Introduction to Wildlife Management

1. Introduction to Wildlife Management Marie Bolt

2. Introduction • Wildlife: free-ranging birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles • Not all wild animals and plants • Not fish • Not just “game” species • Not just “nongame” species

3. Wildlife Management Wildlife management is the application of ecological knowledge to populations of vertebrate animals and their plant and animal associates in a manner that strikes a balance between the needs of those populations and the needs of people.

4. Ecological Management Approaches • Preservation • Nature takes its course without human intervention • Direct manipulation • Animal populations are trapped, shot, poisoned, and stocked • Indirect manipulation • Vegetation, water, or other key components of wildlife habitat are altered

5. An Art or a Science? Wildlife management is not purely basic nor applied science, but uses both to apply an integrated approach to solve a given problem Not a “cookbook” approach Requires application of skill, knowledge and imagination

6. Wildlife Management: Skills Ecology/Natural History Law Habitat Management Team Work Land Navigation/GIS/GPS Communications People Management

7. Brief History-1 Early US/Colonial: game laws 1800s: Increased regulation of game 1900s: Gifford Pinchot “Resource Conservation Ethic” 1930s: Aldo Leopold, father of wildlife management, “Game Management” 1937: Pittman-Robertson Act, 10% tax on hunting arms and ammo for research and management by states

8. Resource Conservation Ethic • The qualities found in nature could be considered “natural resources”. The goal of proper use of natural resources is the greatest good of the greatest number (of people) for the longest time. (G. Pinchot) • Resources should be fairly distributed among present as well as future users • Resources should be used with efficiency—that is, put to the best possible use and not wasted (i.e., non-use is waste)

9. Evolutionary-Ecological Land Ethic • The most important goal of land management is to maintain the health of ecosystems and ecological processes. Maintaining these ecological processes will ultimately give greater long-term value to humans than managing natural areas only for particular resources (A. Leopold) • Humans are part of the ecological community rather than standing apart from nature and exploiting it (move away from over-exploitation of “conservation ethic”)

10. Brief History-2 • 1960s and 1970s: greater expectations • Changes from “maximum” to “optimal” yield for game species

11. Brief History-3 1970s: Environmental movement and Environmental Laws (NEPA, ESA, CWA, CAA, FIFRA, RCRA, CERCLA, etc.) 1980s: National Forest Management Planning Act Late 1980s: Conservation Biology

12. Wildlife Managers • Address complex issues with both research and management skills by • Reviewing the scientific literature • Finding answers with field &/or lab work • Implementing and evaluating remedies • Political, social & economic factors influence methods and how successfully they can deal with stewardship of wildlife populations and habitats

13. Management Decisions Desired Goal Appropriate Management Option(s) Best Management Action

14. Options Where do we want to go? Can we get there? Will we know we have arrived? How do we get there? What are the costs? What are the benefits? Will benefits exceed costs?

15. Goals of Management • Increase Population • Endangered Species • Decrease Population • Nuisance species • Harvest • Game species • Monitor • Nongame species

16. Something to Ponder You can not increase the numbers of all species on every piece of land….when you manage for certain species, you manage against other species

17. Overview of Lecture Exploitation Bison Passenger Pigeon Other Extinctions Some Near Extinctions Problems of Excess Predator Control Exotic Wildlife

18. Exploitation God’s instructions to Adam and Eve were to “be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the Earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth on upon the Earth.” Genesis 1:28

19. Historical Eliminate predators and competitors Repopulate with domestic animals Move “familiar” animals across the world Privileged classes and sport hunting Market hunting

20. Market Hunting • Waterfowl • Bison • Songbirds • Plumage • Beaver hats

21. Bison To 1850, large population in American West, coexisted with humans Provided food, shelter, bowstrings, fuel Grass-bison-human food chain for years 6 million in 1860 to 160 in 1889 Small herds existed & replenished population

22. Buffalo Hunters • Railroads made access easy • Repeating rifles & scopes • Army condoned it • Food for railroad workers • Hides/tongue prized • Most rotted, unused

23. Passenger Pigeon • Most abundant animal on the planet • Migration darked the sky • 1871, 136 million in central WI alone • Market hunting, nesting habitat destruction, single egg, no laws, lead to extinction in 1914

24. Other Extinctions • Steller’s sea cow • Carolina parakeet • Labrador duck • Heath hen • Great auk

25. Some Near Extinctions • Wood Duck • Wild Turkey • California Condor • Beaver • Canada Goose • Mountain Lion • Grey Wolf • Double-crested cormorant • Bald eagle

