Wildlife Ecology

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Various Aspects of Wildlife Ecology Can Be
Applied to Many Fundamental Curriculum Concepts.

• Geometry
• Geography
• Biology
• Location
• Place
• Movement
• Region

• History
• Change
• Timelines
• Charts, Graphs
• Economics
• Civic Involvement
• Ecology

• Vocabulary
• Definition
• Critical Thinking
• Compare/Contrast
• Math Functions
• Relationships
• Non-linear Thinking

Theres much more to wildlife ecology than . . .
romance and cute little animals!
.
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WHAT IS WILDLIFE?
Game species only? Non-game species?
Fish? Insects, worms, bacteria? How about the
plants and fungi that support the animal
population? Inter intra-relationships between
individuals and populations? Reactions to the
physical environment? Origin of the term?
Wildlife includes all the animals associated
with a particular ecosystem. However, knowledge
about wildlife is largely restricted to game
species, threatened endangered species, and
other species of economic importance.
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VERTEBRATES
Vertebrates are animals with backbones. There
are about 400 species of vertebrates that occur
in the Upper Peninsula. If you include all the
other types of species, the count would easily
reach into the thousands. Nobody knows that
number for certain.
BIRDS waterfowl, songbirds, raptors owls,
shorebirds, woodpeckers, gallinaceous birds,
crows jays, hummingbirds, and many
others. FISH game fish, panfish, minnows,
bottom-feeders, cold water, warm water MAMMALS
rodents, bats, squirrels, weasels, deer, bear,
cats, and many others. HERPETILES (amphibians
reptiles) salamanders, toads, frogs, turtles,
lizards, snakes, and others.
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NUMBER OF MICHIGAN SPECIES
Number of Species 306 146 68 30 25 575
GameSpecies 40 50 23 1 1 115

• Vertebrates
• Birds
• Fish
• Mammals
• Reptiles
• Amphibians
• Total Species

Plus . . . 15,000-20,000 Insects 195 Snails 79
Mollusks ?? Other Taxa
Source Winter 2000 Spotting Scope. MDNR
databases. MSU Extension sources.
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THE SPECIES !
ABOUT 400 SPECIES OF VERTEBRATES IN THE U.P.
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THREATENED ENDANGERED
Endangered (42 animals in Michigan) Any species
of fish, plant life, or wildlife that is in
danger of extinction throughout all or a
significant part of its range, other than a
species of insect as determined by the
Department, or the Secretary, of the United
States Department of the Interior to constitute a
pest whose protection under this part would
present an overwhelming and overriding risk to
humans.
Threatened (39 animals in Michigan) Any species
which is likely to become an endangered species
within the foreseeable future throughout all or a
significant portion of its range.
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OTHER TE DEFINITIONS
Special Concern While not afforded legal
protection under the Act, many of these species
are of concern because of declining or relict
populations in the State. Should these species
continue to decline, they would be recommended
for Threatened or Endangered status. Protection
of Special Concern species now, before they reach
dangerously low population levels, would prevent
the need to list them in the future by
maintaining adequate numbers of self-sustaining
populations within Michigan. Some other
potentially rare species are listed as of Special
Concern pending more precise information on their
status in the state when such information
becomes available, they could be moved to
Threatened or Endangered status or deleted from
the list.
Extinct Any species which can no longer be
found anywhere in the world.
Extirpated (10 animals in Michigan, mostly fish)
Any species which can no longer be found in the
State of Michigan, but which can be found
elsewhere in the world.
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FOREST ECOLOGY BASICS
COMPOSITION
STRUCTURE
FUNCTION
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COMPOSITION
Genetic Diversity - Gene Pools Species, Number of
Species Species Abundance Populations of
Animals Plants Species Associations Community
Diversity Ecosystem Diversity
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INVASIVE SPECIES
Ecological - Economic - Aesthetic
values Displaces native plants animals,
including TEs 42 of USA have declined due to
exotics (FWS) Degrades diverse biological
communities Can alter hydrological patterns,
soil chemistry, erodibility, moisture-holding
capacity, fire susceptibility Harbors pests,
pathogens, toxins (i.e. garlic mustard, Scotch
pine, soybean aphid) Annual monetary costs run
into the billions of dollars Over 40,000
introduced species are catalogued in N.A.
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A FEW U.P. EXAMPLES
Gypsy Moth Zebra Mussel Purple Loosestrife Spotted
Knapweed Garlic Mustard Sea Lamprey Beech Bark
Disease
Dutch Elm Disease Oak Wilt White Pine Blister
Rust Eurasian Water Milfoil Buckthorn (2
species) Larch Casebearer Asian Lady Beetle
Michigan Invasive Plant Council
http//www.msue.msu.edu/mipc
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STRUCTURE
Vertical Horizontal Spatial Heterogeneity
Density Edge Effect Islands Fragmentation Dead
Trees Snags Micro-Environments Appearance
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VERTICAL STRUCTURE
Vertical structure refers to the ladder-like
arrangement in a forest.
Adapted from Baughman, et al., 1993. Woodland
Stewardship. P. 17.
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HORIZONTAL STRUCTURE
Stand density and crown cover within timber
stands and across the landscape is horizontal
structure.
40
80
100
Adapted from Baughman, et al., 1993. Woodland
Stewardship. P. 20.
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EDGES, SNAGS, ANDFRAGMENTATION
Edge Effect
Large Snags
Forest Fragmentation
Green. 1995. Birds and Forests. P.55.
UM-Cartography Lab.
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FUNCTION
Energy Capture Trophics Weathering Mineral
Nutrient Cycling Water Movement Temperature
Humidity Succession Disturbance
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ENERGY CAPTURE
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Energy Capture
Trophic Levels
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CYCLING
Ecosystem
Gains
Losses
Nutrient, Mineral, and Water Cycling
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SUCCESSION
Wisconsin DNR, 1995. Wisconsins Biodiversity as
a Management Issue. P. 22.
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DISTURBANCE
Forested ecosystems are dependent upon
disturbance for renewal and to provide biological
diversity. The plants and animals in a forest
dont know whether the disturbance is caused by
natural events or human-caused events.
Natural Events Fire Wind Animals Flooding Disease
s/Insects
Human-Caused Events Fire Harvest Pollution Develop
ment Exotic Introductions
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WHAT IS HABITAT?

