Wildlife Management

Wildlife Management By Kay Poland Notes from Larry Stine Estherville Lincoln Central High School

Competencies: • define wildlife terms • identify characteristics of wildlife • describe relationships between wildlife and humans • understand relationships with humans • describe classifications of wildlife • identify approved practices • discuss future of wildlife in the U.S. • Biomes of North America

Terms to Know • Wildlife • Habitat • Vertebrate • Predators • Prey • Parasitism

Terms to Know • Warm-blooded animals • Mutualism • Predation • Commensalism • Competition • Wetlands

In the early years.... • Wildlife provided the bulk of food available • Supplies seemed exhaustible • Humans destroyed wildlife habitat

Characteristics of Wildlife • All vertebrate animals are wildlife • Vertebrates-animals with backbones • Have many of the same characteristics as humans: • growth processes • laws of heredity • general cell structure

Wildlife Relationshipswildlife to wildlife or man to wildlife • Parasitism • Mutualism • Predation • Commensalism • Competition

Parasitism • Relationship between two organisms, either plants or animals, in which one feeds on the other without killing it. • Parasites can be internal or external

Mutualism • Two types of animals that live together for mutual benefit • There are many examples of mutualism in the wildlife community

Predation • When one animal eats another animal • Is important in controlling populations of wildlife

Commensalism • A Plant or animal that lives in, on, or with another, sharing its food, but not helping or harming it • One species is helped, but the other is neither helped or harmed

Competition • When different species of wildlife compete for the same: • food supply • nesting sites • breeding sites • One species may increase in numbers while the other declines

Five Benefits of Wildlifefor man • Aesthetic • Game benefit • Economic • Scientific • Ecological

Aesthetic • Refers to beauty • Is not measurable in economic terms • Can contribute to the mental well-being of the human race

Game Benefit • Hunting and Fishing

Economic benefits • Difficult to measure *Provide humans the opportunity for variety in outdoor recreation, hobbies, and adventure

Scientific • Often benefits humans • Has existed since the beginning of time • Early humans watched wild animals to determine which plants and berries were safe to eat

Ecological • Value of the ecological relationship between humans and wildlife is difficult to measure • Examples • Pollination of crops • Soil Improvement • Water conservation • Control of parasites

The uses of wildlife • Food • Clothing • Ornamentation • Medicine • Recreation

Uses of wildlife for man • Food

Uses of wildlife • Clothing

Uses of wildlife • Ornamentation

Uses of wildlife • Medicine

Uses of wildlife • Recreation

What is Wildlife Habitat? The kind of place where an… • Animal • Bird • Fish • or plant live in a natural state.

Habitat classification • Aquatic • Terrestrial • amphibious

Habitat • What 4 components make up a habitat? • Shelter, water, food, and space

Elements of Habitat • COVER • FOOD • WATER • SPACE • ARRANGEMENT These elements must be kept in a favorable balance for Wildlife to survive.

Cover • Nesting area • Breeding area • Hiding place • Resting place • Safe place to sleep • Feeding area; and • Travel route

Food • Animals must eat • Three types: Carnivores-meat eaters Herbivores-plant eaters Omnivores-consume both meat and plants

Water • Essential to all life • Some Wildlife require no free water (can get water from diet) • Some Require lots of free water • These must have permanent source in habitat

Space • Space or Territory requirements vary greatly among animals • Mountain lion=up to 150 square miles • House Wren=few as 150 square feet • Effected by migration, immigration (in), emigration (out)

Wildlife endangerment • Extinct species • Endangered • Threatened • Rare • Undetermined

Wildlife endangerment • Extinct species=Is one that no longer lives on the earth. Examples Tasmanian tiger • Endangered species= one that is threatened with becoming extinct. Examples Mexican wolf. • Threatened species= is one that is likely to become endangered. Polar bears

Wildlife endangerment • Rare species= is one that exists in small numbers and could become threatened. • Undetermined= species we have little knowledge about. Example Great white shark

Threats to wildlife • Loss of habitat • Health and age • Predation • Pollution • Hunting

Wildlife management • Promote habitat • Introduce/reestablish species • Prevent pollution • Take properly

Wildlife and Conservation Management: background • Habitat: an area with the combination of resources (food, cover, space and water) that allows for a species to survive. • Habitat requirements vary by species • Generalist species • Specialist species • Migratory species

Generalist Species (defined) • Generalist species are common and widely distributed; they can usually tolerate a range of climates, have broad dietary and nesting/breeding needs, and can adapt fairly well to humans.

Specialists are consumers that primarily eat one specific organism or a very small number of organisms. • Generalists are consumers that have a varying diet.

Generalist Species Examples: White-tailed deer Coyote

Specialist Species (defined) Specialist species are usually limited by a narrow habitat, either by preference, tolerance of habitat destruction; characteristics include tolerating a limited climate range, need for specific diets and/or breeding/nesting sites an an inability to adapt to humans.

Specialist Species Examples: Grizzly Bear Wolf

Migratory Species (defined) Migratory species are animals that periodically or regularly move from one area to another for the purposes of breeding, food forage, and/or to avoid extreme climatic conditions; migratory patterns can range from thousands of miles to less than 30, depending on the species.

Migratory Species Examples: Canadian Geese Wood Duck

Wildlife Management