1. GENERAL CONCERNS IN WILDLIFE POPULATION MANAGEMENT #8986-B

2. Introduction Wild species are no longer a major source of meat, clothing, and shelter. Plants and animals are still important to the American way of life. No price can be put on their recreational and aesthetic value.

3. The threat to plants and animals by natural and human activity is growing. Research continues to help people learn about the needs of wildlife. As the knowledge base grows, the chance for survival of wild species improves.

4. Managing Wildlife Wild species are renewable natural resources that can become extinct. Weather, disease, habitat destruction, and food supplies affect wild populations.

5. A sound management program will improve their chances for survival. One theory is that preserving wildlife will help humans preserve their own existence.

6. Species are sensitive to any change in the environment. These changes can be due to such things as chemicals or habitat destruction. Photo by W. L. French courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

7. DDT is one chemical that affected wildlife. “The decline of the Peregrine Falcon coincided with the introduction of the pesticide DDT in 1947. Birds of prey at the top of the food chain, such as falcons, ingested relatively high levels of the pesticide, which was concentrated in the fatty tissues of their prey. Falcons contaminated with DDT failed to lay eggs or produced thin eggshells that broke during incubation. In 1972, DDT was banned in the United States, and a slow recovery for the Peregrine Falcon began” (USFWS, 2002). Photo by John & Karen Hollingsworth courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

8. Agriculture, industry, transportation, and housing are all causes of habitat destruction. Photo courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

9. Habitat destruction does not kill animals directly. It destroys where they live and breed. Photo by Lynn Betts courtesy of USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

10. The ability to control land use comes with a responsibility. Laws cannot nurture a desire to do what is right. Good wildlife conservation is a state of mind, a desire to do what is right for the environment.

11. Wildlife Population Management Objectives Wild species are renewable natural resources that can become extinct. Weather, disease, habitat destruction, and food supplies affect wild populations.

12. The first goal of wildlife management is to regulate the population. This calls for increasing or decreasing the population to an acceptable level. Photo by Donna Dewhurst courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

13. The second goal of wildlife management is stabilizing the population. This requires maintaining the population at the acceptable level. To meet this goal, birth rates should equal death rates. Photo by W. J. Berg courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

14. The wildlife manager should be aware that species populations rise and fall in cycles.

15. Density-dependent factors are related to animal population. This is a factor that depends directly on the size or number of the species. For example, an increase in food source will likely increase the population of a species that feeds on that food source.

16. Density-independent factors will affect a species regardless of their population size. For example, a hard winter will affect a population regardless of the size of the population.

17. Limiting factors can affect the group numbers and will cause a change in group size. Limiting factors may be either density-dependent or density-independent in nature. Food, water, cover, and disease are several areas that can be managed.

18. The third goal of wildlife management is to distribute wildlife over the managed area. This is done by the arrangement of food, water, cover, and space. Edges or ecotones allow for a more diverse animal life in an area.

19. Planning a Wildlife Population Management Program Managing wild animals is no simple practice. They are wild and that makes determining population size difficult.

20. Animals can get sick and die before an illness is noticed. Providing food is often guess work.

21. A good plan begins with identifying the problem and gathering data. Information is the key to a sound management program. Photo by William Campbell courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

22. One tool of information-gathering is a census. It can estimate a true population within 20 percent. Graph by Jim Peaco courtesy of Yellowstone National Park, National Park Service, DOI.

23. With deer, fawns can be captured, weighed, aged, and measured. Photo by Tom Stehn courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

24. There is no precise formula for wildlife managers to use. Wildlife population management is a new practice.

25. Determining the Carrying Capacity of a Land Area Carrying capacity is the ability of the land to support the wild animals on it. Managers evaluate the kind of food, the quality of cover, and the distance to water and work with space and arrangement to meet the needs of the animals.

26. Each species has its own requirements. Experience and research studies are the best tools of conservationists and landowners.

27. Factors Limiting Wildlife Populations Species and environmental factors can limit the number of wildlife in an area.

29. Species factors relate directly to the traits of the animals as a group. Two species factors are the capacity of the population to reproduce; and their habits.

30. The environmental factors include biotic agencies, physical agencies, and habitat deficiencies.

31. Biotic agencies, which are things that directly affect the well being of the body, are predators, disease, and parasites. Physical agencies include agricultural activities and weather conditions.

32. Habitat deficiencies would include food, cover, and water. An area that lacks one or more of these needs will not support a wildlife population. Animals may move in and out of an area, but will not settle.

33. Organization of a Wildlife Population Management Problem If a population is limited to the individuals in that group, it is a closed population. A closed population will increase in size until birth and death rates equal each other. Extrinsic and intrinsic regulators control the population species.

