The rancher as wildlife and watershed manager Today’s rancher is often just as much of a wildlife
manager as he is a livestock producer. The rancher who maintains all or part of the ranch in native vegetation is taking care of wildlife by providing habitat. The rancher may or may not manage the land intentionally or specifi cally for wildlife, but simply by maintaining the natural plant diversity, he or she is practicing wild- life conservation. Furthermore, the rancher provides these wildlife services free of charge — taking care of publicly owned wildlife at his own expense. In addition to being a wildlife manager, ranchers pro-
vide an extensive and effi cient system of natural water catchments and aquifer recharge, thus maintaining a healthy functioning water cycle. A signifi cant amount of the rain and snow that falls on private ranches ends up in aquifers and contributes to the base fl ow of creeks and rivers. These vital public benefi ts are all possible when ranchers take care of the land and keep a good cover of grasses, trees and brush. Even though the rancher may think his or her
priority is to grow grass for cattle, today’s rancher is also helping to process and protect the waters used by every citizen. Cities far downstream are benefi ting from the sus-
tained fl ows of high-quality water that originate on ranches.
Pasture sculpting A modest size ranch in Menard County is managed primarily for quail and deer. The absentee owner has
invested a lot of work to provide some of the fi nest wildlife habitat in the area. However, he has a recurring problem of too much grass, which inhibits the move- ment of quail and chokes out the desirable forbs that quail need. The best answer to this problem is cattle and specialized grazing management.
Most successful wildlife biologists work with the land
and with ranchers much more than we actually work with
wildlife. Cattle are incredible ecological tools, good for the land when properly managed.
A forage inventory is made in late fall to determine
the amount of surplus grass and the number of head it will take to graze it down in 3 or 4 months during the dormant season. At the going rate of $15 per cow per month, this quail habitat management tool provides a nice source of income with no expense on the part of the landowner. By carefully managing how many cows are present, in which pastures, and for how long, this pasture sculpting technique is improving quail habitat and making money at the same time. Pasture sculpting involves using creative and cus-
tomized grazing techniques to make a pasture look like you want. It can be used to maintain nesting cover,
tscra.org
July 2015 The Cattleman 77
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