and Wildlife Your Land
a series about managing your land for wildlife
Putting Pen to Paper
Developing Your Wildlife Management Plan
Let's see, a clump of spruce trees would be good for songbird cover--you love nuthatches and chipping sparrows--and off in the pasture that always floods, you'd like a wetland for ducks, herons and frogs. With other wetlands nearby, you're sure you could attract a few nesting pairs of mallards or teal. And, if you thin out your woods, there'd be more brush for wildlife cover. But where to begin? What should you do first, and how long will it take?
P
lanning. The dreaded word. Truth is, developing a wildlife management plan isn't that complex and can even be fun. Think of your plan as a road map to help keep you directed toward your ultimate destination.
forms. What's most important is that you know what you want and you set those thoughts in writing.
It can be as simple as a quick sketch and a few notes, or as complex as a full array of maps, photos, drawings, references, and detailed outlines of habitat improvement projects--whatever your energy and time permit. You decide. This publication, and others in this Wildlife and Your Land series will help you develop a plan that will work for you. We've even included a sample plan from an actual farm in southern Wisconsin. If you live in the North, the steps are the same, but the types of plants and animals will be different. Consider this sample plan simply as a guide to help you with ideas...to get started. It may seem ambitious, but we wanted to show you a range of options. Remember, wildlife plans can take many
ildl W
ry nto ve al In entory im . An ant Inv icture 1 P l 2. P he Big ap s . T se M roject 3 a P 4. B abitat Map 5. H roject ng i 6. P ournal 7. J
i
Pla fe
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Wildlife and Your Land
Reptiles and Amph ibians--
Land Stewardship
Your wildlife plan may stand alone or be a component of a total land stewardship plan that could include other goals such as timber harvesting, agriculture, erosion control, aesthetic improvements, hunting, bird watching, or native plant community restoration. Whatever your goals, you can use this publication and others in the Wildlife and Your Land series as a resource for wildlife management practices.
Birds--Where Spotted or Heard and When
Mammals--Where Spotted or Heard and When
13-lined ground squirrels--in garden and yard--spring through fall woodchucks--under outhouse, in yard and garden, along cattle path, pasture--spring through fall deer--in pasture, cattle path, corn fields--year-round raccoons--tracks in snow along cattle path--late winter through fall cottontail rabbits--in old pasture, woodlot, garden, yard, junk brush pile near corn crib--year round skunk--along road near old grass patch chipmunk--on rock wall in front of house,along old foundation near garage--spring through fall
Animal Inventory
1. Compile an Animal Inventory
Knowing what animals currently call your place "home," or at least visit it on occasion, will help you develop a plan. If you're already very familiar with your property, take time now to jot down as many kinds of animals (include mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish if appropriate, and interesting insects, spiders, and other invertebrates) as you can recall. Note where you've seen them on your property, as well as the time of year and day. If you don't know the specific name of an animal, don't worry... simply describe it, or for those with an artistic flair, sketch it. If you're not that familiar with your property, take a walking tour of it soon. In a notebook, record any critters you see. Look, listen, and even sniff for clues that animals have been there: a small chipmunk-sized burrow or a large woodchuck den in the side of a hill; hoof or paw prints in the snow or mud; brambles whose branches have been neatly nipped by rabbits or deer, or the faint smell of skunk musk. You may be surprised at all the
wildlife that exist on your property, even if you never see them in the flesh. Become a wildlife sleuth and see how many of the following animal signs you can find on your property. Add others to your animal inventory as you find them. Y young trees with bark rubbed off by autumn buck antlers Y furry pellets regurgitated by a great horned owl Y a large stick nest built high in an oak tree by a red-tailed hawk Y a woodpecker hole in a dead tree Y spider webs Y an ant mound and insect cocoons Y tunnels through a field of grass made by small rodents Y hickory nuts nibbled by deer mice
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Y black walnuts cracked by gray squirrels Y pine cone "cobs" left behind by red squirrels Y porcupine droppings at the base of a tree Y a clay nest under the barn eaves made by barn swallows Y last year's bird nests Y feathers scattered around, leftover from a predator's meal Y the call of sandhill cranes or loons in the distance Y the trill of courting toads Since not every animal will be visible on any given walking tour, be sure to periodically walk your property during different seasons and times of day. Keep notes on what you observe, and when. The more you walk your land, the better you'll get to know it and its inhabitants.
