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– Examples of recovery
bison - about 30,000 in North America; now stable and farmed
wood duck - over-hunted and habitat destroyed; seemed to be
headed to extinction by 1913; recovered by protection
(Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918 gave complete protection)
and nest box/ habitat restoration initiative (1939); steel shot
required in some areas after 1976 and all areas after 1991
wild turkey - over-hunted; protection started in New York in
1708 when it disappeared from 3 counties, protection
increased around the U.S. until finally decline was stemmed
by early 1900's; reintroduction was successful
California condor, Kirtland’s warbler, Indiana bat, and black
footed ferret are species that still need work
Wood Ducks and Nest Box
Kirtland’s Warbler
California Condor
Black-footed Ferret
Indiana Bat
– Examples of overabundance/exotics
reindeer - 24 cows and 5 bulls released on St. Matthew’s
island in Bering Sea in 1944, grew to 6000 by summer of 1963,
next winter herd crashed to 42 (all females and one sterile
male); immense destruction to lichens that covered the island
and only 10% had recovered 22 years after crash
mule deer - Kaibab Plateau in Arizona; predator control and
protection from shooting released population; increased from
4000 in 1905 to 100,000 in 1924; 60% starved in 2 winters and
population fell to 10,000 in 1940; much damage to vegetation
blackbirds - about 550 mill red-wings, starlings, grackles, and
cowbirds; they use field crops and cattle feedlots with good
roosting sites in south and middle U.S.; noisy, dirty, damage
crops, and may be a potential health hazard; countermeasures
include spraying with detergent on cold nights, frightening
with noise-makers, thinning roost trees;
European Starling
Common Grackle
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
these tactics are have limited use because they cause stress
to bird lovers and only partly effective
ring-necked pheasant - Asia; now thriving where native
grouse cannot compete
brown trout - Europe; can displace natives but do better in
warmer waters where natives cannot survive
sea lampreys (jawless fish from Atlantic to Great Lakes),
common carp (Asia), nutria (large rodent from South America)
– People in wildlife management (Table 1.2)
Spencer Baird - commissioner of 1st U.S. Gov fishery agency;
mid 1800's
John Muir - naturalist, writer, and preservationist; founded
Sierra Club; late 1800's
Common Carp
Sea Lamprey
Nutria
Ring-necked Pheasant
Theodore Roosevelt - developed National Wildlife Refuge
System; expanded National Forest system; established means
of preserving unique resource areas (natural and historical)
with National Monument system (Grand Canyon); late 1800's
early 1900's
Gifford Pinchot – a forester that helped establish American
Society of Foresters; director of U.S. Dept of Agr., Forestry
Division; promoted sustained yield practices within forests;
late 1800's early 1900's
Aldo Leopold - founder of wildlife management in U.S.; wrote
Game Management in 1933 that outlined current knowledge
in wildlife management and set up formal field of study
Carl Hubbs and Ralph Eschmeyer – wrote The Improvement
of Lakes for Fishing in 1938 and set up fishery management
as a formal field of study
J.N. “Ding” Darling - writer and naturalist; helped persuade
Congress to pass the Duck Stamp Act (source of revenue for
management); helped with coop units at universities, Wildlife
Management Institute, and National Wildlife Federation;
director of Bureau of U.S. Biological Survey (now Fish and
Wildlife Service); mid 1900's
Chapter 2
Definitions
– ecosystem - interacting system of biotic and abiotic
components in a particular area or place
- ecosystem classification based on major characteristic
such as dominant plant type (terrestrial) or water body type
(aquatic)
- class can be broad (grasslands, mountain system) or narrow
(oak-hickory stand, catfish pond) in range
- generally, energy and nutrients cycle within an ecosystem,
but can be exchanged between systems (migratory birds
and fish; transitory species such as raccoons, large birds)
– biotic community - living portion of an ecosystem (biotic)
– biome - extensive region of similar vegetation and animal
life (Arctic tundra, tropical rainforest, temperate deciduous
forest, short grass prairie)
– biosphere - layer around the earth in which all living things
are found
– species richness - number of species in a community (plant
or animal)
– species diversity - an index that includes both # of species
present and relative abundance of each species in the
calculation (Shannon-Wiener and Simpson Index);
also called biodiversity or biological diversity; can be
genetic diversity within a pop, species diversity within
ecosystems, or community and ecosystem diversity across
landscapes of regions
– population - all individuals of a species within a specified
area at a given time
– metapopulation - a population existing as a set of
geographically separate subpopulations but with some
genetic interchange among them