Managing for the Most:
A Landowners Planning and Planting Guide to Conserving North Dakota's Wildlife Legacy
WL-1000, Reviewed and Reprinted March 1992
Terry Messmer, Wildlife Specialist
Introduction
What Makes More Animals?
Time To Get Started
Managing Croplands For Wildlife
Managing Water For Wildlife
Managing Grasslands For Wildlife
Managing Woodlands for Wildlife
What to Plant
Managing the Backyard for Wildlife
North Dakota Wildlife Conservation Programs
Summary
The objective of wildlife conservation is to retain for all people the opportunity to
enjoy, use, and appreciate wildlife. This objective not only includes keeping wild animals
from becoming extinct, but also ensuring that the greatest possible variety exists in each
community.
Wildlife management, the art and science of wildlife conservation, attempts to make
land produce and sustain populations of wildlife so all people may realize its value.
Wildlife in the United States is owned by the public, with primary responsibility for
most wildlife conservation programs delegated to governmental agencies such as our state's
Game and Fish Department. Although the Game and Fish Department is legally responsible for
managing most wildlife on North Dakota public and private lands, a number of federal
agencies, private organizations, industrial interests and individual citizens also conduct
wildlife conservation activities.
Nearly all funds to conduct these conservation activities are provided by the users of
the resource, notably those who hunt and fish. For most state wildlife management
agencies, no general tax dollars are used to support their conservation activities.
Wildlife agencies and organizations employ persons with a variety of scientific
training and vocational skills. Private citizens also assist these agencies by
participating in the political process and their involvement in wildlife conservation
organizations.
All these groups would not be able to function effectively if it were not for this
country's other wildlife managers; our farmers, ranchers, and landowners. With less than
10 percent of North Dakota in public ownership, it is evident that the state's private
landowners play a key role in wildlife conservation.
Landowners managing a certain portion of their land to create new habitats can be of
tremendous benefit to wildlife.
We hope the information presented in the following pages will serve as a guide for
landowners, both rural and urban, for planning and planting of such areas to help further
North Dakota's rich wildlife legacy.
What Makes More Animals?
Wildlife habitat is simply the place or home where wildlife live. Within this habitat,
wildlife find the basic needs for survival: food, water, shelter, and living space. It is
the ability of the habitat to meet these basic needs that determines what kinds and
numbers of animals a piece of land can support. The number of animals this habitat can
support at a given time is called its carrying capacity.
A habitat's carrying capacity may vary by season and year, being
greatest in late spring through fall and lowest in winter. A deficit in one of the four
basic requirements, regardless of the abundance of the others, will also reduce a
habitat's carrying capacity.
The key to managing wildlife then becomes a matter of matching the animal's habitat
needs with the habitat. Attracting the greatest kinds and numbers of wildlife requires
providing variety in food and cover. Citizen conservationists can work to provide wildlife
with food and water, by planting food plots, engaging in wildlife winter feeding
operations and the development of wildlife watering areas through the creation or
restoration of wetlands.
Time To Get Started
Over the course of this publication, you will find several additional specific
management techniques and suggestions for different habitat types which not only are
designed to benefit wildlife, but may also if implemented help a landowner to increased
outputs and reduced in soil erosion. The habitat types discussed will include grasslands,
woodlands, waterlands, croplands, and the backyard.
If you have any questions about specific practices or your chances of being successful
in restoring wildlife habitat for certain species, contact your local wildlife agencies or
organizations, Soil Conservation Service or Extension Service representative. They can
help you develop a conservation plan for your property that incorporates wildlife habitat
needs.
Managing Croplands For Wildlife
Croplands can be or are beneficial to wildlife. For example, wildlife use waste grain
and weed seeds as winter food. Alfalfa crops provide nesting and brooding areas for birds
such as waterfowl, pheasant and grouse.
Just how farming affects wildlife depends on the production scheme. All farming changes
the height, variety and mix of vegetation as we plow, plant, cultivate and harvest crops.
In response to these changes some animals have flourished, but others have been harmed.
Growing the same crop on a large acreage in the same field year after year sharply
reduces the variety of plant cover and may eliminate winter cover, nesting areas and food
plants. This practice, called monoculture, may also result in diseases and pests having
"a field day" at the expense of the producer.
Other agricultural practices such as fall plowing or tillage bury waste grain and other
residues that can provide food or cover to help wildlife survive the winter. Stubble left
standing reduces accumulations of soil and snow in shelterbelts and marshes which are
traditional wildlife wintering areas. Elimination of fall plowing or tillage increases
crop residues and reduces soil loss from wind and water.
Although fall plowing may increase yields over the short term, yields will eventually
benefit under spring tillage management because of soil and water savings. However, once a
field is tilled, wildlife loses nearly all the benefits of cropland.
