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Wildlife Management in Your Yard
David Drake
Extension Wildlife Specialist
UW-Madison Dept. of Forest and Wildlife Ecology
• Correct species identification critical
• Develop a wildlife damage management plan
• Conduct a cost:benefit analysis
Wildlife Damage Management –
Keys to Success
Wildlife Damage Management –
Keys to Success
• Integrated approach
– randomness
– diversity
Wildlife Damage Management –
Keys to Success
• Integrated approach
– Do nothing
– Non-lethal
– Lethal
Non-Lethal Management
• Exclusion
• Harassment (noise, visual, or both)
• Repellents (taste and area)
• Trap and relocate
• Habitat modification
• Cultural modification
Lethal Management
• Shooting
• Body-gripping traps
• Trap and euthanize
• Toxicants
• Be proactive and persistent
• Be tolerant of others’ opinions and attitudes
• Tailor management approach
Wildlife Damage Management –
Keys to Success
Regulations and Laws
• Federal
• State
• Local
Wildlife Damage Resources
• USDA - APHIS – WS
www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/
• WI Dept. of Natural Resources
www.dnr.state.wi.us
• U. of Wisconsin Extension Wildlife
wildlifedamage.uwex.edu
• Wildlife Control Operators
Yellow Pages or local extension office
● Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage Scott Hygnstrom, Robert Timm, & Gary Larson, editors (www.icwdm.org) ● Mammal Tracks and Signs Mark Elbroch ● Bird Tracks and Signs Mark Elbroch
Wildlife Damage Resources
Identifying Deer Damage
• Browse damage
• Buck rub
• Trampled or flattened vegetation
• Look for tracks and droppings
Hunting
• Most efficient and cost-effective control method
• Important to harvest the proper ratio bucks:does
• Can generate additional income from leasing land
– Liability insurance
– Leasing agreement
Legalities of Deer Control
• Seasons and bag limits set by WI DNR
• Depredation permits available
Fencing
• Portable, temporary, and permanent
• Inexpensive ($0.12/ft) to expensive ($8.00/ft)
• Low to high maintenance
Repellents
• Contact vs. area
• Intended to reduce-not eliminate-wildlife damage
• Intended primarily for ornamentals, garden, etc…
– Majority not labeled for food crops
Repellents
• Variable effectiveness
– (wildlife density, precipitation, new growth)
• Costly ($17.00-$200.00/gallon)
• Requires much vigilance
Deer-resistant Plants
• Variable success
• Use as a general guide
• What grows in immediate area?
Identifying Rabbit Damage
• Vegetation cleanly snipped at 45o angle
• Woody vegetation may be girdled
• Bark may be gnawed
• Look for round sawdust-like droppings
Rabbit Damage Prevention and Control
• Exclusion
– Fencing
• 2 foot high non-plastic material
• 1 inch or smaller mesh
– Tree guards
• Hardware cloth
• 0.25-0.75 inch mesh
• Place 1 to 2 inches away from tree
Rabbit Damage Prevention and Control
• Habitat modification
– Remove cover
– Manage habitat for predators
• Repellents
– Contact (Thiram-based) or area (mothball)
– Variable effectiveness
– Can be costly
– Much vigilance required
Rabbit Damage Prevention and Control
• Trapping
– Home-made or commercial live traps
• Shooting
– Seasons set by WI DNR
Identifying Vole Damage
• Girdling and gnawing of woody vegetation
• Meadow vole builds surface runways
– 1 to 2 inches in diameter
– Vegetation in tunnel clipped short
– Feces and grass clipping found in runways
Vole Damage Prevention and Control
• Exclusion
– Hardware cloth cylinders protect seedlings
– 0.25 inch mesh or smaller
– Burry bottom of cylinder 6 inches deep
• Habitat modification
– Eliminate weeds and heavy ground cover
– Mow grassy areas regularly
– Clear mulch away from trees
Vole Damage Prevention and Control
• Repellents
– Meadow voles
• Thiram or capsaicin
• Toxicants (hand-placed)
– Zinc phosphide
• Hazardous to ground-feeding birds
– Anti-coagulants
• Slow acting (5 to 15 days)
• Trapping
Identifying Chipmunk Damage
• Burrows
• Eats seeds, bulbs, seedlings
Chipmunk Damage Prevention and Control
• Exclusion
- ¼-inch hardware cloth
• Habitat modification
- avoid certain landscaping features
- placement of bird feeders
Chipmunk Damage Prevention and Control
• Repellents
- Napthalene
- Taste repellents
• Fumigants
- Aluminum phosphide
- Carbon monoxide
Mole Ecology
• Habitat
– Eastern mole
• Open fields, lawns, gardens, sometimes woods
• Well-drained loose soils
– Star-nosed mole
• Wet woods, fields, swamps
Identifying Mole Damage
• Eastern mole
– Surface and deep tunnels
• Star-nosed mole
– Burrows in muck, with 2 to 2.5 inch openings into streams, ponds, and lakes
– Openings surrounded by dirt mounds
Mole Damage Prevention and Control
• Exclusion
– Not very practical
– Use sheet metal, wood, brick
– Burry fences at least 12 inches deep
– Bend bottom of fence outward at 90 degree angle
Mole Damage Prevention and Control
• Habitat modification
– Pack soil
– Reduce soil moisture content
– Reduce food source (IPM, insecticides, etc…)
• Toxicants
– Chlorophacinone
Mole Damage Prevention and Control
• Fumigants
– Aluminum phosphide
– Gas cartridges
• Trapping
– Very successful and practical
– Scissor-jawed, harpoon, or choker loop traps
– Live trapping is possible
Identifying Skunk Damage
• Holes in turf and gardens
• May burrow under porches
• Ag. damage
• Odor, tracks, droppings
Skunk Damage Prevention and Control
• Exclusion
- use non-wood/plastic material
- bury fencing 2-feet deep
• Habitat modification
Skunk Damage Prevention and Control
• Repellents
- napthalene
- ammonia-soaked rags
• Fumigants
- aluminum phosphate
- carbon monoxide
Skunk Damage Prevention and Control
• Trapping
• Shooting
Identifying Bat Damage
• Presence
• Rub marks
• Noise
• Droppings and urine
Misc. Bat Information
• Laws and regulations
• Disease concerns
– Rabies
– Histoplasmosis
Bat Management
• Exclusion
Bat Management
• Repellents
– Moth balls
– Floodlights
– Strong air currents
– Sticky substances
Bat Management
• Trapping
• Alternative roost sites