It's a start, and you can always ask for help from a DNR wildlife manager, forester, nursery professional or Natural Resources Conservation Service agent. If you look at designing and implementing your wildlife management plan as a hobby, your knowledge about plants, animals, and habitat types will surely grow. A youngster sitting at a piano for the first time cannot be expected to perform like a master. So don't worry. You'll learn. You'll learn by doing, by asking others, and by reading. Don't panic if you don't know the names of the plants on your property.... Describe them.... Draw them.... Take a deep breath and take it one step at a time. You can do it!
Flowers, "weeds" an d ferns
Habitat
2. Create a Plant Inventory
Though you may find animals more exciting to seek and identify than plants, remember that wildlife management is really habitat management. What grows on the land determines what wildlife will thrive there. So, during some of your walking tours, concentrate on developing a list of the existing plants you find along the way. As you walk along, also try to identify the types of habitats these plants create. Remember that habitats overlap...a forest blends with a wetland, a field with a woodlot and a grassland with a brushy field. Nature, like most things in life, rarely presents a perfect example. If you can't identify a habitat type, simply ask yourself, "Is this place mostly woods, grassland, wetland or mostly cultivated field or lawn?"
Grasses and legumes
Plant and Habitat Inventory
Trees Habitat
bur, white and red oak woodland, pasture, yard sugar maple basswood black mulberry black walnut mountain ash catalpa box elder 1 mature pear tree 2 mature apple trees yard pasture, cattle path barnyard, garden yard yard yard barnyard, yard yard old field
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Wildlife and Your Land
3. Put it all in Context
Like the cascading domino effect, what you do on your piece of real estate affects the landscape around you. Likewise, the landscape around you determines what you can realistically expect to do on your property. Everything is connected. The plants on your parcel can act as seed sources for your neighbor's land, and vice versa. Animals found using your site don't know the meaning of "property boundary," or "international borders." Critters come and go as they please...they may walk very short distances or fly over extremely long stretches from South America to Upper Canada. And, if you own land along a stream, what you do on your land will affect water quality and aquatic plant and animal life downstream. Before you make management decisions about what animals you wish to attract, it helps to understand what plants and animals you can reasonably expect to flourish on your property. One way to do this is to understand what grew in your region prior to settlement. The "Early Vegetation of Wisconsin" map shows this graphically. For example, if you live in northern Wisconsin, and your land is surrounded by county or national forests composed of
mature hardwoods and evergreens, you may choose to conduct a clear-cut in order to rejuvenate aspen and other sun-loving trees, shrubs and brambles. This will attract ruffed grouse, white-tailed deer, black bear, rubythroated hummingbirds and red-backed voles. Otherwise, you could decide to maintain the hardwoods you have for the benefit of ovenbirds, wood thrushes, porcupines, fishers, goshawks, flying squirrels and ringnecked snakes. If, on the other hand, you live on a farm in the southern part of the state, chances are your area once supported native tallgrass prairie or prairie dotted with oak trees, called an oak savanna. If you can afford to take a field out of production, you may opt to turn it into a grassland composed of native grasses and wildflowers. Several years after establishment, you may reasonably expect to find eastern bluebirds, 13-lined ground squirrels, woodchucks, ring-necked pheasants, meadowlarks, grasshopper and savanna sparrows and possibly even a badger or short-eared owl. Of course, there are always exceptions. Those exceptions usually depend on soil type and geologic features. For instance, though tamarack bogs are typical of northern wetlands, they can be found in the low mucky areas
The Tension Zone
If you've ever driven south through Eau Claire, Portage or Outagamie Counties, you can actually see the vegetation change from evergreens and northern hardwoods to oak/hickory--you are driving in the "tension zone." The tension zone is a narrow band of land that separates the southern limit of the northern forest and the northern limit of the southern forest and prairies. Many animals and plants reach the limit of their range in this zone. Climate is the primary reason for the changes, though soils and other factors also play a role. Look for these changes the next time you're in the "tension zone." Northern Hardwoods
Tension Zone
Southern Hardwoods
Maps adapted by permission from Curtis (1959).
