Habitat Management - Wildlife Management Pro

Wildlife Management: Dove Habitat Management

Mourning dove and white-winged dove are both migratory species and as such are regulated by federal laws. However, allow these dove regulations do afford some protection to these birds, controlled hunting is allowed within most states. In fact, dove management units have been set up in the eastern, central, and western United States to regulate dove hunting.

Hunting pressure and dove numbers vary in each of these dove management units. To establish breeding population trends, federal and state wildlife agencies conduct annual roadside call counts and counts of doves seen over established routes. Breeding population numbers, based on these call counts, are the primary basis for determining dove hunting seasons and bag limits. Continue reading Wildlife Management: Dove Habitat Management

Grants for Habitat and Wildlife Management

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and local water conservation districts work together to provide technical assistance to provide Texas landowners to help conserve, improve, and develop their soil, water, plant, wildlife and related resources. There are several financial assistance programs available through the NRCS that can help you develop a wetland and offer wetland management incentives.

The Texas Prairie Wetlands Program is administered and funded by the USDA-NRSC, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, US Fish and Wildlife Service, and Ducks Unlimited. Cost-share assistance (75 to 100%) is available to restore, improve, and create wetlands on private lands for waterfowl management. A 10 to 15 year wetland management plan and written agreement is developed jointly and is carried out by the landowner. NRCS and Ducks Unlimited write the management plan, survey, and design any need water control or earthen structures. The landowner agrees to follow the management plan (Wetland Development Agreement) for the life of the contract. Continue reading Grants for Habitat and Wildlife Management

Planting Native Grass for Wildlife Habitat

Creating better habitat for wildlife has become more important as natural lands have been lost or converted for other uses. Of course, habitat is always relative to the animal we are discussing — because quail habitat is not the same as duck habitat. Native grasslands have been one of the hardest hit plant communities in the United States, so animals that use this area have been highly impacted. But, native grass can be planted and re-established for grassland-using wildlife species.

When it comes to good-for-wildlife grasses, native grasses are of course the only way to go. Good grasses over much of the Great Plains would be species such as big bluestem, little bluestem, Indiangrass, sideoats grama, and switchgrass. Switchgrass really works good in drainages and wetter areas within grasslands. Also, if you want the cream of the crop grass try some eastern gamagrass. Continue reading Planting Native Grass for Wildlife Habitat

USDA Offers Additional Money for Habitat Management

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has announced an additional $14.3 million in conservation financial assistance for working lands through the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP), which offers private landowners the opportunity to protect, restore and enhance grassland habitat. Landowners interested in improving native wildlife habitat for endemic plant and animal species should take a good look at this federal funding source.

“This additional funding will enable even more landowners to protect environmentally and economically important agricultural land and preserve the resources that are so critical to the health and prosperity of our rural communities,” said Don Gohmert, NRCS state conservationist for Texas. “The funding will assist landowners in protecting Texas grassland and conserve a resource base on which we all depend.”

Continue reading USDA Offers Additional Money for Habitat Management

Brush Control Will Increase Groundwater Supply

For over 50 years, Hill Country ranchers have been telling tales of springs bursting from the ground after they removed ashe juniper infected areas. Actually, they probably didn’t call it ashe juniper. In Texas, it’s “affectionately” known as cedar. A recent study on 700 acres owned by the state (40 miles north of San Antonio) is giving federal researchers the data to find out just how much water the trees use, and if a massive program to restore grasslands across the Hill Country would result in more water for cities, farms and wildlife.

“Now we are controlling the water with the landscape,” said George Ozuna, the deputy director of the U.S. Geological Survey’s Texas Water Science Center. Until now small-scale studies on parcels up to 50 acres have shown juniper removal from the Edwards Plateau might result in an increase of stream flow and groundwater recharge equal to about 5 percent of annual rainfall. Continue reading Brush Control Will Increase Groundwater Supply

Brush Management and Streamflow

In the past, abundant woody growth (brush) was considered to be bad for Central Texas streams and rivers. However, a recent analysis of long-term streamflow for the major rivers in the Edwards Plateau has indicated that baseflows in these rivers has significantly increased since the 1950 drought. Further, recent levels of baseflows (supplied from springs) appear to be about twice as high as they were before the 1950’s drought. These increases have occurred even as woodlands have expanded in the region, probably because the landscape is recovering from historic overgrazing.

The results of this study are important because they clearly demonstrate that how the land and habitat is managed does have a large scale effect on water supplies. That being said, does this new research conflict with earlier studies showing that recharge may be enhanced through brush management? Continue reading Brush Management and Streamflow

Habitat Management Workshop

Interest in habitat management has increased in recent years thank to the environmental awareness of landowners across the State of Texas. Holistic Management Texas is inviting interested individuals to a field day at the Duncan Brothers’ Duncan Spade Ranch from 9am to 4pm on Saturday, April 10, 2010 ($30). In addition, a Drought Mitigation Workshop with Walt Davis will follow on April 11-12.

“The Spade Ranch was established in 1870 by my great-grandfather, Green C. Duncan, who came to Wharton County from Kentucky after serving in the Civil War. The main crops during the Ranch’s first 30 years were potatoes, cotton, sugar cane, and molasses. Currently, the Ranch is operated by Duncan Brothers, a partnership of five families, with a fifth generation member of one of the families serving as ranch manager – these are our primary decision-makers. Our two ranch employees and six tenant farmers can be included as decision-makers at another level, but they are also part of our resource base. Continue reading Habitat Management Workshop