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Natural Resource Systems Sample LessonNR037 Managing Woodlands for Wildlife
MAIN IDEA: What is meant by "managing wildlife," and how can it be applied to a farm woodlot or larger forest area? In earlier lessons, you learned about the meaning of ecology and ecosystems. To manage wildlife you must apply that knowledge of ecology to animal populations and their habitats. In this lesson, you'll learn more about how the management of forests relates to the management of wildlife populations. In many cases, good forest management will also result in good wildlife management. In other cases, however, compromises may be needed between maximum output of animals vs. production of forest products. The term "silviculture" is often used for the process of establishing forests and manipulating the forest growths. A healthy wildlife population is often a benefit of good forest management. However, the way you decide to manage the forest will determine the type and populations of wildlife it will produce. CONSIDER FOREST SUCCESSION Succession is the natural process that takes place in every forest. It can begin on any bare or open land, or after a forest has been clear-cut or burned by a forest fire. The first plants to emerge on open land are grasses and perhaps annual weeds. These are followed by brush and then by trees. Eventually larger trees crowd out smaller trees and brush and establish a "climax" population. As an ecosystem matures, different types of trees and plants compete with each other for light, moisture and plant nutrients. The best competitors win and become the dominant type. The entire process can take 100 years or more. At the same time, wildlife types change as habitat changes. Open areas with grass attract large grazing animals such as bison, deer and pronghorn (antelope), as well as smaller prairie animals including prairie dogs, ground squirrels and pocket gophers. However, as brush and trees begin to grow, the type of wildlife changes. Some animals can live and breed in old fields, some in young forests and others in mature woods and forests. There usually is an overlap of each species. For example, cottontail rabbits can live in fields, shrubby areas or young woodlots with dense undergrowth. However, when larger trees shade out lower growing brush, rabbits will move out to find safer cover. Landowners can determine the type of wildlife that thrive in a forest by the way they manage the forest. Ruffed grouse, for example, are usually found in areas that are in early stages of forest succession. If the landowners want to maximize grouse population, they will need to cut or burn forests that have grown beyond early succession stages. As these areas grow back through early stages, the grouse population will again increase. INCREASING EDGES The border between a forest and a field creates an edge effect that attracts a variety of wildlife species. Many small-game hunters follow edges such as the border between upland aspen and lowland alder to find ruffed grouse, or woodcock. The width of this edge, also called an ecotone, can very from a sharp break to a gradual transition from one type to another. The wider the edge, the more wildlife you are likely to find there. Landowners can increase the amount of edge available in a couple of ways. One is to cut open patches within larger forests. Another is to break up forests into smaller units with open fields between forest areas. Farm woodlots in agricultural areas usually provide a significant amount of edge. Those areas, have another problem -- forests and woodlots become too small for some species. Wildlife biologists call this situation habitat fragmentation. Biologist encourage landowners to maintain larger woodlots in agricultural areas where edge is already abundant. SETTING MANAGEMENT PRIORITIES Wildlife found in a forest are a part of the ecosystem. The ecosystem includes animals, trees, undergrowth, leaf litter, soil, rainfall, groundwater and all other components that make up the forest. Wildlife are a part of the biotic community that includes plants and animals. All members of this community depend upon and influence each other. Steps taken to manage wildlife will require managing and influencing all other elements of that ecosystem. That means setting priorities and making compromises among goals and objectives you may wish to accomplish. A landowner must decide what benefits are to be produced. What type of wildlife is most important? What forest products are to be harvested? Which are of greater value to the landowner or the public? Managing natural resources wisely is often defined as "using resources to benefit the site, the landowner, or the public, depending upon which interests are being considered." Too often landowners set their goals too narrowly, according to wildlife biologists. They overlook potential benefits by managing only for timber, for watershed, for wildlife or for recreation. All forests can provide some of these benefits, but the landowner can decide which uses to favor. Timber and wildlife management often complement each other, but some compromises may be needed. For example allowing trees to grow large enough for sawtimber will reduce cover for small game such as ruffed grouse. At the same time, songbirds thrive in conditions that favor larger trees and in old-growth forests. A landowner must establish priorities and realize that they cannot support everything in the same woodlot. But that does not mean managing for a single purpose. A balance of benefits can be enjoyed if management decisions are based upon understanding the needs of all species. EXERCISES: Discuss in class and/or write a report answering the following: 1. Describe a forest or farm woodlot in your area, or one that you have visited on a hunting trip or vacation. Explain what the forest provides as habitat for wildlife. 2. Make a list of the wildlife species that are known to be found in the forest you described in Exercise #1. Are there other species that you believe could be found there, based on the type of habitat you have seen? Explain what factors have attracted the wildlife found in the forest you have described. 3. What wildlife management practices, if any, have you observed at the forest you described in Exercise #1? What wildlife management practice do you feel should be used on that forest? Explain why. INTERNET RESOURCES:
** Missouri Dept. of Conservation - Woodland Management
** Purdue University Cooperative Extension - Woodland Wildlife Management TEST: 1. Forests with larger trees favor larger wild animals because the trees provide the cover they need. TRUE or FALSE?