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ringing the glacial hills known as drumlins in Jefferson and Dane counties. Special grasslands called "barrens" can be found in northwestern and central Wisconsin where sandy soil and periodic wild fires have pushed back the tide of forests. As a final example, if your property was once drained of a wetland for farming purposes, restoration may be as simple as breaking a drainage tile, plugging a ditch, or building a small earthen dike. After the water returns, plants characteristic of your area will appear --maybe cattail, bulrush or arrowhead... maybe sedges, speckled alder, willow or wild iris. The wildlife will follow--perhaps yellowheaded blackbirds, northern harriers, bluewinged teal, great blue herons, muskrats, mink, raccoons, American toads, leopard frogs, spring peepers and green darner dragonflies.
Keep in mind that we're not suggesting you must recreate early plant types, or that you even can recreate those types. Our Wisconsin landscape has changed so radically since settlement, and is controlled by so many private citizens, that we, as a citizenry, cannot expect landowners to turn back the hands of time to presettlement conditions. However, the property owner who knows what the land can feasibly support, and takes this information into consideration during planning, will be the one who creates a very successful wildlife management plan. To learn more about your region, check with your local librarian, DNR wildlife, forestry, parks, or endangered resources management staff, or a naturalist from a nearby nature center.
Where you live in Wisconsin affects what will grow there.
Early Vegetation of Wisconsin ca. 1840
Boreal Forest: spruce, balsam fir, tamarack, white cedar, paper birch, aspen Northern Hardwood Forest: hemlock, sugar maple, yellow birch, white and red pine Southern Hardwood Forest: sugar maple, basswood, red oak, white oak and black oak, beech (beech grows only along counties bordering Lake Michigan and Green Bay). Pine Barrens: jack pine, scrub oak forest and grasses Oak Savanna: bur, white, black oaks, grasses Prairie: grasses and woody plants
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Wildlife and Your Land
Proceed with Care
When managing for wildlife within the context of the surrounding landscape, avoid destroying, degrading or seriously altering habitats that are already valuable for rare plants or animals in order to attract common ones. You can learn about rare habitats by consulting resource professionals with the DNR, university, or a local arboretum, or by reading a variety of reference books. Always consider the impact your management projects may have on the animals and plants in the surrounding vicinity and remember that no management is also a viable form of land management.
4. Create a Base Map
Now that you have an idea of what plants and animals you have on your property and what you can reasonably expect to have on your property within the context of the surrounding landscape, you're ready to develop a base map. This activity can be as simple as sketching in rough outlines of major habitat components while walking your land, or as elaborate as you want, including the smallest of details from air photos, topographic maps and soil maps. Obtain air photos from the Department of Transportation, topographic maps from the Wisconsin Geological Survey and soil maps from your county's Natural Resources Conservation Service office. See Getting the Help You Need in this Wildlife and Your Land series for addresses and phone numbers. The more information you obtain, the easier it will be to make habitat decisions. On this base map, label the major habitat types and land features. Include such things as woods, grasslands, wetlands, streams, lakes or ponds, shelterbelts, hills, drainage ditches, buildings, fencerows, cattle paths, logging roads, cultivated fields, roadways and the like. Also, highlight those features of special importance to wildlife: ground dens, dead trees, living trees with large cavities, bird feeders, nest boxes, mature nut trees, major travel lanes, and more. The sample base map at the back of this publication should give you some ideas. But for now, put your map aside; you'll be coming back to it shortly.
B
M ase
ap
* * * *
** * *A
H
R H R
S
5. Choose Habitat Projects
Now you're just about ready to begin selecting some wildlife habitat projects. To repeat, the projects you choose will depend upon a number of factors:
Y what plants and animals already exist on
your property;
Y what plants are suited to your soil types
and geographic region;
Y what animals you can reasonably expect
to attract following habitat modifications;
Y how much time, money, physical strength,
interest and patience you're willing to devote to the various projects;
Y what other land management goals you
have for your property such as timber or firewood production, livestock pasturing, crop production, hunting, wildlife viewing or other forms of recreation.
