WHEP Basics

1. WHEP Basics Gerry Snapp University of Missouri 4H

2. Regions • Ecological regions: Areas of the country that have similar climate, vegetation and wildlife. • WHEP has identified 14 different regions within the continental United States…plus 2 special micro- environments that can be found within any region -Urban and Wetlands.

4. Missouri Regions • Look at the US map in the manual. • How many regions does it show for Missouri? • Look at how Missouri experts divide the state into regions.

5. Glaciated Prairie Tallgrass/Mixed Prairie Un-glaciated Prairie Tallgrass/Mixed Prairie Ozark Eastern Deciduous Forest Southeastern Lowland Southeast Mixed Forest

6. Eastern Deciduous Forest

7. Eastern Deciduous Forest • Most of the terrain is rolling except for the Appalachian Mountains (& Ozarks) which are steep. • Average annual precipitation 35-90 inches • Summers - hot and dry; Winters –cold • Final stage of succession is tall broadleaf trees • Prior to fire-suppression, oak savannahs & woodlands. • Large areas of the region have been cleared of native vegetation for the production of crops and livestock.

8. Species – Eastern Deciduous Forest • bobcat • eastern cottontail • eastern gray squirrel • gray fox • Indiana bat • white-tailed deer • eastern box turtle • timber rattlesnake • largemouth bass/ bluegill • American woodcock • brown thrasher • eastern meadowlark • golden-winged warbler • great horned owl • mourning dove • northern bobwhite • ovenbird • wild turkey • wood duck

9. Tallgrass/Mixed Prairie

10. Great Plains GrasslandTallgrass/Mixed Prairie • Terrain is flat to rolling plains • Average annual precipitation: 20-40 inches • Winters cold – summers hot • Climax vegetation typically tall grasses, i.e. bluestems, Indian grass, switchgrass • Variety of forbs – sunflowers, broomweed, ragweed • Shrubs and trees in drainages and other moist areas. • Potholes (wetlands) caused by glaciation

11. Species–Tallgrass/mixed prairie • blue-winged teal • dickcissel • grasshopper sparrow • greater prairie chicken • mourning dove • northern bobwhite • northern harrier • ring-necked pheasant • wild turkey • coyote • eastern cottontail • red fox • White-tailed deer • plains hog-nosed snake • bluegill/largemouth bass

12. Southeast Mixed Forest • Nothing yet

13. URBAN

14. Urban – • Dense human population, with residential and/or commercial development, connected and cris-crossed infrastructure (roads, train tracks, utilities). • Great variety of vegetation; annual plantings, (garden & flowers) perennial grasses & forbs, shrubs, young and mature trees. • Landscapes typically manipulated vs. “natural” • Relatively small and fragmented • Often dominated by non-native, invasive vegetation • Wildlife areas include parks, trails, backyards.

15. Species - Urban rock pigeon ruby-throated hummingbird song sparrow big brown bat cottontail* coyote eastern gray squirrel raccoon white-tailed deer • American robin • common nighthawk • bluebird* • European starling • house finch • house sparrow • house wren • northern flicker • peregrine falcon

16. Wetlands - • Next on the to-do list

17. What you need to know to compete General – not region specific • Wildlife management concepts • Wildlife management terms

18. What you need to know to compete Region Specific • Species & applicable Wildlife Management Practices (WMPs) for the specific region • see Regions section (pgs. 27-85) • Wildlife species & habitat requirements – • foods, preferred successional stage, use of space/edge, etc. (pgs. 86-253) • Identify the species -hides, tracks, feathers, photos, eggs, scat, etc. • Understand the WMPs (pgs. 254-304)

19. Wildlife Management Practices • Practices vary from region to region • Practices that work for a species in one region may not be practical for same species in another region

20. Species &WMPs (chart)

21. How to use the manual • Determine which ecoregion • Determine the featured species • Locate and mark the selected species in the Wildlife Species section. • Locate and mark the appropriate WMPs for the region/species • Study! Tip: No need to duplicate every page of manual for students – just the featured species

22. Points to remember • Wildlife ID – may be male/female; adult/juvenile • Full credit – complete common name; spelled correctly, including correct use of capitalization.

23. National Contest events I. Wildlife Management Practices – checklist/chart II. Wildlife management plan • Written plan (team) • Oral defense of written plan (individual) III. Wildlife Challenge Demonstrate skill at wildlife identification and general wildlife knowledge including ecoregions, wildlife management concepts & terms, biology and ecology of the species, identification of common wildlife foods and which species utilize those foods.

24. Missouri State Contest2014 • Wildlife Mgt. Practices 35 pts. • General Wildlife Knowledge 30 pts. • Wildlife ID 20 pts. • Written Management Plan 15 pts. (simplified for JR)

25. Written Management Plan(pages 307 – 312) • Three pieces of paper provided • Use one side only of each • 2 pages for narrative – paragraph form • 1 page for sketch • Map of property showing where practices should be implemented. • This is a team event

26. Seniorscoresheet

27. Junior Score Sheet (M0)