Attracting Illinois Wildlife On Private Lands

1. Attracting Illinois Wildlife On Private Lands

2. Illinois Wildlife Needs • 95% of Illinois is privately owned. • Wildlife depend on private landowners for habitat needs. • Remember the basics:food, cover, & water.

3. Backyard Birds • More than 127 species; songbirds largest group. • Beneficial management practices: grasses & forbs;nesting structures & homes; trees & shrubs. • Food: Use a variety of feeders to attract a variety of species.

4. Backyard Birds • Cover: Needed for escape, roosting, nesting and brood rearing. - Trees, shrubs, grasses- Birdhouses • Water: Needed for bathing, drinking and regulating body temperature. • Small pool with shallow edge • Birdbath and/or fountain

5. Cottontail Rabbit • Cottontails are found statewide-from farms to suburbia. • Cottontails spend entire life within 2 to 10 acres. All habitat needs must be met within this small area. • Beneficial management practices: brush piles; food plots; grasses & forbs; strip/light disking; timber management; trees & shrubs.

6. Cottontail Rabbit • Nesting Habitat: Idle grassy areas, hayfields, fence lines or brushy areas. • Mixture of undisturbed cool or warm season grasses, forbs, shrubs. • Drinking water not required. Diet provides daily water needs. • Winter habitat: Critical season for rabbits. • Must spend more time searching for food. • Highly visible to predators. • Feathered edge management practice provides best winter cover.

7. Ducks & Geese • Each spring and fall millions ducks, geese and swans migrate through Illinois. • More than 30 species of ducks, geese and swans call Illinois home during part of year. • Nearly 45,000 waterfowl hunters harvest 211,500 ducks and 85,500 geese each year

8. Ducks & Geese • Beneficial management practices: food plots; grasses & forbs; nesting structures & homes; wetlands. • Habitat Requirements: • Need both wetland and grassland. • Nesting ducks benefit from idle grasslands, protected from haying and grazing from May until July. • Wood ducks only species needing mature trees for nesting.

9. Ducks & Geese • Habitat Requirements (cont.) • Canada geese and trumpeter swans nest on island-like structures over the water. • Green browse and grain food plots next to wetlands are important food for migrating waterfowl. • Wetlands drawn drown in summer and regrown with annual weeds & flooded grain food plots provide excellent food for all waterfowl.

10. Eastern Wild Turkey • Illinois’ wild turkey population is increasing; they can now be found in every IL county. • Turkeys thrive in mature oak-hickory forests native to this region. • Beneficial management practices include: food plots; timber management, trees and shrubs.

11. Eastern Wild Turkey • Nesting Habitat: Hens select nest sites in a variety of cover types but favor woodland edges near field openings. • Poults need abundant insect populations for feeding, foraging habitat and protective cover. • Fall/Winter Habitat: Two keys are food and roosting habitats. • During fall food is crucial as birds build fat deposits for winter survival. • Favorite turkey roosting sites include clumps of large pines and trees like those found in mature oak-hickory forest.

12. Mammals • Illinois is home to 59 different mammals, nine of which are threatened or endangered. • Since bobcat and river otter populations are increasing, they are no longer threatened. • Timbered river and stream valley corridors are the most important habitats for opossum, woodchuck, coyote, gray fox and bobcat. • Other beneficial management practices: food plots, grasses & forbs, timber management, trees & shrubs.

13. Nongame Wildlife • More than 80% of Illinois animal species are nongame wildlife. • A management plan with thewidest range of plantings and structures will attract the greatest variety of mammals, amphibians, reptiles and bats. • Beneficial management practices: Grasses & forbs; farm ponds; nesting structures & homes, wetlands.

14. Northern Bobwhite Quail • Bobwhite are most abundant in Southern Illinois. Their populations have decreased by more than 75% since 1970. • Bobwhite prefer brushy-shrubby areas interspersed with small (20 to 80 acre) farm fields and pasture/hayland. • Most live on less than 100 acres. • Beneficial management practices: Brush piles; food plots; grasses & forbs; pasture mgt., strip/light disking; timber mgt.; trees & shrubs.

