting millet, wild rice and other aquatic plants in wetlands
Providing artificial nesting sites (wood duck boxes, old tires and
islands surrounded by open water)
• Preventing pollution of water from agriculture, industry and domestic
waste.
Stream Wildlife
• Two general categories – Warm Water & Cold Water
• Based on temperatures at which wildlife (fish) can best grow & thrive
• Approved Practices
• Preventing stream banks from being overgrazed by livestock
• Fencing the stream to limit access by livestock to reduce pollution and
the destruction of stream banks
• Good erosion control practices on lands surrounding streams to help
maintain clear, clean water
• Maintaining stream-side forestation to regulate stream temperatures
during summer months
• Artificial rearing & stocking of desired species of stream wildlife
• Regulating sport fishing
• Stream Restoration of desired mix of fish species
• Remove unwanted species by netting, poisoning or electric shocking
• Regulating Sport Fishing
• Closed Seasons, minimum size limits, creel limits, restricted methods of
catching fish.
Lake and Pond Wildlife
• Approved Practices
• Very similar to stream wildlife management
• Using artificial means of incorporating oxygen into
the water to prevent fish kills
• Other Notes
• Easier to remove unwanted fish from lakes & ponds
because the water is contained.