Wildlife Benefits of Managed Timber

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1 Wildlife Benefits of Managed Timber National Wild Turkey Federation Tri-State Forest stewardship Conference 2015 Stacy Lindemann Project Forester

2 Funding Provided by:

3 Save the Habitat. Save the Hunt. NWTF initiative for the next ten years 4 million new acres of habitat conserved 1.5 million new hunters 500,000 new acres of public access

4 Save the Habitat. Save the Hunt. WHY???

5 When you are doing good things for wild turkey habitat, you are also helping

6 quail deer songbirds grouse woodpeckers bats squirrels rabbits amphibians other upland species

7 SAVE THE HABITAT. Wild turkey populations are in decline 1996 = 377,000 Wild turkey Harvest = 50,915 By 134,401 Hunters 2001 = 385,600 Wild turkey Harvest = 71,438 By 148,685 Hunters 2006 = 364,750 Wild turkey Harvest = 66,639 By 137,670 Hunters 2011 = 281,500 Wild turkey Harvest = 49,297 By 116,126 Hunters 1.6 Poults/hen in IL in 2014 Lowest since releasing began

8 Save the Hunt. Illinois Residents (16+ older) that hunted in Illinois or out-of-state (USFWS): 1996 = 443,000 hunters Pop. = 11,847, % of population hunted 2001 = 340,000 hunters Pop. = 12,520, % of population hunted 2006 = 272,000 hunters Pop. = 12,831, % of population hunted 2011 = 260,000 hunters Pop. = 12,869, % of population hunted

9 Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (Pittman-Robertson Act 1937) placed an excise tax on hunting equipment and ammunition. Senator Key Pittman, Nevada Representative A. Willis

10 Focal Habitat Landscapes in Illinois Driftless Area Illinois & Kaskaskia River Basins Shawnee Hills

11 Forest Stewardship - Wise management and use of forest resources to ensure their health and productivity for years to come.

12 Benefits of Wildlife in Your Forest Recreational and aesthetic benefits Hunting, trapping and fishing Bird watching and wildlife viewing Photography

13 Benefits of Wildlife in Your Forest Ecological Benefits Pollenization Seed dispersal Soil generation Nutrient cycling Predation Habitat maintenance Waste breakdown Pest control

14 Four Stages of Forest Succession Stand initiation begins when grasses, forbs, tree seedlings, etc. become established in open space Stem exclusion sapling and pole-size trees compete for light, growing space, and nutrients

15 Four Stages of Forest Succession Understory re-initiation trees begin to die due to overcrowding, disease, etc. Allowing young plants to grow in understory gaps. Saw-timber and mature forest structure are characteristic of this stage. Old-growth large and overmature trees, snags, and downed logs, a developed but patchy understory

16 Forest Succession Wildlife habitat conditions change with succession. Wildlife species within the stand will change Habitat specialists vs. generalists I used to have (insert animal) 30 years ago but I don t have them anymore nothing has changed?

17 Habitat for wildlife must provide four key components: Food Water Cover Space

18 The availability of food depends on many factors including: forest successional stage local climate season Food

19 Ways to Improve Food Resources - Increase sunlight to forest floor - Release hard mast trees to improve nut production - Release wildlife friendly trees - Leave snags - Increase plant and tree diversity - Plan for all seasons - Edge feathering - Prescribed burns

20 Water Wildlife water requirements vary by species Can be from food or ponds, streams, lakes and wetlands

21 Ways to protect Water Resources Keep livestock out of streams Protect during timber harvest and TSI Buffer strips protect water resources prevents sediment, fertilizers, pesticides and other pollutants Overhanging vegetation keeps streams cool Provides travel corridors

22 Cover is any part of the animals environment that provides protection and enhances the survival or reproduction of the animal. Provides protection from predators (screening or escape cover) Provides shelter from adverse weather conditions (winter or thermal cover)

23 Ways to improve Cover Brush Piles Hinge Cuts Edge Feathering Travel corridors Improve the understory Den trees Downed trees

24 Space Each species requires a certain amount of space to move about, avoid predators, locate a mate, find food and water, and rest. In general, home range size dependent on several factors including: Animal size (larger animal = larger home range) Diet preferences (carnivores = larger home range) Quality of habitat (better quality = smaller home range)

25 Ways to improve Space Improve the quality of habitat Travel corridors between forested habitat Larger contiguous tracts of managed land

26 What are our timber management concerns in Illinois?

27 Timber Management Concerns in Illinois: Invasive species Displacing our native ground cover

28 Timber Management Concerns in Illinois: -Oak/hickory forests are overstocked: -- Oak/hickory in the canopy but little oak/hickory regeneration -- Shade tolerant species (such as maple and elm) are taking over the understory

