RANCHING Wildlife Pollinators Need Landowner Help
New native pollinator management guidelines available for Texas landowners working to achieve wildlife tax valuation
P ROTECTING NATIVE INSECT POLLINATORS ON PRIVATE PROP-
erty now comes with new benefi ts for landowners. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s
Nongame and Rare Species Program developed new guidelines for landowners to develop wildlife man- agement plans for their properties. If a landowner’s property is currently evaluated under an Agricultural Tax Valuation, they may qualify for an Agricultural Tax Appraisal based on Wildlife Management Use if they follow the new guidelines to protect and support native pollinators. Because more than 95 percent of Texas lands are
privately owned, effective native insect pollinator conservation requires private landowner involvement. Landowners can play a signifi cant role in conserving and maintaining pollinator populations by applying management practices that benefi t these species, which support the healthy growth of several agricultural crops for free. The new guidelines are published in Management
Recommendations for Native Insect Pollinators in Texas, which can be downloaded at
tpwd.texas.gov by typing “native pollinators and private lands” in the search box. These guidelines outline a suite of practices that
benefi t these species, from prescribed burning, native plant re-seeding and installation of native pollinator plots to creating nest sites. The various practices in the guidelines could be applied to small backyards and large ranches alike. The guidelines address a growing problem: Native
insects that are important to pollinating wildfl owers and agricultural crops, including some bumblebee species and the monarch butterfl y, have experienced dramatic population declines and are in need of con- servation action. In addition, signifi cant challenges to managed-European honeybee health have sparked interest in native insects as alternative pollinators for agricultural production. Pollination is one of the most vital processes in sus-
taining natural ecosystems and agricultural production. The majority of fl owering plants that comprise Texas’ diverse ecosystems rely upon insects to transport pol- len among fl owers, ensuring the production of viable seed. Viable seed is critical for the perpetuation of plant species across the landscape. The annual value of insect-pollinated crops to the U.S. economy is esti- mated at over $15 billion. Landowners who apply these practices to their lands will be supporting popula- tions of native pollinators that aid in maintaining healthy plant communities on their properties, as well as those lands that surround them, thereby benefi tting a range of other wildlife. In addition, landowners will be conserving and perpetu- ating native pollinators that can pollinate surrounding agricultural producers, po- tentially reducing the need for leased honeybee hives to pollinate some crops. Although the non-native
European honeybee tends to garner the most public at-
62 The Cattleman July 2016
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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