26. Problems of Excess • White-tailed deer • Raccoon • Canada goose • Beaver • Double-crested cormorant

27. Response of Prey without Predators • Two charts • Reindeer • Mule deer • Beaver Basin deer herd

28. Predator Control • Bounties • Not effective, no population changes • Fraud • Poison controls • Non-target animals • Overall, not effective

29. Exotic Wildlife Man has moved animals from place to place across the world, either intentionally or unintentionally Exotic wildlife may increase or fail to prosper If they increase, many times they become nuisance species Many examples on trying to control, “new immigrants” who alter the ecology of the habitats they are released into by fulfilling/displacing native species niches

30. Aquatic Exotic Species

31. Continuing Challenges • Spotted owl • Sea turtles • California condor • Grey wolf

32. Overview Background Bison Lead Poisoning Wood Ducks Wild Turkeys Mammals Marine Mammals Birds Elusive Measures

33. Background 1639, 1st closed season for white-tailed deer in Rhode Island colony (May-Nov) Many laws to protect species including heath hens and passenger pigeons No ecological considerations, no habitat protection No preservation of food, cover, water Not until 1900s did management occur

34. Bison • American Bison Association, NY Zoo • Bison preserves • Yellowstone NP • Canada: 2 NPs, one for Wood Buffalo • European bison restocked in Bialowieza Forest, Poland/Russia

35. Bison • 2 Problems with Bison reintroduction • Lack of natural predators, leads to overpopulation • Overpopulation and outstripping resources, and control measures not accepted by populus

36. Lead Poisoning • Primary issues: • Use of lead in shotgun shells • Use of lead in rifle bullets • Use of lead in fishing gear

37. Lead Poisoning • Lead shot • Banned in 1976/78 • Decrease in raptor deaths • Decrease in waterfowl losses • No increase in waterfowl crippling deaths • Lead Poisoning • Primary Routes • Shot • Grit for gizzard • Grinding plus acid in stomach, organo- lead, neurotoxin • Secondary Route • Incidental ingestion of lead in prey

38. Crippling Losses of Waterfowl Mean No. Lost/100 Retrieved

39. Lead Poisoning • Rifle bullets • Issues for California Condor • Issues for Steller’s sea eagle in Japan

40. Wood Ducks • Migratory Bird Treaty Act, 1918 • Protected wood ducks • Population rebounded without help at first

41. Wood Ducks • 1938, biologists in Illinois erected wood duck houses • Noticed insufficient nesting sites • Quickly spread • Some areas have more produced in boxes than natural habitat • Now, 2nd/3rd most abundant waterfowl species

42. Wild Turkeys • Extirpated in most of North America by 1930s • Reintroductions were tried, many failed • Finally appropriate genetic types were used for each site

43. Wild Turkeys • New populations were protected • When appropriate, hunting was allowed • Now 40 states have turkeys

44. Mammals • White-tailed deer • 0.5 million, 1900 • 12 million, 1980 • Elk • 0.04 million, 1900 • 1 million, 2000 • Pronghorn antelope • 13,000--1920 • 400,000--1980 • Beaver • Nearly extirpated 1800s • Nuisance species, now

45. Marine Mammals • Marine Mammal Protection Act (1972) • Endangered Species Act (1973) • Pinnepeds (seal) • Sirenians (manatee) • Cetaceans (dolphins & whales)

46. Marine Mammals • Sea Otter • Reintroductions, natural increases • Protection from trapping, fishermen • Orcas new threat in Aleutian Islands • Gray whales • Predictable migratory route • Stay close to shore • Now problems with carrying capacity • Salt plant in calving grounds

47. Birds • Trumpeter swans • Roseate spoonbills • Upland sandpipers • Sage grouse • Sharp-tailed grouse • Snowy egrets • Whooping cranes • Wood ducks • California condors • Heath hen • “Candidates for oblivion” listed in Our vanishing wild life, by William Hornaday 1913 • Only the Heath hen is extinct today

48. Birds that have come back • Bald eagles • Peregrine falcons • Kirtland’s warbler • Atlantic puffin • Many other species

49. Elusive Measures Need to have neither extinction nor excess populations How do we measure success, is 40 million ducks from 400 million a success or a failure? Need to include the social dimension in answering these types of questions

50. Elusive Measures • Technical • Current status of population • Size • Rate of population change • Reproductive capacity • Seasonal requirements • Social • Public education • Public support