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Managing for wildlife may mean you will need to consider modifying some of your other goals. For example, if you want to attract more gray squirrels, wild turkeys or woodpeckers to the woodlot you are about to include in a timber sale, you may want to keep those valuable black walnut trees, the mature oaks which produce abundant acorn crops, that straight black cherry tree with a cavity in it, or that large bur oak which could serve as a turkey roost. If you want to attract more pheasants, meadowlarks and bobolinks to your working farm, you may need to delay your hay mowing or put some of your active land into a federal or state land set-aside program. Trade-offs aren't necessarily bad...they help you achieve the overall goals of land stewardship. So, now, write down all your land stewardship goals. more The specific you can be about what you want to do, and when, the greater your chances for success. For some ideas, check out the Wildlife Plan at the back of this document. Knowing your goals, as well as knowing what's logical to expect from your land, you can now choose your habitat projects. Ask your local DNR wildlife manager for additional publications in the Wildlife and Your Land series appropriate for your land and area. The series covers a variety of topics from how to build a brush pile, to how to conduct a timber harvest with wildlife benefits in mind, to how to build a house that's simply for the birds! You'll also learn the importance of snag and den trees to wildlife, how to establish a grassland or native prairie, and how to restore wetlands. And, you'll learn about "edge" habitat and the pros and cons of this double-edged sword. There's even more.
Review these publications and any others you may find in your library or bookstore, and choose projects that will help you meet your goals. In your notebook, write brief descriptions of what you want to accomplish and set some dates for yourself to help keep your attention focused on the task. For some ideas about how to create this step of the plan, please review the sample plan we've provided.
Patience, please....
Your wildlife management plan may take years to implement. To give yourself a sense of accomplishment along the way, intersperse relatively simple and shortterm habitat projects with more complex, long-term ones. For example, plan some activities that will produce gratifying results quickly, like building a brush pile, laying out a bluebird trail, installing some bird feeders or constructing a few nest boxes. Don't neglect the larger, more challenging, projects, however. Establishing a grassland, planting a shelterbelt for wildlife, or restoring a wetland can result in big wildlife benefits and even increase your property value if done correctly. They simply take more resources and much more time. Remember, habitat changes usually occur s...l...
o...w...
l ... y. .
.
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Wildlife and Your Land
6. Create a Project Map
Now you take out your base map again, photocopy it, and sketch in the location of your projects. Maybe you want to restore a small wetland, or install some wood duck nest boxes along the creek, or clearcut a section of forest to create more edge on your property, or restore a grassland in that old pasture that's filling in with weeds and brush. By keeping your base map unaltered, you will have a comparison point for later dates. This will help you see where you've been and let you know where you are...kind of like that road map we talked about earlier.
nest box, or the first winter you noticed a fox trail along your shelterbelt. These are things you'll want to remember and will enjoy recalling.
Getting the Help you Need If after reading this overview of how to develop a wildlife management plan you feel a little overwhelmed, don't get discouraged. Free help is just a phone call away. Simply call your nearest DNR office, where wildlife managers, foresters, fish managers and park naturalists are there to assist you. See Getting the Help You Need in this Wildlife and Your Land series for a complete list of DNR phone numbers and other references.
7. "Journal" into the Future
As time goes on, be sure to update your plan periodically and add observations to your journal. It's fun to keep track of your progress. Your journal serves as a chronicle of your successful--and not so successful-- management efforts as well as a register of your more memorable wildlife observations and landscape developments...like, the day the first pair of bluebirds set up household in your new
's hbor neig w ng in k I sa razi c es g hat bu 12 3 do e is t ept. S Saw Wher long . ing a ork. hid a.m ow was 6:45 n way t hat o t ? field ays ago eron lue H od tw 40 at B ack Gre on b all pa u se red grou seen Sca itch. up a one I've y. d ed r a the Sca . First ays aw dog just d . p.m the is 7:00 out with eason gs le whi .huntin .. year
Birds
mallards--flying overhead in pasture, possibly
Wildlife Plan for Heartland Farm An 80 acre farm in Jefferson County, Wisconsin Property Description
According to the Soil Survey of Jefferson County, the homestead is located on the top of a gently sloping glacial hill called a drumlin. Overall, the soil located on the hill is well drained with a clayey subsoil underlain by gravelly sandy loam. At the base of the hill, the soils are poorly drained, rich in organic material and more than 51 inches thick. This property is currently a hobby farm with 59 tillable acres being farmed under contract by a neighboring farmer. He rotates small grains, hay and corn. The pasture shows signs of overgrazing including plenty of prickly ash and deep, weed infested gullies. The farm is surrounded by farmland and uplands of oak, hickory and maple. The Jefferson Marsh, a rich tamarack bog wetland, is located Plant and Habitat Inventory nearby. Pheasants, Trees deer, rabbits, hawks Animal Inventory and owls are common
Mammals Where Spotted or Heard and When
13-lined ground squirrels--in garden and yard-- spring through fall woodchucks--under outhouse, in yard and garden, along cattle path, pasture--spring through fall deer--in pasture, cattle path, corn fields--yearround raccoons--tracks in snow along cattle path--late winter through fall opossum-- saw tracks in snow along cattle path, inside barn--late winter through fall
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Wildlife and Your Land
Base Map and Habitat Projects Heartland Farm, Jefferson County, WI 80 acres
Existing Features Dirt road
S R O H
w PR corn-alfalfa rotation
Snag Rockpile Oak tree Hickory tree Tree or shrub Scattered hardwood seedlings Fence
A
pe gra rma ss nen lan t d cattle path
*
*** *** * * yard * * * * * *w
garden old grasses
alfalfa
Habitat Projects Short-run Bird feeders, suet
* *A * *
weedy pasture ditch
s evergreencorn-oats
rotation
*
w
New trees and shrubs Wren house Bluebird trail Long-term
FP deer stand alfalfa
WP
Wet Prairie restoration
OR Oak regeneration FP PR
Food plot Prairie restoration
* * WP * * **
OR
R H H R S
WP
N
The project map was created from an enlarged soils map available from the Jefferson County Natural Resources Conservation Service.
