NRC 261 1st Edition Outline of Last Lecture II Forest Distribution Lecture 16 III History in North America IV Wildlife and Forest Change V Forest Management VI Important Forest Characteristics VII Assessing Wildlife Habitat in the Northeast VIII Wildlife Use Outline of Current Lecture II Wildlife Living in Urban Areas III Wildlife Enhancement IV Wildlife Control I Kinds of problems in urban areas J Nuisance Damage management K Techniques A Non lethal B Lethal Current Lecture How would you deal with a request to solve the problem of unwanted flying squirrels in someone s attic Wildlife living in urban areas half the worlds population of humans live in urban areas mourning dove cardinal mockingbirds are all species that can be found in highly urbanized area people positively value These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute others that people don t highly value negatively value Norway ray europeanstarling pigeon A example endangered species of shrike living in same areas as island gray foxes had to control the fox population to help the shrikes On Campus pintail duck Canada geese snapping turtle opossum at night less common seen on campus somewhat regularly red fox redtailed hawk peregrine falcon Umass falcon cam bobcat coyote etc on fringes of campus What influences their density and distribution Habitat availability and diversity what are the kinds of resources around that these animals can take advantage of natural landscapes trees bushes pond creek greenbelts parks human landscapes sheds barns can provide thermally efficient protection gardens dog food garbage that is accessible But there are bad aspects of the urban environment urban monoculture too much cement vegetation sparse home range is HUGE because the resources are so rare can t defend it can be too big to be worth it etc so can be too big some species are good at this like rats Mortality factors Low no hunting or trapping not the same kind as what goes on in the wild fewer large predators deer do so well in suburban areas because there aren t predators around High domestic cats kill a billion wild birds a year around the world and these populations are highest where there are lots of people roadkill cars and traffic Urban vs Rural Characteristics of bird communities abundance of exotics like european starlings high in urban areas low in natural abundance of natives low in urban high in natural of species low in urban high in natural more niches in the natural world biomass high in urban area the ones able to do well in these environments do REALLY well low in natural areas relatively Density higher in urban lower in natural method of feeding urban areas have generalists haven t evolved with urbanization but some do seem to do better because they can get by on a lot of different things natural areas have specialists Wildlife Enhancement Landscaping for wildlife Components Basic Principles provide the basic needs of the species you re interested in food water cover space take advantage of opportunities like open space which result in a healthier population of humans but also are a place for wildlife to be new construction they can be designed in certain ways more oriented towards wildlife which will also help humans Consideration Structural brush piles snags water feeders nest boxes Plant type different kinds you can purposely plant conifers grasses nut trees seasonal plants for hummingbirds bees or moths can specifically provide for some species or make more wildlife friendly Animals Pets likely in a dog park not to have much wildlife will see more wildlife in areas without domestic animals dogs cats etc thinking about pet management in regards to wildlife needs is important Wildlife Control too much wildlife places where there are people cultural carrying capacity exceed cultural carrying capacity in urban areas usually called nuisance wildlife usually not large predators not usually financial pest not hugely important occurs when there is a high rate of contact between wildlife and humans lots of people not much experience potential for conflict Kinds of problems in urban areas Nuisance ex geese on a golf course geese around lakes and lawns make the walkways covered in goose poop raccoons getting into garbage cans having dog find skunk and get sprayed and brings the smell inside Damage ex white tailed deer eating shrubbery they like newly planted things woodpeckers on sides of houses squirrels chewing on housing and making holes wood chucks digging holes costs to get these problems fixed Safety ex moose and car accidents plane hits geese goose goes through window giant mouse nest in someones attic highly flammable disease problems Aesthetics bird poop on car on walkways on grass not the way that a person wants to live with wildlife In nonurban areas animal damage dealt with in similar ways plow through oat fields and they can no longer be used birds in crops livestock depredation crop damage economica l Nuisance damage management when urban exotic or other wildlife become problems to humans or ecosystems control must be implemented can be overabundant but still rare like elephants or jaguars etc historically mainly lethal means were used no real concern for animal welfare poisons traps general one wolf killed livestock so lets kill all of them within 100 miles and not more specific focus on the individuals causing the problem Public acceptability of various techniques e g coyote control do we want to pay people nonlethal method seen as not very acceptable variety of things people do and it depends on the acceptability Management of overabundant vs under abundant animals What kind of problem is it behavioral problem the only way to get rid of the problem is to get rid of the predator this way to manage problems is usually the case when predators are involved ex A wolf was in a certain area and it kept killing livestock they moved it 150 miles away but it kept coming back to the same place and killing more livestock came back to a place where it could utilize its skills What is the magnitude of the problem in order to answer this you have to know what techniques are possible to use to fix the problem ex How can lion and livestock coexist have to know the basic ideas for certain circumstances and go from there Know review Techniques Non lethal no killing of animals Economic reimbursement could work except