29 Closed Canopy Forest

30 Open Canopy Forest

31 So how do we manage our timber to improve wildlife?

32 So how do we manage our timber? First step is to have a professional write a Forest Management Plan Should lay out your goals as a landowner Present you with management recommendations Provide a timeline for the next ten years

33 So how do we manage our timber? Management Recommendations Harvest mature trees Timber Stand Improvement Prescribed Burns Exotic species Control Inter-planting Edge Feathering

34 Timber Harvest Contact a Consulting Forester to assist you with any harvest operation

35 Timber Harvest Leave some large, old seed trees wolf trees Harvest in late fall or winter when possible Leave snags standing and den trees Maintain diversity within the canopy Plant logging decks to green fields Do Not High-Grade

36 Timber Stand Improvement

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38 Timber Stand Improvement Trees released during TSI can put more energy into crown growth Increases fruit production Reduce time for sapling and polesized trees to produce fruit sooner Reduces time needed to reach maturity

39 Excerpts From Crop Tree Management in Eastern Hardwoods In an average acorn crop year for white oak, the production of acorns from individual released crop trees was seven times that of unreleased trees. For red oak in a poor year for acorn production, individual released crop trees produced double the acorns of unreleased trees. When the increased production for both species was evaluated on a per-acre basis, there was twice as much mast produced on the areas where the crop trees were released as there was where they were not.

40 Timber Stand Improvement Increases sunlight to forest floor Vast increase in browse-layer vegetation Use culled trees for firewood Creates snags and/or brush piles for wildlife cover More dead and downed on the forest floor Small mammals/herps hide under logs or treetops

41 Invasive Species Control Displace native woody and herbaceous plants Should be done PRIOR to canopy release Most are easy to identify in the early spring and late fall Requires vigilance to control

42 Garlic Mustard Bush Honeysuckle Japanese Honeysuckle Autumn Olive Multi-flora Rose

43 Prescribed Fire On of the cheapest, most effective management tools we have Sets back succession Manipulates plant communities Often most useful when combined with other practices such as TSI

44 Prescribed Fire Head fires, moving with the wind, produce higher flame heights and temperatures Back fires, moving into the wind, are cooler (recommended to reduce timber damage) Strip head fires are fast and may be adjusted for fuel

45 Prescribed Burning in Forests and Woodlands Promotes herbaceous understory

46 Prescribed Burning in Forests and Woodlands Promotes herbaceous understory Promotes oak regeneration

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48 Prescribed Burning in Forests and Woodlands Promotes herbaceous understory Promotes oak regeneration Can help control NNIS

49 Prescribed Burning in Forests and Woodlands Burn within 2-4 years following thinning, timber harvest, TSI or crop tree release Will control soft seeded species that have flushed due to increased sunlight (maple, elm, etc.)

50 Prescribed Burning in Forests and Woodlands Continue to burn every 4-5 years to maintain herbaceous understory

51 Snags and den trees Important to cavity-nesters Provides perching and roosting sites Decaying wood provides rich invertebrate food source Sloughing bark on snags provides maternity sites for 17 of North America s 45 bat species Leave approximately 7 snags/den trees per acre Den trees ( wolf trees) contain weather-tight cavities used by wildlife for nesting,food storage, and escape cover

52 Cavity-Nesting Wildlife Primary cavity-nesters, such as woodpeckers create cavities by drilling holes in dead trees and branches. Secondary cavity-nesters rely on natural cavities or abandoned cavities Many passerine birds Owls Wood ducks Bats Flying squirrels

53 Edge feathering Used to create woody escape cover along forest edges Creates transition zone of shrubs, vines, and herbaceous vegetation between cropland or grassland and the wooded area Each section should be ~1/3 of the width

54 Edge feathering 75% 50% 25% Unthinned

55 Edge feathering

56 Hinge Cut Technique that involves cutting partially through a tree to create a living, horizontal habitat structure Provides living brush pile for food, cover, bedding area, nesting cover Can be used to direct traffic a certain way (i.e. to your stand)

57 Hinge Cut

58 Inter-Planting Establishment seedling/container trees in forestland condition Used to improve the composition of a stand Can be particularly vulnerable to deer predation

59 Inter-Planting

60 Overstocked oak/hickory forest

61 TSI

62 Canopy gaps created

63 Prescribed Fire two years after TSI

64 Forest two years after TSI And two months after spring prescribed fire

65 Beneficial species to Wildlife Dogwood Persimmon Blackberry Grapevine Mulberry Plum Walnut Oaks Black cherry Hawthorn Sassafras Hickories Hackberry

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