15. Northern Bobwhite Quail • Mixture of crop fields, pastures, meadows and woodland edges make up quality quail habitat. • Nesting habitat: Nests are usually found in sparse vegetation. • Hens prefer moderately grazed pastures, native grasses with forbs, idle areas, weedy food plots and brushy fences and hedgerows. Hens only need one clump of grass every 15 steps. • Winter habitat: Since quail seldom range more than 1/4 mile in winter, loafing, roosting and food must be in close proximity to each other.

16. Ring-necked Pheasant • Most important upland game bird in Illinois with an annual harvest of about 180,000 birds/year with a population of up to 6 million. • Population peaked in 1950’s and has been declining since then due to reductions in safe nesting and winter cover. • Beneficial management practices: Food plots, grasses & forbs, trees & shrubs and wetlands.

17. Ring-necked Pheasant • Nesting habitat: Hens conceal nests in erect, undisturbed grassy vegetation at least 8 to 10 inches tall. • Research shows nests in blocks of habitat greater than 40 acres have a higher chance of hatching. • Fast growth rate requires a high protein diet of insects for chicks. • Winter habitat: Pheasants prefer tall, grassy habitats for roosting at night and shrubby/brushy habitats for loafing during the day. • Corn/sorghum food plots are very important.

18. Whitetail Deer • Deer occur in every county, with highest densities in Illinois’ southern and western counties. • Illinois’ herd is estimated at 800,000 with an annual harvest of 180,000 animals by hunters. • Good deer habitat will support up to 25 deer/square mile. • Beneficial management practices include: Food plots; grasses & forbs; timber management; trees & shrubs

19. Whitetail Deer • Habitat requirements: Annual home range varies from one-half to one square mile according to suitable habitat, food and water • Does seek seclusion for fawning in brushy fields, heavily vegetated stream bottoms, forest edges, pastures, CRP fields and grasslands. • Standing corn is used for food, travel and escape cover in the fall. • In winter deer concentrate in heavy timber, cattails, tall weeds and brush. • Feathering back timber edges is very beneficial for fawning and wintering deer.

20. Habitat Practices • Brushpiles: Mound of material with a maze of cavities that provide protection from weather or predators. • Prescribed Burning: Uses planned fires to nurture plants, harm others and fertilize with a quick release of nutrients.

21. Habitat Practices • Farm Ponds: Best ponds have about 20 acres of watershed for each acre of surface area. Ponds have multiple uses from recreation to livestock watering.

22. Habitat Practices • Food plots: Plots can be single grain or a diverse mixture to attract a variety of game and non-game species. Location is a key consideration when planning a food plot.

23. Habitat Practices • Grasses & Forbs: Most of Illinois’ songbirds, gamebirds and mammals require diverse grassland habitats. • Legumes: Provide direct food value through seeds or through the insects they harbor.

24. Habitat Practices • Mowing/Haying:Targeted mowing, after Aug. 1, allows species to efficiently use habitat. • Nesting Structures & Homes: Providing additional home and nesting sites is very important for waterfowl and some nongame species.

25. Habitat Practices • Pasture Management: The most critical elements are extent and timing of grazing and pasture vegetation or forage. Pastures grazed below 6 inches are detrimental to nesting wildlife.

26. Habitat Practices • Strip/Light Disking: This provides additional bare ground for dusting and brood rearing. It is most often used along timber edges or large tracts of grassland.

27. Habitat Practices • Timber Management: Activities that are beneficial to wildlife include timber harvesting, thinning, creating or improving woodland corridors and using human-made habitat structures.

28. Habitat Practices • Trees & Shrubs: These provide excellent wildlife benefits year round for a variety of wildlife. This practice includes shelterbelts and riparian buffers. • Wetlands: A simple way to enhance a wetland for wildlife is to provide nest structures for wildlife.

29. Help for Establishing Habitat • USDA Programs • Wetland Reserve Program • Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program • Environmental Quality Incentives Program • Conservation Reserve Program • Conservation Security Program • Conservation Technical Assistance • IL Department of Natural Resources • IDNR Shelterbelts • Forestry Programs

30. Help for Establishing Habitat • IL Soil & Water Conservation Districts • Fish and Wildlife Service • Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program • Private Organizations • Pheasants Forever • Quail Unlimited • Ducks Unlimited • National Wild Turkey Federation

31. Thank You for caring about wildlife! USDA-NRCS is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Helping People Help the Land