Wildlife Management, Conservation History, and Rangeland Ecology

Comprehensive practice flashcards covering wildlife management principles, conservation history, population dynamics, oak-squirrel ecology, and rangeland conservation.

How did Gifford Pinchot distinguish between conservation and preservation?

Conservation is the wise use of available earth resources for the lasting good of man (saving for later use), whereas preservation implies a hands-off approach with no human intervention to protect resources forever.

What are the Seven Sisters of the North American Model for Wildlife Conservation?

1. Wildlife is held in the public trust; 2. Eliminating commerce in dead wildlife; 3. Allocating wildlife use through law; 4. Hunting opportunity for all; 5. Wildlife may be killed only for legitimate reasons (food, fur, self-defense, property protection); 6. Wildlife is an international resource; 7. Science is the basis for wildlife policy.

How is wildlife legally defined in North Carolina?

“Wild animals, wild birds, and all fish found in inland fishing waters.”

What excise tax is established by the Pittman-Robertson Act of 1937, and how are the generated funds allocated?

An $11\%$ excise tax on the sale of guns, archery, and ammunition; funds are distributed to states based on land area and number of hunters, allocating $50\%$ to habitat, $20\%$ to acquisition, and $25\%$ to research.

What items are taxed under the Dingell-Johnson Act of 1953?

An $11\%$ excise tax on the sale of fishing equipment and boats.

What is the difference between direct and indirect manipulation in wildlife management?

Direct manipulation applies human actions directly to animal populations (such as stocking, trapping, shooting, and poisoning), whereas indirect manipulation modifies resources (such as altering vegetation, water, or soils).

What is the ecological distinction between habitat selection and habitat preference?

Selection is the choice made when an animal is given a limited number of options, whereas preference is the choice made when given unlimited options.

What three components form the Wildlife Management Triad?

Populations, Habitats, and People.

What characterizes Adaptive Resource Management (ARM) compared to a linear management paradigm?

ARM assumes incomplete knowledge and treats management as an ongoing experiment that requires monitoring and feedback to achieve the dual objectives of doing and learning.

Who is recognized as the Father of Wildlife Management, and what are his two landmark works?

Aldo Leopold, who wrote the textbook Game Management (1935) and the essay collection A Sand County Almanac featuring the land ethic.

What environmental hazard was exposed in Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring?

The detrimental effects of the pesticide DDT on the environment, specifically on birds.

What commercial trade spurred the passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918?

Plume hunting of egrets and herons for the millinery trade (feathered hats), where plumage was valued at up to $\\text{\$}1130/\text{kg}$.

What was the significance of the Pelican Island Sanctuary established in 1903 by President Theodore Roosevelt?

Located in Florida, it became the first federal bird sanctuary, laying the groundwork for the National Wildlife Refuge system.

What combination of factors caused the passenger pigeon to go extinct in 1914?

Extensive market hunting facilitated by railroads and telegraphs ($18{,}000/\text{day}$), habitat loss from westward expansion, and a reproductive dependency on large colonies for social facilitation.

What 1842 court ruling established the public trust doctrine regarding wildlife in the United States?

A New Jersey court case concerning an oyster bed, which affirmed that wildlife cannot be privately owned by a landowner and is held in public trust.

What animal welfare criterion must be satisfied for a live restraining trap to receive Best Management Practice (BMP) approval?

At least $70\%$ of animals captured must sustain no, little, or moderate injury.

What efficiency benchmark must a trap meet under Best Management Practices (BMPs)?

It must capture and hold $>60\%$ of the target species.

How does compensatory mortality differ from additive mortality?

In compensatory mortality, hunting or trapping mortality replaces other natural causes of death (such as starvation or disease) so overall survival remains unchanged up to a threshold, whereas additive mortality increases total deaths above natural levels and directly reduces survival.

According to the provided table comparing high and low soil quality, how do biomass, soil fertility, and nutrient content correspond to soil quality?