34. Six major extrinsic factors are weather, disease, food, cover, distribution of source and sink habits, and other species.

35. Research has indicated that intrinsic regulators include territoriality, aggression, stress, and self-regulation through group selection.

36. Water and Wildlife Populations Most wild animals can survive a week or longer without food. They can only last a few days without water.

37. Water is important to digestion, reducing body temperature, metabolism, and removing metabolic wastes.

38. All animals do not need to drink water. Some animals can get the water they need from eating certain plants, insects, or dew on plants. When free water is not available, it must be provided.

39. Diseases, Parasites, and Poisons Affecting Wildlife Populations Diseases, parasites, and poisons affect wild animals the same way they affect domestic animals.

40. Some diseases affect only certain species. Some can be transmitted to humans. Diseases and parasites are limiting factors to population size.

41. Poisons are present in the environment. Pesticides have effects on the following factors Impact on behavior; Reproduction; Growth rate; and Survival of certain wild species.

42. The following are some examples of diseases, parasites, and poisons that affect wildlife: Avian Botulism Avian Cholera Avian Pox Lead Poisoning Salmonella Brucellosis

43. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency (APHIS) is the part of the United States Department of Agriculture that monitors infectious diseases. This agency works with domestic animal health issues. Photo by Jim Peaco courtesy of Yellowstone National Park, National Park System, DOI.

44. The National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) is the branch of the Department of Interior that provides technical assistance with wildlife health issues. The National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) is also concerned with biological issues affecting wildlife.

45. Harvest and Wildlife Populations Each state has a fish and game department that regulates the harvest of certain wild species. Population size determines how many of each species should be harvested.

46. There are laws for game animals and for non-game animals. Certain nuisance species are not protected.

47. Fishing, hunting, and trapping activities are three methods of taking wild animals. State guidelines identify the species and number that may be harvested by each method.

48. Population size determines harvest amounts. The goal of wildlife harvest is a sustained population. Photo by Gary Zahm courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

49. The following categories are used to determine harvest numbers Physical and Geographical Areas Biological Factors Social Impact Cultural and Religious Beliefs Economic Factors

50. Physical and geographical factors identify source areas that are net producers and prime hunting areas. Weak source areas are referred to as sink areas or areas that produce little or no game. Providing corridors between sink and source areas improve populations in both areas.

51. Biological factors address production and how vulnerable an area is to harvest. Biological production is the ability of the land to produce game.

52. Some animals, by their nature, are more vulnerable to harvest. Nesting or mating activities increase the opportunity for harvest.

53. The social impact of hunting is far different than when this country was founded. Obtaining meat is not always the goal of today’s hunter.

54. Some groups oppose sport hunting and trapping activities. Even catch and release fishing has opposition. These animal rights’ activists serve as spokespersons for all animal rights.

55. Still, a managed harvest will control populations. It keeps the food supply in line with the animals that will use it.

56. Another social issue facing wild animals involves roads, railroad tracks, and utility right-of-ways. These produce barriers that isolate habitats. Photo by J. Schmidt courtesy of Yellowstone National Park, National Park Service, DOI.

57. Animals traveling from one habitat to another often become the victim of vehicle traffic. Photo by Ed Austin & Herb Jones courtesy of Yellowstone National Park, National Park Service, DOI.

58. Cultural and religious issues are also important to wildlife harvest. Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism have religious laws restricting the killing and eating of wildlife. Christianity does not share these same beliefs.

59. On the cultural side, people tend to gather by nationalities. As communities form, their decisions on hunting impact wildlife populations.

60. On the economic side, wildlife is an industry in itself. Wholesale and retail sales generate millions of dollars annually into the economy.

61. Tourist trade also makes up a large part of the wildlife economic pie. Many Third World countries find live wild animals can generate more income than hunted game. Photo by Thomas Hermann courtesy of National Biological Information Infrastructure.

62. The number of sports magazines is an indication of the scope and variety of activities that contribute to the economic base provided by wildlife.

63. References USFWS, 2002. FWS employee with peregrine falcon, abstract, retrieved from world wide web on October 12, 2006 from U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service at http://images.fws.gov/default.cfm?fuseaction=records.display&CFID=4622846&CFTOKEN=5215 3959&id=369A493F%2DCABE%2D4216%2DB1A3518E6D790BA8.

64. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Reproduction or redistribution of all, or part, of this presentation without written permission is prohibited. Instructional Materials Service Texas A&M University 2588 TAMUS College Station, Texas 77843-2588 http://www-ims.tamu.edu 2006