Specific agricultural practices benefiting both wildlife and the producers are: land
set-aside or retirement programs, minimum and no-till cultivation crop rotations, cover
and green manure crops, contour and stripcropping, grass waterways, terraces, field
windbreaks, "odd area" maintenance, and field border management.
Each of these practices will reduce wind and water erosion, maintain soil fertility and
productivity, and prevent pesticide runoff to waterways. Many of these practices are
eligible for cost-sharing through federal farm programs as administered by the
Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS). Additional help both financial
and technical, is available through a number of other public and private programs.
Land retirement or set-aside opportunities
The U.S. Department of Agriculture offers a variety of programs to encourage farmers to
set aside or idle portions of their land. The most recent of these is the Conservation
Reserve Program (CRP), designed to remove marginal lands from crop production and return
them to some type of permanent grass cover.
Conservation tillage, minimum or no-till
Reducing cropland tillage destroys fewer nests and remaining crop residues provide food
and cover for animals feeding in the field. Recent studies from no-till winter wheat
fields in North Dakota indicate they support a greater number and variety of nesting birds
than clean tilled fields.
Cover and hay crops
Alfalfa, clover and grass in a cropping system provide forage and hay, reduce soil
erosion, add organic matter to the soil, and also provide nesting and brood rearing areas
for birds. However, annual haying usually coincides with peak nestings, and haying may
destroy many nests.
To reduce haying impacts on wildlife, consider starting in the center of the field,
then working toward the perimeter. By doing so, broods contained within the field will
have a better chance to escape. Effects of mowing on wildlife can also be reduced by
leaving a 20 to 30 foot field border. A majority of nesting hens tend to nest within 50
feet of the field perimeter.
Reducing mowing speeds to under 3 mph as well as delaying first crop cutting until
early July will also decrease haying mortality of nesting birds and young. However, by
delaying mowing of alfalfa past the 10 percent bud stage, the protein quality of the
forage will decrease. (Note - there currently is a federal wildlife program that may
compensate landowners for delaying haying to benefit waterfowl production.)
Contour and stripcropping
Strips of row crops alternated with soil conserving strips of small grains or cover
crops planted on contours attract more ground-nesting birds than undivided fields.
Contoured and stripcropped fields create more "edge" where more food and cover
are available.
A large field has a smaller percentage of borders and edge than that of several smaller
fields. For example, a single quarter section field will have only two miles of edge. If
the same field was divided into four smaller 40-acre-square fields, it would have three
miles of borders or edges. But, by dividing it into four forty-acre strips, it will yield
3.5 miles of edge. By increasing the edge and using a different crop in each small field,
an operator could dramatically increase wildlife numbers on the land.
Crop rotations
Almost every crop in North Dakota has some value to wildlife, depending on the season
and availability of other suitable habitats. Unharvested blocks of small grains and row
crops such as corn, sunflowers, grain sorghums, and soybeans adequately spaced across the
field, adjacent to fence rows, shrubby cover, or wetlands reduce drifting and provide
supplemental food during periods of heavy snow. Blocks of unharvested crops are better
than a few rows or narrow strips because they are less likely to be flattened by wind or
choked with snow.
Wildlife food plots can also be incorporated into crop rotations. Food plots should be
block plantings of at least two acres per quarter section (160 acres). The plots should be
planted on the east or south side of native woodlands, multiple-row tree belts, wetlands
or other wildlife cover. Square plots are best in most cases since they are not as easily
filled with snow as are long narrow plots.
Crops which are readily used by wildlife are corn, sunflowers, grain sorghums, wheat,
barley, millets, buckwheat, oats, rye, flax and clovers. It is best to seed food plots
with a combination of crops ensuring that food will be available at different heights for
a variety of wildlife species.
Rotating crops can reduce or prevent a long-term buildup of certain pests, reducing
costs for chemical pesticide applications.
Grass Waterways and Terraces
Grass waterways and terraces reduce water erosion on sloping cropland by intercepting
runoff and carrying it slowly off the field. The value of waterways to wildlife depends on
the grasses and legumes selected. Similarly, the value of terraces depends on whether the
terrace slopes are cropped. Narrow base terraces planted to permanent cover can provide
nesting and feeding areas for wildlife if the proper plants are selected. For a guide to
woody, grass and legume plantings that benefit wildlife, refer to the tips included in the
supplement sections on woodlands and grasslands.
Field Windbreaks
Windbreaks of trees and shrubs reduce wind erosion, trap blowing snow, conserve
moisture, protect crops and livestock, and may provide food and cover for many kinds of
wildlife. Select plants adapted to the site that also provide wildlife foods or cover. A
list of suitable trees and shrubs for windbreak plantings can be found in the woodland
section of this supplement.
Field Borders
Probably the most beneficial areas to wildlife on grain-producing farms are field
borders. Such borders are often found on the sloping ends of contoured or stripcropped
fields. When seeded with grass and legume mixtures, these areas control erosion, reduce
competition from adjacent woodland and provide travel lanes for not only farm machinery,
but wildlife. Wildlife will also use these borders for nesting, brood rearing and
protection from predators and the weather.
