Wildlife/Wetlands/Forestry

Introduction to Agriculture

Review

• Ecosystem: All the parts of a particular environment– Living and non-living parts– Living Parts trying to balance the system

• Habitat: The area where a plant or animal lives under normal conditions

Common Wildlife game

• Whitetail Deer– The white-tailed deer is tan or brown in the

summer and grayish brown in winter. – Males weigh between 150 and 300 pounds and

females weigh between 90 and 200 pounds.

Common Wildlife game

• Mule Deer– Weight: 125-330 lbs– Commonly mistaken for whitetail– Mule Deer are usually a dark gray-brown, with a

small white rump patch and a small, black-tipped tail.

Common Wildlife game

• Elk– Color: Body varies from deep copper brown to

light tan– Bulls shed and grow a new set of antlers every

year

Common Wildlife game

• Javelina– Adult javelina generally weigh 35 to 60 lbs– Javelina are herd animals with herd sizes averaging

8 to 9 animals

Common Wildlife game

• Brown Bear– Type:Mammal– Average life span in the wild:25 years– Weight:700 lbs (318 kg)

Forestry

• The forestry industry encompasses almost 500 million acres of trees and stretches from coast to coast.

• More than 1.5 million people are employed in the management, harvesting, processing and marketing of wood fiber products (lumber, veneer, plywood, particle board, paper)

• Annually, close to 2 billion trees are planted in the U.S.

• More than 27% more trees are planted than are harvested

Controversy of timber harvesting

• Four million acres of old growth timber are preserved in the U.S., and never can be cut

• Country’s housing industry needs lumber harvested from old growth stands (higher quality)

• Loss of wildlife habitat in old growth stands (i.e. spotted owl)

Help me….

The American bullfrog

American Bullfrog

-They are thriving in Arizona, but destroying a host of native species.

-They eat native fish, native frogs, and a long list of species on the endangered species list.

–They are native to the eastern United States.

-They were originally introduced because people like to eat their legs.

-There is a year-round season on them in Arizona. Please kill and eat as many as you can.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXqK5QulbJ8&feature=fvw 2 min (informative)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56YW2Mu_mXk&feature=related (bullfrog swallowing live snake) 1 min

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M02_dnl9zCA&feature=related (Bullfrog croaking)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSvkc9ZT17w&NR=1(Bullfrog screaming)

Crayfish aka: ecodestroying demons

Muhahaha!!!!!!I’m

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CrayfishArizona is the only state in the continental United States where crayfish are not native.

Because crayfish are a non-native species, they are not a natural part of Arizona's aquatic ecosystem.

crayfish are negatively impacting sport-fishing opportunities - especially some high country trout streams.

Catch and kill all the crayfish you can (a fishing license is required for anyone 14 year of age and older).

There are regulations prohibiting the transport of live crayfish from one water to another.

Zebra Mussels

Zebra and Quagga MusselsZebra mussels have almost eliminated native mussel species.

These are small, fingernail-sized mussels native to the Caspian Sea region of Asia.

They are tolerant of a wide range of environmental conditions, and have spread to parts of all the Great Lakes, the Mississippi River, and are showing up in inland lakes.

Zebra mussels clog water-intake systems of power plants and water treatment facilities, as well as irrigation systems, and the cooling systems of boat engines.

Female zebra mussels can produce as many as 1 million eggs per year.

They eat zooplankton, which is a food source for fish

New Zealand Mudsnail

New Zealand MudsnailThese have been found in the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam to the Diamond Creek area of the Grand Canyon.

The mudsnail was probably introduced to North American in shipments of trout eggs from New Zealand.

The snail was 1st discovered in Idaho's Snake River in 1987, where the population now exceed 100,000 snails per square meter along some reaches of river.

These invasive snails close a trap door in their shells when they are eaten by fish and birds, which allows them to pass through undigested, depriving the birds and fish of any nutrition.

In the Madison River in Yellowstone National Park, they outnumber all native mollusks.

Northern Snakehead

Northern SnakeheadSnakeheads are very successful in competing with other fish for food and habitat.

They have the ability to reproduce up to five times a year and are aggressive at protecting their young.

They have a wide temperature tolerance.

Although they are not found in Arizona, they have been found in California, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and possibly other states.

If they become established in Arizona, they could severely impact existing sport fish populations.

Hydrilla

Hydrilla Hydrilla has been found in isolated locations in Arizona.

seriously effect water use and flow.

will block sunlight penetration, and water quality becomes degraded due to oxygen depletion.

Hydrilla spreads through vegetative fragments.

Transportation on boating equipment plays the largest role in introducing hydrilla fragments to new bodies of water.

Golden Algae

Golden AlgaeDiscovered in Arizona in 2005.

can produce a powerful toxin that enters the blood stream of fish across the gill membrane and cause asphyxiation. All fish species can be affected.

The number of fish killed depends on how long the bloom remains active and toxin present.

Was first identified in Israel, then showed up in Texas in 1985. Since then, it has killed fish in Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico, North Carolina, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, Arizona and possibly other states.

Asian Carp

Asian CarpSilver and bighead carp have not yet been found in Arizona.

There is potential for Asian carp to be inadvertently mixed in legally sold minnows at bait shops. This is a prime example of why anglers should never dump live bait into waters and why they should dispose of bait properly.

Silver and bighead carp damage habitats and consume vast amounts of food.

In addition, Silver carp leap out of the water when startled by noise and vibrations caused by boats, motors and even paddling. Boaters are occasionally injured or knocked out of their boats.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jb8OmEr7VqI&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdcQ56OpxNE&NR=1

Buffel Grass

Buffel grass

Dry buffelgrass leaves produce tinder-dry fuels that quickly carry wildfires. Fires kill the native plants and create even more space for buffelgrass and other nonnative species.

Buffelgrass is a fairly large, ragged bunchgrass that was introduced to Arizona from Africa for cattle forage.

The linear leaves are brown in winter and green in summer.

It produces tan to brown seed heads containing many small bristles.

These heads produce large numbers of wind-dispersed seeds, which establish easily on roadsides, vacant lots, alleys, and in the desert.

Since it spreads by seed; removing seed heads will slow its spread, but the only way to prevent seed production and to reduce the threat of wildfire is to remove the plant.

Dense buffelgrass colonies exclude other species and are difficult to eradicate.

Small plants can be pulled up by hand, but larger plants have to be hacked out with a shovel or crowbar.

The entire plant is disposed of and the area has to be checked periodically for seedlings.

Planting native species in the area gives new buffelgrass seedlings less room to grow.

Salt Cedar

Its native range is Eurasia and Africa Most saltcedars are deciduous shrubs or small trees growing to 12-15 feet in height and forming dense thickets.

The bark of young branches is smooth and reddish-brown. As the plants age, the bark becomes brownish-purple, ridged and furrowed.

Leaves are scale-like, about 1/16 inch long and overlap each other along the stem. They are often encrusted with salt secretions.

From March to September, large numbers of pink to white flowers appear in dense masses on 2-inch long spikes at branch tips.

Saltcedars are a fire-adapted species and have long tap roots that allow them to intercept deep water tables and interfere with natural aquatic systems.

Saltcedar degrades native wildlife habitat by outcompeting and replacing native plant species, monopolizing limited sources of moisture, and increasing the frequency, intensity and effect of fires and floods.

The foliage and flowers of saltcedar provide little food value for native wildlife species that depend on nutrient-rich native plant resources.

Rock Snot