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Learning Objectives
An introduction to wildlife management terms, ecological concepts, habitat components, and management
options. Emphasis will be placed on how, over time, wildlife populations have responded to habitat change from
natural and manmade events and activities, and by changes in economic realities and social attitudes towards wildlife.
WORKSHOP GOALS
At the end of the workshop students should …..
- be able to view a habitat and understand the various components and processes that are at work there
- understand that wildlife species have specific habitat requirements
- understand how habitats change over time, the causes of change, and the impact of the change on wildlife and people
- understand how wildlife management strategies and techniques can be applied to bring desirable changes to wildlife species
- be aware of the changes in social attitudes towards wildlife and how and why they affect wildlife and influence politics
LONG TERM LEARNING GOALS
Over their course of study students should be able to demonstrate the following in addition to the goals outlined
in the workshop:
1.Knowledge of Birds and Mammals.
- Answer questions concerning the natural history of bird and mammal species
- Identify birds and mammals if given natural history information
- Identify wildlife species from mounted specimens.
- Identify wildlife species based on wildlife sign including: fur, hair, feathers, gnawings, nests, rubbings, pellets, track, and scat
2.Understanding Wildlife Ecology.
- Identify basic needs required by wildlife
- Describe and explain specific anatomical and physiological adaptations of wildlife to the environment
- Describe and explain different behavioral adaptations and/or strategies that help Wildlife species survive (i
.e. migration, hibernation, defense posturing, etc.)
- Describe predator-prey relationships and be able to cite examples
- Describe food chains and food webs and be able to cite examples
- Describe factors that limit or enhance population growth
- Explain the role of biodiversity in maintaining stable environments (on genetic, species and ecosystem levels)
- Describe the various roles of birds and mammals in their ecosystems and be able to cite examples
- Define and explain basic ecological concepts and terminology (i.e. limiting factor, carrying capacity, territory, home range, community, etc.)
- Associate habitats with specific bird and mammal species
- Evaluate a specific habitat and select or list species most likely to live there
3.Conservation and Management of Wildlife.
- Describe different management options and techniques
- Describe the implications of maintaining biodiversity in choosing management techniques
- Describe factors that should be considered when designing a wildlife management plan relative to wildlife,
the environment and people on both private and public lands
- Explain the implication's of privately owned lands in relation to wildlife management
- Describe ways habitats can be improved for specific wildlife species
- Describe ways each person can help in the protection, conservation management and enhancement of bird and mammal populations.
4.Issues Involving Wildlife and Society.
- Identify and explain factors that have led to species becoming endangered and threatened
- Identify and explain factors which can make a species more likely to become endangered and threatened
- Identify and explain methods that are used to save an endangered or threatened species
- Explain concerns with endangered and threatened species in relation to biodiversity
- Compare and contrast major causes and consequences of native habitat/ecosystem loss on wildlife and
people (including but not limited to destruction, degradation, fragmentation, change in vegetation, etc.)
- Identify and describe the reasons why species are and have been introduced or reintroduced into an area
- Compare and contrast associated problems and benefits to wildlife and people that may be the result of
the introduction of a non-native species.
- Compare and contrast associated problems and benefits to wildlife and people that may be the result of the re-introduction of a native species.
- Describe different wildlife/human interactions and explain the benefits and detriments to wildlife and people
- Identify and explain economic benefits derived from wildlife
5.Issues Involving Wildlife and Human Health and Well-being.
- Describe the life cycles, methods of transmission and symptoms of wildlife-related diseases such as rabies
and lyme disease in people and wildlife
- Describe the sociological and ecological impacts of these diseases
- Describe precautions that can be taken to minimize contact with these diseases
- Describe situations where wildlife might be labeled "nuisances" or "pests"
- Describe reasons which may have led to a wild animal becoming a nuisance
- Explain the consequences of these nuisance wildlife to people and wildlife
- Describe options that are used to control nuisance wildlife
- Recognize and explain different points of view relative to wildlife and being labeled "nuisance" (i.e. what
may be a nuisance to one person may not be to another)
- Describe factors that should be considered when designing a wildlife nuisance control plan relative to
wildlife, the environment and people on both private and public lands
COMPETITION DAY EXPECTATIONS
Students will be given a written examination consisting of True/False questions and multiple choice answers.
The majority of the questions on the exam test the student's understanding of the terms, concepts, and key
topics presented over the course of the year. Students will be shown a limited number of mounted specimens,
pelts, skulls, and/or bones and be expected to answer questions regarding species identification, life history,
habitat requirements, management options, adaptations, and/or social attitudes about the specimen. All exam
questions will relate to species historically found in the southern New England region and include introduced,
reintroduced, and threatened or endangered species. Focus is given to mammals and birds. Questions about some common and important reptiles and amphibians focus on identification and habitat requirements.
Discussions of insects are limited to those relevant to wildlife, and those related to disease transmission and its
importance to humans. Current events/topics are usually included. Students may be asked to use a wildlife key,
or dental formula key to identify a specimen. Questions about important wildlife legislation will also be asked.
GLOSSARY (KEY WORDS/TERMS)
- Adaptations – an inherited trait that increases an organisms chance of survival, and reproduce (basis for
the theory of evolution – Darwin). Help organisms primary functions of eating, avoid being eaten, and reproducing. There are three types – physical, physiological (processes), and behavioral.
