Diary of a Wildlife, Fish Manager:
New Calendar Makes it Easier
Writer: Kathleen Phillips,
979-845-2872,ka-phillips@tamu.edu
Contact: Dr. Billy Higginbotham,
903-834-6191,b-higginbotham@tamu.edu
COLLEGE STATION - The number of
people buying and managing rural property for wildlife recreation is increasing
at an exponential rate - and so is the need for information on managing ponds
or land, according to a Texas Cooperative Extension specialist.
A new calendar, "Wildlife and
Fish Management Calendar for
The calendar, produced by
The calendar offers management
recommendations each month geared to specific wildlife and fish species. The
calendar is not printed for a particular year, so a land manager could begin
using it at any time. Space is provided for notes which will help compare
management done over years.
"The idea was to pack the
essential need-to-know management information and the timing of application of
those techniques in a user-friendly calendar format" Higginbotham said.
Through one year's cycle, calendar
users will become better at managing a variety of fish in ponds, deer, ducks,
quail, mourning doves, squirrels and other wildlife species, he said.
No two species have exactly the same
habitat requirements at exactly the same time because of direct competition, he
noted. "The savvy wildlife manager will create a mosaic of interconnected
habitats to target featured species they are interested in managing their
habitats to produce."
The key is knowing
what type of habitat each wildlife species favors and what can be done to
create those favorable habitat conditions, Higginbotham said.
In March, the calendar reader is
told, squirrels may need nest boxes placed 20 feet above the ground in trees
that are at least 10 inches in diameter, if there are not enough mature cavity
trees available. Quail, the calendar notes in June, need 50 or more clumps of
prickly pear or bunch grass per 300-foot transect for abundance nesting cover.
Pond owners are told in September not to start stocking fish unless the weather
has cooled. And turkeys might benefit from supplemental feeding in December,
according to the calendar.
"Anyone interested in improving
wildlife and fish habitat on their property will benefit from this publication.
Space on the calendar provides for notes which the landowner can refer back to
and track progress toward management goals" Higginbotham said.
In addition to the 12-month calendar
section, the publication has extra information in the back such as a fish
management section that describes how to properly collect and interpret angler
catch data, how to handle and release caught fish, and the top 10 mistakes pond
owners make.
A deer management section depicts
white-tail bucks from six months to 7-1/2 years old to help hunters and
managers determine age - an important criteria when
selecting bucks for harvest, Higginbotham said. This section also describes how
to conduct a deer population census using spotlight counts and remote -sensing
camera counts.
A partial listing of supplemental
forages concludes the calendar with a breakdown of which wildlife species
benefit from which plants.
The wildlife and fish management
calendar is available for $7.95 plus tax and shipping from