Grasslands Final Lecture Exam

List 2 grassland nesting birds from cultivated agricultural habitats before crop canopy
development community

Horned lark
Killdeer

Vesper sparrow

List 2 grassland nesting birds from uncultivated habitats with short, sparse vegetation, lots of bare soil, and some shrub cover community

Vesper sparrow
Grasshopper sparrow
Field sparrow
Lark sparrow

List 2 grassland nesting birds from mesic habitats with medium vegetation height, such as hayfield, idle fields of grasses and forbs, and lightly grazed pastures community

Savannah sparrow

Bobolink
Dickcissel
Red-winged blackbird
Eastern meadowlark

List 2 grassland nesting birds from tall, dense vegetation characteristic of sedge meadows and idle warm-season grasslands community

Sedge wren
Common yellowthroat
Red-winged blackbird
Henslow’s sparrow

The 3 most sensitive grassland nesting birds in Ohio

Northern harrier
Upland sandpiper
Short-eared owl

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Unsuitable grassland nesting bird habitat

Grasslands with >30% woody cover
Habitats with abundant linear woody cover
Suburban developments
Golf courses
Row crops
Hay fields cut before 15 July

Suitable grassland nesting bird habitat

Idle (undisturbed) grasslands
Grasslands with <5% woody cover

Vegetation structural characteristics that are consistent predictors of habitat of grassland nesting birds

Vegetation height-density
Height and cover of woody vegetation
Litter depth and cover

Standing dead vegetation (residual) cover
Bare ground cover
Live herbaceous vegetation cover
Ratio of grass to forb cover

Reasons for grassland bird population declines

1. Agricultural intensification
2. Grassland fragmentation
3. Nest parasitism
4. Nest predation
5. Pesticides
6. Invasion by woody vegetation

Trends in number, size, and proportion of Americans living on farms in the United States since 1940

Individual farm operations in the United States
tripled in size, while the number of farms
decreased by 70%.
The proportion of Americans living on farms decreased from 23% to <2%.

Rotational farming before 1960 in the U.S

characterized the most intensively farmed
landscapes in North America.
• Corn was planted the first year, followed by small grains.
• Small grains served as a nurse crop for hay.
• Hay (grasses and legumes) persisted for 2 years.

Allowed for diversity in cover and habitat

Rotational farming after 1960 in U.S

Modern farming practices increased the use of fertilizers and reduced the need for crop rotations

Negative effects of modern farming practices on wildlife

– The timing of farm disturbances often coincide with critical periods of wildlife reproduction, maturation and dispersal

– Hay cutting occurs earlier and more often during the nesting season.
– Increased autumn tillage

– Insecticides

– Fertilizers

-Less diversity in habitat 

Habitat patch definition  

– Areas of native or restored native vegetation.
• Woodlots, wetlands, and prairies.
– Most habitat patches in farmlands are small, isolated, and primarily edge.

Habitat patch management principles

Habitat Patches Principles
– Large are better than small
– Connected are better than isolated
– Several are better than one
– Proximate are better than separate
– Structurally diverse are better than simple
– Patches with native plants are better than patches with introduced plants

Corridor definition

– Linear strips of permanent or semi-permanent vegetation
• Field borders, fencerows, roadsides, drainage ditches, and riparian areas
– Deter movement of soil and water

Corridor management principles

Corridor Principles
– Continuous are better than fragmented
– Wide are better than narrow
– Two or more connections between patches are better than one
– Structurally diverse are better than simple
– Corridors with native plants are better than corridors with introduced plants

CRP 

CRP (Conservation Reserve Program)

– Environmentally sensitive farmland idled for 10 – 15 years to reduce soil erosion and improve water quality.
– Landowners receive annual payments based on local land-rental values and up to 50% cost-share for establishing permanent wildlife habitat

CREP

CREP (Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program)

– A joint state-federal program that addresses
specific, local environmental needs.

CREP is similar to CRP in contract length, approved practices, and cost-sharing
– CREP provides additional financial incentives
and cost-share resources through state or local
agencies and private conservation organizations

WHIP

Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP)
– Develop upland and wetland habitat for wildlife
• Landowners develop wildlife habitat plans with Natural Resource Conservation Service personnel
• Technical assistance and 75% federal and 25% state or local cost-share

EQIP

Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)
– Offers financial and technical assistance to farmers and ranchers for installing or implementing structural or management practices on agricultural land.
– Federal cost-share (75 – 90%) and annual payments
• Improved grazing practices

The 3 voluntary easements on farmlands

– Wetland Reserve Program (WRP)
– Grassland Reserve Program (GRP)
– Healthy Forest Reserve Program (HFRP)

Rangeland 

Plant communities dominated by grasses, forbs, and shrubs.
– Primary use by humans is livestock grazing.

Most rangelands used by wildlife in the United States are public lands.
– U.S. Forest Service
– Bureau of Land Management

Electric fence design that poses the least threat to rangeland wildlife

– Electric fences constructed of 2 smooth wires at heights of 24 in and 35 in aboveground
– The top wire is electrified and the bottom wire serves as a ground
– Control livestock movement but pose little danger to rangeland wildlife

Rangeland water sources

Springs

Rock basins

Tinajas

Sand dams

Dugouts

Adits

Guzzlers

Impacts of livestock grazing in riparian zones

– Soil compaction
• Decreases infiltration and increases runoff
– Herbage removal
• Decrease soil moisture and increase soil temperature
– Herbage damage
• Rubbing, trampling, or browsing trees and shrubs

Continuous grazing

Allows livestock to graze season long or year long

Deferred grazing

Delaying grazing until after most of the range plants have set seed.
– Allows plants to grow, store carbohydrates, and reproduce at high rates.

Rotational grazing

Dividing a range unit into several pastures and rotating livestock through different pastures.

Rest grazing

Similar to a deferred rotation system, but the period of rest consists of a full year. One area is not grazed for a full year

Cons of sheep grazing on rangeland wildlife

On overgrazed sheep ranges, forb growth is not sufficient during the critical midwinter period and pronghorn die-offs are common

Indirect effects of livestock grazing on rangeland wildlife

– Quality in forage plants
– Reproduction of forage plants
– Locally important cover types
• Replacement by less favorable communities
• Kinds, qualities, and amounts of important plants

Animal Unit Month (AUM) definition

How much can x animal at x weight eat in a month. Used to decide stocking rates

Range condition definition for livestock

Range condition terms such as excellent, good, fair, and poor are defined in terms of providing forage for livestock.

Range condition definition for wildlife

Range condition terms for wildlife are climax, late seral, mid-seral, and early seral regarding how close existing vegetation approximates the climax community.