Wildlife Habitat and Field Techniques Lecture Notes

These flashcards cover key vocabulary terms related to wildlife habitats and field techniques discussed in the lecture.

Wildlife Habitat

The natural environment where wildlife populations live and thrive, which includes various ecosystems such as forests, shrublands, grasslands, wetlands, and urban areas.

Chaparral

A type of shrubland characterized by dense shrubs, significant in California as it protects watersheds and provides wildlife habitat.

Rangelands

Various environments including grasslands and shrublands that are used for livestock grazing, and which also serve as habitat for wildlife.

Drift Fencing

A wildlife management technique involving barriers placed to funnel animals towards safe crossings, typically used for smaller vertebrates.

Pitfall Trap

A type of trap used to catch small animals such as amphibians and reptiles by using a bucket buried in the ground where they fall in.

Wildlife Corridors

Protected pathways that connect wildlife habitats to allow animals to cross roads safely and maintain genetic diversity.

Optimal Foraging Theory

A model in ecology that predicts how animals will maximize their energy intake per unit of time based on resource availability.

Nutritional Ecology

An interdisciplinary field that examines how an organism's nutritional requirements and foraging behaviors are influenced by and interact with the environment.

Halictus ligatus

A species of bee known as the ligated furrow bee, which nests underground and collects pollen to feed its young while never meeting them.

Asteraceae

A large family of flowering plants commonly known as the daisy family, which includes many species favored by native bees.

Pollen Preferences

The selective choice made by pollinators, such as bees, regarding which plant species they will collect pollen from based on nutritional quality.