Chapter 5 - Wildlife habitat relationships

Abstract

For as long as humans have been on Earth, we have been dependent on the many products and materials that forests produce. We have viewed wildlife as a source of food, clothing (fur, feathers, and hides), tools (bones), and spiritual symbols, and some have been used in folk medicines where the spirt of the animal is thought to enter the human consuming the animal and make them stronger. However, we also recognize the value many wildlife species contribute to our recreational pursuits, to our existence values, and to our worldwide genetic diversity and biodiversity. Therefore, knowledge concerning the relationship between wildlife and its preferred habitat has been central to the development and survival of primitive societies and remains important for the developed and developing societies of today. As an example of the application of this knowledge in relatively primitive cultures, early European explorers witnessed North American indigenous people burning vast areas of forest land to promote the development of understory vegetation thought beneficial as forage for various wildlife species. More recently, in some developed societies a high level of concern has been placed on maintaining or developing habitat suitable for use by one or more species of concern, such as the northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina), or the red-cockaded woodpecker (Leuconotopicus borealis). As the human population continues to expand, greater demand (for shelter, food, transportation corridors) will be placed on land, generally at the expense of natural areas and the wildlife populations they may harbor. Practices such as overhunting, overgrazing, and urbanization can lead to a reduction in habitat quality or a complete loss of habitat, which may lead to the extinction (local or complete) of some wildlife species. However, some generalist habitat users may benefit from these changes. Therefore, it is important to understand the impacts of management actions on the habitat characteristics required by other species as well as habitat recovery across a landscape.