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attract specific species to a
given area. On the plus side,
however, this means that you
have the opportunity to think
carefully about what you
ultimately hope to accomplish,
and then formulate a specific
plan to be implemented in
stages, as time and money
allow.
You should study your
property as it relates to the
Law of Minimums, which
declares that, when a factor
approaches its minimum, its
relative effect becomes
increasingly great.
In other words, whatever you
are most lacking may have the
greatest impact, and you can
take steps to enhance that
missing element.
All species of wildlife require
food, water, cover and space.
With thoughtful management,
you can ensure that your
woodland provides the maximum
of each.
Plants should supply a variety
of food types, ripening at
different times. Blackberry and
cherry are favored by 56
species of birds and animals,
and are available during the
summer and fall. Oak is a
delicacy for 43 species, and can
provide nourishment in the
spring and winter.
Rotting logs attract insects,
an important food source for
many species, and rock piles are
havens for the reptiles and
amphibians that feed
carnivorous birds and mammals.
A water source doesn’t have
to be a large pond or a flowing
stream. Perhaps on your
property you have spring seeps
which will run quietly all winter,
or vernal pools which supply
critical habitat before drying up
in the summer. Whatever your
water resources, they should be
valued and carefully protected
for wildlife.
Cover can be anything from a
brush pile to a stone wall, a hole
in a tree to a rotting log. All
types of vegetation, from
herbaceous openings to shrubs
and mature trees, can be used
for nesting and escape cover,
depending on the species of
wildlife.
Don’t overlook the
importance of evergreens,
which provide critical
protection in the winter, as
well as food when supplies are
scarce.
Tree cavities can exist in both
living and dead trunks, and
ideally there will be a variety of
sizes, at different heights,
throughout the woods.
We can’t always control the
amount of space that we can
provide, but many species don’t
require a lot of acreage. For
those that do, perhaps you can
get neighbors with adjoining
properties to work with you to
create a larger habitat. This
may be particularly valuable for
those species which require
mixed vegetation.
Wild turkeys, for instance, look
for grasses and insects in open
clearings in the spring and
summer, and nuts and berries in
mature forests in the fall and
winter.
The first thing to consider is
the overall health of your
forest, regardless of its size.
Many of us, in response to the
dismaying loss of woodlands
due to industrial and
development pressures, have
come to think of every tree as
sacred.
We look at the cutting of a
single trunk as an act akin to
murder, and take the unbending
viewpoint that “more is better."
In some cases, we might literally
be loving our trees to death.
“Save the old growth forests"
has become a rallying cry, and in
some parts of the country it
may be valid.
Certain parts of our nation
contain ancient stands of
trees which should be revered
and protected from those who
would harvest them strictly
for financial gain. Sadly, for
most of us, the trees on our
own properties don’t fall into
that category.
Conservation can be defined as the wise use of our
natural environment: it is, in the final analysis, the
highest form of national thrift –
the prevention of waste and despoilment while
preserving, improving, and renewing the quality and
usefulness of all our resources.
– President John F. Kennedy