• Site Quality
• Soil, Topography, Climate Extremes,
  Precipitation, Drought Periods
• Space and Home Range
• Proximity, Diversity, Seasonality
• Food Water
• Seasonality, Variety, Preferences, Nutrition
• Shelter
• Weather, Cover, Young, Display,
  Resting/Roosting
• Variability
• Different Species Can Have Widely Different
  Requirements
• That Can Change With the Seasons and Life
  Stage.

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POPULATIONS vs. INDIVIDUALS

• Age Structure
• Sex Ratio
• Natality Mortality
• Lifespan
• Interspecific Dynamics
• Intraspecific Dynamics
• Territoriality
• Home Range
• Migrations
• Carrying Capacity

Generalists? Obligates? Facultative? Preferences?
Opportunistic?
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POPULATION DYNAMICS

• S-curve of population growth
• Annual cycles
• Short and long-term cycles
• Irregular and irruptive cycles

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s-curve
THEORETICAL POPULATION GROWTH
The S Curve
POPULATION
T I M E
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annual cycles
ANNUAL CYCLES
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hare cycle
LONG-TERM CYCLESCanada Lynx, Hudson Bay Company
1000s Furs
Year
Source Elton Nicholson (1942) in Dasmann
(1964), p.173.
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raccoon cycle
IRRUPTIVE CYCLESRaccoon, Hudson Bay Company
Number of Raccoons Taken
Source Elton Nicholson (1942) in Dasmann
(1964), p.179.
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kaibab deer
AN IRRUPTIVE CYCLEKaibab Deer Herd
Long-termHabitat Damage
1000s of Deer
Source Elton Nicholson (1942) in Dasmann
(1964), p.166.
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I toad you there was more to wildlife ecology
than romance and cute little animals!
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DEER HABITAT
Keep in mind that the State of Michigan owns
those deer and all the wildlife, unless
Clearcut mature aspen stands, under 40 acres,
maximize edge, feathered edges. Encourage small
oak groves, stump sprouts. Plant small openings
to nutritious perennial grasses herbs. In
hardwoods, use group selection or small clearcuts
to encourage oak and other browse
species. Consider the distance between winter
thermal cover and winter feeding areas. Remember
that high deer populations can have negative
effects on forest regeneration and other species
of wildlife. High populations also stress
agriculture and cause increased automobile crash
rates.
You have lots of money for a fence!
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GROUSE WOODCOCK
Provide a multi-aged patchwork of aspen stands
through age 40 or 50 years, especially mature
male aspen. Few grouse move more than two miles
from where theyre born, or move beyond their
8-10 acre home range. Provide drumming logs and
space around the drumming logs. If possible,
watch where grouse feed in tree tops (easiest in
spring during catkin flush) and favor popular
clones over lesser used clones. Work with
adjacent landowners to make small harvests
economical for the logger.
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SONGBIRDS
Harvest or cut in the fall or winter. Fewer
birds, less disturbance, not the breeding season.
Think small scale, many species range within a
half-acre during the critical breeding season.
Encourage berry and seed-bearing shrubs.
Encourage large snags 6-10 per acre. Canopy
with 50-75 percent cover. Good vertical
structure. Keep the livestock out. Lots of
edge. Ignore most of the above if youre
interested in deep woods species.
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FORESTRY AND WILDLIFE
Woodland wildlife is managed by manipulating the
forest to provide the kind and variety of habitat
needed.

• Forestry practices in the U.P. have many effects
• encourages plant diversity
• encourages forest regeneration
• causes multiple age distributions
• provides edge
• creates horizontal and vertical structure
• adds more micro-environments
• accelerates system metabolism nutrient cycling