Wildlife habitat is the places that satisfy life requirements.

Fredericton – November 18, 2006

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Shelter Space

Forest Succession• Forest

Openings• Shrub-Seedling• Sapling• Mature• Over-mature

Forests are dynamic

Spatial Arrangement

White-tailed Deer Habitat & Forest Succession

Habitat Enhancement

Carrying Capacity: # of animals a habitat can support over time. Not a constant over time.

Mystery of the Blue Pee!

Space

Model with 1970s snowfall

Model with 1980s snowfall

Model if snowfall decreased as much as the decrease from 1970s to 1980s

Riparian Zones

Food Chain

Bioaccumulation: increase in

concentration of a pollutant from the environment

to the first organism in a

food chain

Biomagnification: increase in

concentration of a pollutant from

one link in a food chain to

another

Case study: Long Island Estuary (1967) The levels of DDT in tissues of various animals in the sound showed bioaccumulation factors of 800x, and  biomagnification factors up to 31 times.  When we look at the whole food chain, the overall magnification is over 200,000x!

Water to Zooplankton 800x

Zooplankton to Fish#1 31x

Fish#1 to Fish#2 1.7x

Fish#2 to Gull 4.8x

Food Webs

Using Field Guide Keys

Know terminology & be able to provide an example (based on the test site).

Wildlife Mgmt Concepts & Terms:

http://www.utextension.utk.edu/publications/pbfiles/PB1682_C1.pdf

Recognizing Wildlife Sign

Scat

Tracks

“Other”

Alternative Energy

Wildlife Interactions:

•Placement – migratory routes, etc. Bird/bat mortality at new vs old installations

Auditory – low frequency disturbance?

http://www.defenders.org/habitat/renew/wind.html

Wildlife Interactions:

•Poor production efficiency lead to large land area covered. Less disruptive mounting structures ?

Wildlife Interactions:

•Placement – migratory routes, arrangement on site,

•Waste Heat outflow? Closed loop or open?

•Cooling water sources in dry rock wells?

Wildlife Interactions:

•Crop Pesticides

•Greenhouse Gas Neutral or positive

•Avian – Bobolink

•Land Conversion, total acreage

Wildlife Interactions:

•Electricity source for hydrogen production?

Wildlife Interactions:

•Significant changes to natural river systems

•Land resource use. Plant loss and animal movement

•Fish passage-older installations

•Water temperature/oxygen variations on either side

Common Wildlife of New Brunswick

Meadow VoleMammals

Identification

• The most common and largest vole in NB

• Uniformly dark brown upper parts while underneath it is paler.

• Short ears and nearly concealed in the fur. It also has a longer tail than other voles

Diet, Home and Habits

• Eats: grasses, sedges, seeds, grain, bark and insects.

• Grassy areas, moist and upland pastures, meadows and salt marshes. Seems to prefer the open

• Very clean animal. Uses the bathroom away from the nest where most just go right in their nests and will also replace a dirty nest with a new one

• Spends a lot of time grooming itself

Young

• Most prolific breeder of the small mammals in NB and can become a serious problem under the right conditions

• Young are born year around with 1 – 9 young in a litter with several litters a year.

• Gestation is 21 days

• Lucky ones live about 16 months. Heavily predated

Porcupine

Diet, Home and Habits

• Diet: Bark, Twigs, and Green plants,• Really like salt. Have been known to eat

axe handles and sides of buildings.• Home: Lives in all forest types;

Coniferous, deciduous and mixed woods.• Makes dens in caves, hollow logs, and

decaying trees. Uses dens mostly in winter but does not hibernate.

• Good swimmer and tree climber

Young

• 1 to 2 young are born in the den in April. They are born with quills and mobile. 2 is very rare.

• They are fully weaned at 3.5 months

• Stay with the mother until she mates again in October.

• Live for 6 years but as much as 10 in captivity.

Predators of Porcupine

• Predators: Fisher, Bobcat, Coyote.

Fisher

Red Fox

Identification

• Red fox is rusty red in color. There is also a black and silver color phase but is very rare in the wild.

• Silver fox is a mutation of the red fox. Man has breed for this mutation for furs.

Diet, Home and Habits

• Diet: Grouse, Snowshoe Hare, Mice, Squirrels, Birds, Fruits, Berries, Grasses, Crayfish and Insects.

• Will hunt and store food for later.

• Home: Mixed wood forest. Farmland and urban areas.

• Active mostly at night but will come out in the day on occasion.

