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Integrating Forest and Wildlife Management

Integrating Forest and Wildlife Management. What We’ll Cover. The Basics Edge Management Timber Management Prescribed Fire Herbicides Dead Wood. Objectives?. Where does wildlife rank in list? Wildlife management costs money. How much money to spend?

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Integrating Forest and Wildlife Management

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  1. Integrating Forest and Wildlife Management

  2. What We’ll Cover... • The Basics • Edge Management • Timber Management • Prescribed Fire • Herbicides • Dead Wood

  3. Objectives? • Where does wildlife rank in list? • Wildlife management costs money. • How much money to spend? • What is my resource (soil, acreage, forest types, etc.)? • What are my target species?

  4. Management Plan • Designed to meet objectives • Consistent guidelines • Maps and (projections) • Forestry Consultant and State Biologist • Forest Stewardship Program

  5. Basic Needs • Food (Quantity and Quality) • Water (Usually available) • Cover • often limiting factor • Distributed across your property

  6. NO single forest stand can provide quality habitat for all wildlife species!!

  7. Food Plot Management Does Not Equal Wildlife Management!!

  8. Native Plants • Native animals adapted to native plants • Many exotics become invasive and replace important natives • Wildlifers lead the search for the silver bullet • Must think long term

  9. Two Basic Principles • Plant Diversity = Wildlife Diversity • Structural Diversity = Wildlife Diversity • vertical • horizontal

  10. Plant Diversity • Butterfly larva are host plant specific • Manage for Ferns, Vines, Shrubs, Grasses, Trees • High plant diversity • presence of BUFFER foods • SEASONALITY

  11. Buffer Foods White Oak Red Oak

  12. Seasonality • Mulberry in Spring • Black Cherry in Fall • Holly in Winter

  13. Vertical Structure Over story Mid story Under story Shrub Herb Forest floor

  14. Vertical Structure • Birds segregate vertically •  shrub cover • Ground/shrub cover important for many wildlife (Gravity) • deer, quail, rabbits

  15. Vertical Structure

  16. Horizontal Structure • Edges = horizontal structure • Access to 2 Habitats • Unique conditions • High vertical structure

  17. Edges & Predators • May concentrate travel along edges • More prey? • Reduced nesting success

  18. Irregularly-shaped Stands 3,600 Ft2 of edge Interior Interior Edge Edge 6,000 Ft2 of edge

  19. Edge Management • Thin timber more heavily near edge • Disk 30-50 ft. strips at stand edges • Disk every 1-3 years • Fire breaks • Logging Roads • Daylight roads

  20. Feathered Edge Shrubs Annuals Just Disked

  21. Timing of Disking Ragweed • Spring disking • grasses (panic grass) • Summer disking • variety of vegetation • Fall/Winter disking • heavy seeds (ragweed, doveweed, partridge pea)

  22. Timber Management • A Wildlife Manager’s BEST tool • Forest harvest and regeneration • Site preparation • Intermediate stand treatments • Other practices • Before any silvicultural practices are conducted, special habitat components should be inventoried and protected

  23. “Unique” or Special Habitats • Vernal Ponds • Wetlands (shallow water) • Old Home Sites • Oak Groves • Blackberry thickets • Rock outcrops

  24. Primary Succession

  25. Secondary Succession • Takes place after deforestation or clear-cut • Different animals prefer different forest ages

  26. Timber Harvest/Regeneration • Even-aged Systems • Clearcut • Shelterwood/Seed Tree • Uneven-aged Systems • Group selection • Single-tree selection

  27. Clearcuts • Benefits many game species • Benefits many songbirds/rodents • COVER • Abundant seed & fruit • Irregular shape s edge • Keep most <50 acres

  28. Shelterwood/Seed Tree • Wildlife benefits similar to clearcuts • Same guidelines as clearcutting for size, shape, and arrangement of harvests • Maintains canopy • mast trees • raptor perches

  29. Group Selection • ‘Miniature clearcuts’ (1 - 2 acres) • Increases edge, plant diversity & vertical structure • High wildlife diversity • Maintains canopy • Maintains mast • Use in SMZs

  30. Optimal Area Distribution by Cut Size

  31. *Harvest Preferences *From Annand and Thompson, JWM 61:159-171

  32. Young Forests • Early-succession habitat important • COVER Common Yellowthroat

  33. Planting • Plant at 10x10 spacing or greater • Consider longleaf pine on the right site • tolerates fire at early age • grass stage is good cover • sparse crown that allows sunlight to reach forest floor

  34. Mechanical Site-prep • Sheering, root raking, burning, drum-chopping, disking & bedding • Intensive temporarily favors herbaceous plants, reduces woody plants • More intensive may reduce long term plantdiversity

  35. Chemical Site-prep • Herbicides • Short term (2 year) Impacts • Banded or Spot application

  36. Intermediate Stand Treatments

  37. Thinned and Burned

  38. Thinning Guidelines • 70 ft2/acre basal area • <50 ft2/acre for quail • Higher BA on better sites • Leave mast trees • Avoid high grade

  39. Wildlife Benefits from Thinning • Increased sunlight in understory • Release mast producers • Increase acorn production • Leave snags • THIN and BURN Baseball Technique

  40. Winter Burning • Good cover summer after burn • Poor cover following winter (hardwood sprouts)

  41. Sweetgum saplings don’t provide winter cover • Baseball easily seen at 10 foot distance

  42. Nut and Fruit Production • Release oaks with dominant crowns • 50-100 yr. oaks produce best • 14-24” DBH oaks produce best • water, laurel, willow oak most consistent • 20 square feet/acre of mast producers • hickory, beech, dogwood, black gum, cherry, persimmon, blueberry, blackberry

  43. Recent History of Fire in SE • Native Americans for last 12,000 years • drive or increase game • increase visibility from enemies • Lightning fires in spring/summer • Plants and animalsadapted

  44. Direct Death from Fire • RARE • Birds fly • Large mammals run • Small animals seek refuge • logs, rocks, & underground burrows • Glass lizards, box turtles and young are exceptions

  45. Shrubland Songbirds • 3-4 year intervals • Increased insect/seed/fruit production • Brushy understory •  midstory species

  46. Grassland Songbirds • 1-2 year intervals • Increased grass abundance • Grassy understory •  shrub species •  midstory species Bachman’s Sparrow

  47. Bobwhite Quail • 1-2 year intervals; 3 year spots • Increased seeds and insects • Leave unburned areas as nesting cover • Patchy burns • Open pine stands (BA 25-50 ft2/ac.)

  48. Wild Turkeys • 3 year intervals • Increased insect/seed • Increased fruit abundance • Maintains brushy & grassy ground cover • Keeps forest open

  49. White-tailed Deer • 3-5 year intervals • Increased crude protein and phosphorus for 1 year • New growth palatable • Increased soft and hard mast production • Dense understory growth

  50. Herbicides Replace Fire • Industry choosing herbicides • Liability, tree damage, and bark char • Herbicides give better hardwood control • Fire has additional benefits • litter removal/seedbed preparation • herbaceous plant diversity • nutrient transfer into soil

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