- Biome – Large, terrestrial ecosystems that are characterized by distinct plants and animals which are
influenced by the overall climate of the area (precipitation and temperature). There are seven – tundra,
coniferous forest, temperate forest, tropical rain forest, temperate grasslands, tropical savanna, and desert.
- Carrying Capacity- Two kinds – Biological (BCC), and Cultural (CCC).
Biological – the maximum number of organisms that a habitat can maintain without the habitat declining.
Vary year to year, season to season. Usually more organisms are produced than can be supported by the habitat.
- Cultural – that maximum number of organisms that society can tolerate.
- Community – the assemblage of all the organisms (plants and animals) occupying the same area within an ecosystem.
- Edge – the place where two habitat types, or two different stages of habitat, meet
- Ecosystem – a complex of interactions between the living and non-living components of the environment.
Artificial grouping of various species of plants and animals.
- Ecotone – the zone affected by edge.
- Generalists vs. specialists – generalists – species with a variety of adaptations that allow them to exploit
a variety of habitats. Specialists have one or two adaptations that allow them to out compete other
species or exploit a particular element of a habitat. Often specialized plants and animals evolve together.
- Habitat - The sum of the environmental factors-food, cover, water, and their spatial distribution- that a
given species needs to survive and reproduce in a given area.
- Habitat Structure - The composition and distribution of vegetative communities, size and age classes, and
an assortment of other features which make up the area in which wildlife occur. There are two major components of habitat structure - horizontal diversity and vertical diversity.
- Horizontal Diversity ("Patchiness") - Refers to the complexity of the arrangement of plant communities and other habitats.
- Limiting Factor – the key element(s) that limit the number of organisms that may utilize the habitat
(therefore it is a factor determining the carrying the capacity). Evaluation of habitat for limiting factors is key to managing species.
- Niche – a species, its habitat, and the role (occupation) it plays within the community. Species which
occupy similar niches will compete with each other for food, cover, water, and living space.
- Succession – the change in plant communities over time
- Vertical Diversity - Refers to the extent to which plants are layered within a stand. The degree of layering
is determined by the arrangement of growth forms (trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, mosses and lichens), by
the distribution of different tree species having different crown heights and crown characteristics, and by
trees of different ages of the same species. The greater the degree of horizontal and vertical diversity, the greater the potential that more wildlife species will be present.
- Wildlife – includes any living organism other than plants. Generally not tamed or domesticated, free
roaming. Includes insects, spiders, birds, reptiles, fish, amphibians, and mammals.
IMPORTANT LEGISLATION
- Lacey Act (1900): first federal legislation for wildlife conservation; it was used to curb market hunting
(hunters would kill large numbers of animals for their meat, plumes, and other parts)
- Migratory Bird Treaty (1918): signed between U.S. and Canada to coordinate conservation efforts
between U.S. and Canada on waterfowl species (ducks and geese)
- Duck Stamp Act (1934): required purchase of federal stamp to hunt waterfowl; funds went to restoration of wetlands and research on waterfowl
- Pittman-Robertson Act (1937): placed excise tax on hunting equipment; funds used for restoration of wildlife species and their habitat
- Dingell-Johnson Act ("Federal Aid in Sport fish Restoration Act"), (1950): placed excise tax on fishing
equipment; funds used for restoration of fisheries and their habitat.
- Endangered Species Act (1973): protects (against the law to take or destroy these species) species that
are threatened with extinction; provides for conservation and restoration of those species
- Conservation Reserve Program [CRP] (1985): pays farmers to take highly erodible soils out of production;
has been very beneficial to many wildlife species
KEY RESOURCES
For concepts, natural history, and management options and impacts (in order):
- DeGraaf, R.M., M. Yamasaki, W. Leak, A.M. Lester; Landowner's Guide to Wildlife Habitat, Forest Management in the New England Region.
- Hobson, S.S., Barclay, J.S., Broderick, S.H.; Enhancing Wildlife Habitats: A Practical Guide for Forest
Landowners. NRAES-64. Northeast Regional Agricultural Engineering Service, Cooperative Extension, Ithaca, NY 14853-5701.
- Deal, K.; Wildlife & Natural Resource Management. Delmar Publishers, Albany, NY 12212-5015
- DeGraaf, R.M., M. Yamasaki, W. Leak, J.W. Lanier; New England Wildlife: Management of Forested
Habitats. General Technical Report NE-144; USDA for Northeastern Forest Experiment Station, Radnor, PA 19087
For identification and natural histories:
- Peterson Field Guides:
Reptiles and Amphibians
Mammals
- The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management's website has a number of technical bulletins
on wildlife species that are very helpful.
www.dem.ri.gov/pubs/#bro
In addition, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management's Division of Fish & Wildlife annually
publishes its Hunting and Trapping Abstract which also contains useful information.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- DeGraaf, R.M., D. D. Rudis; New England Wildlife: Habitat, Natural History, and Distribution. General
Technical Report NE-108; USDA for northeastern Forest Experiment Station, Radnor, PA 19087
- Enser, R.W., The Atlas of Breeding Birds in Rhode Island (1982-1987). Department of Environmental
Management, Natural heritage Program, Providence, RI 02908
- Wildlife Identification Pocket Guide. 1986, 2nd. Outdoor Empire Publishing. Seattle, WA 98109
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