2. In which of the following are you likely to find the greatest variety and largest populations of wildlife species? 3. Good forest management is the main factor required to reach your wildlife management objectives. TRUE or FALSE?
4. The benefits of managing forests for wildlife include: 5. Forests managed for timber are more likely to have songbirds than those in earlier stages of succession that favor small game. TRUE or FALSE?
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TEACHER'S GUIDE
NR037 Managing Woodlands for WildlifeOBJECTIVE: Students will be introduced to the relationship between forest management and wildlife management; will be able to explain how forest succession can influence wildlife; and will understand that compromises need to be made in order to achieve desired forest and wildlife objectives. PREPARATION: Review lesson content and be ready to answer student questions about the wildlife habitat provided by local forests and woodlots. This may help students think through the issues raised in the exercises. INTERNET RESOURCES:
** Missouri Dept. of Conservation - Woodland Management
** Purdue University Cooperative Extension - Woodland Wildlife Management IMPORTANT TERMS: biotic community, climax population, ecology, ecosystems, habitat, habitat fragmentation, silviculture, succession. EXTENSION: Arrange a field trip to a local farm woodlot or forest area where students can identify features discussed in this lesson. Examples of things for students to identify include: stages of succession; edges or ecotone areas; and elements of habitat, cover, food, water. What species of wildlife could be expected there? What wildlife management practices are, or could be used? EXERCISE ANSWERS: 1. Student description could include a number of things, such as the size of the area, the types of trees growing there, etc. Some students also may be able to see and report on stages of succession they have observed. Their answer to what the area provides as habitat should include the three basic elements of habitat which are cover, food and water. 2. Answer depends upon region and type of forest. Student should include elements of habitat, cover, food and water, among factors that have attracted the types of wildlife found in the forest described. 3. Student answers will vary, depending upon the region, type of forest and species of wildlife in that area. TEST KEY: 1. Forests with larger trees favor larger wild animals because the trees provide the cover they need. TRUE or FALSE? FALSE. Larger animals often do not find adequate food in mature forests. They favor grassland or forests with open areas where they can graze.
2. In which of the following are you likely to find the greatest variety and largest populations of wildlife species? Correct answer: B. An ecotone or edge area between fields and forests. 3. Good forest management is the main factor required to reach your wildlife management objectives. TRUE or FALSE? Mostly FALSE. While forest and wildlife management are related, compromises are needed between forestry objectives and wildlife objectives. If wildlife objectives are for maximum production, forestry must be more limited.
4. The benefits of managing forests for wildlife include:
Correct answers are: 5. Forests managed for timber are more likely to have songbirds than those in earlier stages of succession that favor small game. TRUE or FALSE? TRUE. CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWERS:
Across: 1. Woodlots, 3. Biotic, 4. Complement, 6. Silviculture, 8. Songbirds, 10. Habitat, 11. Deer, 12. Rabbits, 13. Ecotone.
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