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Backyard Landscaping Project Heartland Farm
County Y apple tree w prairie patch
garden
butterfly garden mini woodland
* * * * * * * ** ** * * * * * * ** ** * ** * * * ** * * * *
N
stump
* ** * * * * * ** ** ** * * **
********* * * *** * * * * * pears * * cedars * * house
* * *
win ildlife vie ge for w allowing income ana Goal: M , while still Overall s purpose hunting ract farming. d nt rasslan from co r deer, g age fo ls: man s and run Goa mals, songbird hortS m mall ma birds, s s. n amphibia t: g projec ned: ts Plan life landscapin elterbelt and Projec d yard wil elter, sh Y Back d food and sh Songbir land od mini wo rail arden ird t terfly g Y Blueb patch and but ie rels, Y Prair or squir anage f ranes and :M hill c n Goals Long-ru aterfowl, sand ,w turkeys me. d ga uplan ity lanned: ommun ojects P ie, tamarack c Pr prair Y Wet ation restor tion nting egenera Y Oak r lot and pine pla p Y Food
barn
o do I want t What g and
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Wildlife and Your Land
The Plan
Project 1: Backyard wildlife landscaping
Wildlife Goal: To attract a variety of wildlife year-round.
Description of Site: House sits near peak of a glacial hill, or drumlin. Yard is gently sloping to moderately sloping. Soil is well drained to moderately well drained. Much clay in soil. Soil is good for tree and shrub planting. Total area of yard, including the house is 5 acres. The yard contains a variety of common trees and shrubs typical of old farmsteads. There are also fruit trees and grapes--a bonus for wildlife.
_______________________________________
Part 1: Songbird food and shelter
Wildlife Goal: To immediately attract local and winter resident songbirds. Time frame: Weekend projects throughout the year, begin immediately, complete by
year end. 1) Install small bird feeder near east kitchen window. 2) Hang one tubular thistle seed bird feeder, sunflower seed bird feeder and one suet cage from pear tree on north side of house. 3) Hang one house wren nest box in lilac near old outhouse. 4) Install one large hopper-style bird feeder on west side of house, outside of living room windows. Put nuts, bread and corn on old box elder stump. Hang one tubular sunflower seed bird feeder and one suet "bell" from red cedar on northwest side of house. 5) Purchase bird bath and bird bath heater for winter water source. 6) Remove old purple martin house. Build and erect new one. Keep sparrows and starlings from moving in. 7) Purchase a house sparrow trap and remove these pests.
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Part 2: Expand red cedar/pine windbreaks around the house into a five row shelterbelt for wildlife
Wildlife Goal: To provide nest and winter shelter as well as a natural source of food
for local birds and mammals.
Time frame: Plant trees, shrubs and vines beginning next spring and continue adding
to the shelterbelt over the next 3-5 years. 1) Order white spruce, white cedar and wildlife shrub packet from DNR nursery and plant when they arrive in spring. Add to the existing red cedar windbreak along west boundary of lawn and the pine windbreak on northwest boundary of lawn. 2) In January and February, check garden catalogs and local nurseries and order additional varieties of wildlife trees and shrubs such as mountain ash, American highbush cranberry, Ame...