A field border made up only of a fence line will attract few wild animals, whereas if
that same land has a few weeds giving it a 1 or 2-foot width, wildlife use will increase
dramatically. In general, the wider the border, the greater the benefit to wildlife.
Borders from 20 to 100 feet, depending on the plants found there, are useful as travel
lanes, but also provide nesting, brood rearing, roosting and escape areas.
Field borders that contain mixtures of native and introduced grass, legumes, annual and
perennial weeds, shrubs and trees will be used more by wildlife than areas seeded only
with, for example, bromegrass.
Odd Areas
Odd areas on farms and ranches are places that are not cropped. They include fence
corners, abandoned roads and road ditches, rocky spots, abandoned farmsteads, highly
erodible areas and other parcels that may be isolated by roads, ditches or streams. Due to
site limitations, many of these areas are unsuitable for cultivation, but they can still
be valuable to wildlife. By preserving the natural vegetation of these areas and
establishing additional food and cover, odd areas can supply wildlife with those basic
needs that may be lacking in adjacent cropland. These areas also make excellent sites for
erecting nest boxes.
In managing odd areas to obtain the greatest wildlife benefits, delay grazing or mowing
of such areas until late July, and if some noxious weeds are present, use spot
applications of herbicides when necessary. Cropland acres are too valuable to be
overlooked as wildlife habitat. The techniques identified in this section can be
implemented with little or no impact on agricultural profits.
Managing Water For Wildlife
Water is a basic requirement of life. For this reason rivers, streams, lakes, and
wetlands have been hubs of both human and animal activities since time began.
With proper management, such areas will continue to yield substantial benefits to all
creatures that depend upon them.
The intent of this section is to offer some water management ideas that may be
beneficial to both landowner and wildlife. This section will deal specifically with the
development and management of farm ponds and streams on private lands.
Farm Ponds and Streams
Although many farm ponds are established primarily for watering livestock, they can
also function as valuable wildlife habitat if certain guidelines are followed in
construction and management.
Farm ponds developed with a gradual slope provide habitat for emergent plants like
cattails. This vegetation in turn provides cover and food for a number of wildlife
species. If cattle are fenced to only allow access to a portion of the shoreline, the
vegetative response will attract wildlife. Seeding grass around the pond, in addition to
creating habitat, will control runoff water entering the pond, reducing silting and
turbidity, making the pond more suitable for aquatic life.
To preserve water quality in farm ponds, lakes, streams and rivers, it is a good idea
to plant crops at least 30 feet from the edge of the vegetation along the water area. This
distance minimizes the impact of agricultural runoff on the water quality. Leaving a
vegetational edge around wetlands can also reduce the risk of saline soils developing,
which occurs frequently when wetlands are cultivated too close to the edge.
Role of wetlands
Wetlands are vital components of the habitat needs of migrating waterfowl and wetlands
of all sizes are important to waterfowl. Large, small, shallow, and deep wetlands are all
important to the different life cycles of prairie waterfowl.
Wetlands also can provide substantial flood control, groundwater recharge water quality
and livestock forage benefits.
Wetlands restoration opportunities
With the advent of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), opportunities presently
exist for developing wetland habitats for wildlife.
Lands that qualify for the CRP program must be seeded or returned to some type of
permanent cover. Under CRP guidelines water is acceptable as a permanent cover. Thus, if
drained wetlands exist on enrolled CRP acres, they can be restored. And, as with other CRP
practices, the cost of restoring a wetland is shared between the landowner and ASCS.
Additional state and federal programs are also operating to pick up the landowner's
cost of the wetland restoration. Landowners who restore or develop wetlands under CRP may
not have to bear any expense of the restoration activities. Sportsmen and wildlife clubs
have also assisted in wetland restoration by paying for the associated costs.
In addition to the cost sharing program available for wetland restoration, similar
types of programs are available to assist landowners in developing wetland areas for
wildlife.
In order to maximize the wildlife benefits of restored or developed wetland areas, the
surrounding uplands should be seeded to suitable upland cover. This cover in addition to
providing secure nesting habitat will also minimize soil erosion from adjacent croplands
into wetlands. To further enhance these areas, consider constructing earthen islands or
using elevated nesting structure to attract waterfowl and geese.
For more information on restoring or creating water areas for wildlife, contact your
local wildlife agency or Soil Conservation Agency representative.
[ NEXT ]
[ Managing
Grasslands For Wildlife ] [ Managing
Woodlands for Wildlife ]
[ What to Plant ] [ Managing
the Backyard for Wildlife ]
[ North Dakota Wildlife Conservation Programs ] [ Summary ]
WL-1000, Reviewed and Reprinted March 1992
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