Red Fox with Snowshoe Hare

Young

• Young are born in June in dens the mother has dug herself or has taken from another animal.

• The litter can have 1 to 10 pups. But 5 or 6 is the most common.

• Male will bring food to the female while she is caring for the young.

Young (con’t)

• At 1 month the mother will feed regurgitated food. After that she starts bringing live prey to the den for the pups to kill themselves. Fully weaned at 8 weeks.

• The young leave their mother at 7 months. • Live for 3 years in the wild but as long as

12 years in captivity

Barred OwlBirds

Diet, Habitat

• Staple is mice/voles and other small mammals but will eat frogs, birds, insects and crayfish. Mostly nocturnal hunter, but may hunt in day if has a brood.

• Inhabits extensive, mature mixed wood, especially those with open under story for nesting and foraging. Cavity nester, but will nest on hollow-topped stubs or old hawk nests.

Young and Habits

• Typical clutch size 2-3.

• One brood/year

• Egg dates late March-Early May- born 30 days later.

• Shows strong attachment to same nest area year after year.

Northern Goshawk

Diet, Habitat, Young

• Small to medium birds (staple), but also rodents and hare. Preferred hunting area is clearings and brushy openings in forest

• Open ,stick nest in crotch of large hardwood, near bottom of canopy

• Typically3-4 eggs, 1 brood/year. Egg dates: Early April to mid May, hatch 36 days later.

Common Garter SnakeReptiles

Identification

• Ground color olive to brown to black. Three stripes; one down back, one down each side along 2nd and 3rd scale rows. Belly green to yellow with two rows of subtle black dots.

• Mature females can be 50cm, mature males can be 40cm in length

• Most common snake• Typically first species to emerge

Diet, Habitat

• 80% diet is earthworms, but also Amer toad, wood frog, red-backed salamanders, sow bugs, slugs, small birds and rodents.

• Moist areas around forest and stream edges, fence rows and bogs (virtually anywhere)

• Hibernates gregariously in holes, rock crevices, uprooted trees, beside foundations

Range, Young

• Home range generally 0.8ha (2ac) in woodland, open field setting

• 14-40 young born live from mid to late summer

Red-backed SalamanderAmphibians

Identification

• Local colour variations: red stripe, grey stripe or no stripe(lead back). Belly and side are mottled grey-black

• Adults 5-9cm long

Diet, Habitat

• Leaf litter critters such as earthworms, spiders, millipedes and beetles

• Avoid areas of high acidity (ie pure softwood stands), tend to like mixed or hardwood leaf litter.

• Typically under rocks, old logs or leaf litter so they can keep their skin (lungs) moist

• Solitary creatures except breeding period in fall. Very protective of feeding territory and will leave scent markers along boundary.

• Amphibian means “two lives” (eggs/larval & adult), but this salamander gives birth to live young on land.

1. White-tailed deer are well adapted for survival. Which of the following most accurately describes deer adaptations?(1)a)Deer have eyes in the front of their skull, facing forward, for better depth perception.b)Deer legs and muscles are better equipped for silent walking than for running speed.c)Deer have underdeveloped sense of smell and depend heavily on eyesight for predator detectiond)Deer have large ears that can swivel in a large arc to help them hear potential predators

2. A very large stick nest (1.5m, 5’ dia.) has been spotted near the top of a tall white pine overlooking the river near the Kings Head Inn. Name the bird and state why it nests in that area. (2 pts)

3. While on a walk over the millpond bridge at dusk, a sound comes from the alder-lined pond edges. This “PEEENT” sound is repeated several times before a shadow explodes from the alders in a very erratic upward flight.

What was the animal? (1 pt)a) Saw-whet Owl b) Little Brown Bat c) Ruffed Grouse d) WoodcockWhat was it doing amongst the alders? (1 pt)

1. White-tailed deer are well adapted for survival. Which of the following most accurately describes deer adaptations?(1)

d)Deer have large ears that can swivel in a large arc to help them hear potential predators

2. A very large stick nest (1.5m, 5’ dia.) has been spotted near the top of a tall white pine overlooking the river near the Kings Head Inn. Name the bird and state why it nests in that area. (2 pts)

3. While on a walk over the millpond bridge at dusk, a sound comes from the alder-lined pond edges. This “PEEENT” sound is repeated several times before a shadow explodes from the alders in a very erratic upward flight.

What was the animal? (1 pt)a) Saw-whet Owl b) Little Brown Bat c) Ruffed Grouse d) WoodcockWhat was it doing amongst the alders? (1 pt)