Biomass is positive ($+$\text{) in high quality and negative (}$-$\text{) in low quality; soil fertility is positive (}$+$\text{) in high quality and negative (}$-$\text{) in low quality; and nutrient content is equal (}$=$\text{) in both.}

What four components make up healthy soil, and in what proportions do they occur?

Mineral matter and organic matter ($50\%$ combined), alongside water and air ($50\%$ combined).

What are the requirements and wildlife benefits of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) established under the 1985 Food Security Act?

Farmers enter 10-year agreements to establish permanent cover (grasses to trees) with no harvesting or grazing permitted, supported by annual government rent and $50\%$ establishment cost-sharing; it resulted in an estimated gain of $12\text{ million}$ ducks and substantial pheasant increases.

How do the Swampbuster and Sodbuster provisions discourage agricultural conversion of sensitive habitats?

Farmers lose all federal agricultural subsidies if they drain wetlands (Swampbuster) or plow previously untilled, marginal land (Sodbuster).

How is the finite rate of population increase ($\lambda$) calculated, and what do its threshold values signify?

$\lambda = \frac{N_{t+1}}{N_t}$; a value of $\lambda > 1$ indicates population growth, $\lambda < 1$ indicates population decline, and $\lambda = 1$ indicates a stable population.

What is the logistic growth equation for net recruitment ($R$), and what do its terms represent?

$R = N r_m \left(\frac{K - N}{K}\right)$, where $N$ is the population size, $r_m$ is the maximum intrinsic per capita growth rate, and $K$ is the carrying capacity.

At what population level is Maximum Sustained Yield (MSY) achieved in a logistic growth model?

At half of carrying capacity ($\frac{K}{2}$, or approximately $50\%$ of $K$).

How do white oak and red/black oak acorns differ in maturation, tannic acid content, and germination timing?

White oak acorns mature in one growing season, drop and germinate in fall, have low tannic acid ($<2\%$), and $5\text{--}10\%$ fat; red/black oak acorns mature across two seasons, drop in fall and germinate in spring, have high tannic acid ($6\text{--}10\%$), and $18\text{--}25\%$ fat.

How does the internal distribution of tannic acid influence how squirrels consume an acorn?

Tannic acid concentration is highest at the bottom near the embryo and lowest at the top cap; squirrels consume only the top half to avoid tannins, which leaves the lower embryo intact to germinate.

How is an Animal Monthly Unit (AMU) defined in rangeland grazing management?

$1\text{ AMU}$ is defined as one cow and one calf ($454\,\text{kg}$) consuming $800\,\text{lbs}$ of dry forage over one month.

What anatomical feature of grasses enables them to regenerate following moderate livestock grazing?

Grasses have a basal meristem located near the ground surface, allowing upper leaves to be grazed while vegetative tissue regrows from the base.

Why must livestock grazing timing differ between cool-season ($\text{C}_3$) and warm-season ($\text{C}_4$) grasses?

Cool-season ($\text{C}_3$) grasses build carbohydrate reserves early and tolerate early spring grazing, whereas warm-season ($\text{C}_4$) grasses develop leaf area more slowly and require grazing deferral until later in the season so carbohydrate reserves are not depleted.

What is the structural difference between a deferred-rotation grazing system and a short-duration grazing system?

In deferred-rotation, more than half of pastures are grazed while rest periods equal grazing periods; in short-duration, less than half are grazed under high intensity/low frequency, with grazing periods being shorter than resting periods.

What is the distinction between biological carrying capacity and social carrying capacity?

Biological carrying capacity is the maximum population an ecosystem's resources can sustain, while social carrying capacity is the population level human communities are willing to tolerate.

How does conservation tillage (no-till) improve ground-nesting wildlife survival over traditional tillage?

Traditional tillage uses spring disking and early mowing that destroy nests and fawns, whereas no-till leaves crop residue and plants with a seed drill without disking, thereby protecting nesting waterfowl and early cover.

Why is reform of the Equal Access to Justice Act sought by wildlife management advocates?

Unintended provisions allow environmental litigants to collect public legal fees when suing federal land management agencies, which incentivizes constant lawsuits and hinders proactive, cooperative conservation efforts.