Wildlife Management

1. Have you established any objectives for conserving the plants, animals, and their habitats on your ranch (whether or not you plan to derive income from wildlife)?

2. Have you surveyed the boundaries, road system, riparian corridors, vernal pools, and common plant and animal species on your ranch to see how they fit with your wildlife management objectives?

3. Are you aware of the benefits to a ranch operation of maintaining a well-managed fee hunting program (e.g., income, trespass control, ans habitat protection and enhancement)?

4. Do you manage for non-game wildlife?

5. Do you actively work to maintain natural habitat components such as snags, downed wood, understory shrubs, and large trees on your ranch?

6. Do you provide artificial habitat enhancements such as food plots, songbird and bat nesting boxes, hedgerows, or brush piles?

7. Do you construct and maintain artificial water sources, such as water troughs, ground drinkers, guzzlers and ponds for livestock and wildlife?

8. Do you manage your livestock operation in a manner that may also benefit wildlife?

9. Do you provide the kind of wildlife fencing (“leaky”) that allows for the free movement of wildlife?

10a. Do you protect your stream course, whether perennial or intermittent?

10b. Do you protect your wetlands, vernal pools, springs or seeps?

11. Have you considered using a conservation easement to protect wildlife habitat and other values on your ranch?