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Wildlife Conservation Practices Offered Under 2002 Farm Bill Programs

Conservation programs offered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) help improve our diverse natural resources in many capacities. Technical and financial assistance is available to help landowners enhance or maintain rangeland, cropland, forested lands, pasture lands, wetlands, streams, and other resources. Practices implemented under NRCS programs can help to reduce erosion, improve water quality, increase agricultural efficiencies, and enhance wildlife habitat and fisheries, just to name a few of the benefits conservation can provide to landowners.

How can NRCS help you provide better wildlife habitat?

When you visit with a conservationist in your local USDA Service Center, you will go through a process that helps you identify needs, compare possible solutions, and decide on a course of action. From this point, you may decide to apply for financial assistance through the conservation program that best fits your management goals. NRCS financial programs for implementing practices that directly benefit wildlife include:

  • Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP),
  • Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP),
  • Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), and
  • Conservation Security Program (CSP).

Conservation Practices That Benefit Wildlife

Wildlife Habitat Development and Management

Manage habitat to benefit desired wildlife or natural communities through grazing, mowing, discing, or prescribed burning. This benefits wildlife species that depend on occasional disturbance to provide specific types of food and cover.

Streamside Forest Buffer

Area of trees and/or shrubs located along watercourses or water bodies. A buffer will create shade, reduce water temperatures, establish wildlife corridors, reduce sediment and nutrients in runoff, and protect against erosion.

Streamside Meadow Restoration

Establishment of grasses, grass-like plants, and forbs along watercourses or water bodies. This can be accomplished through prescribed grazing, a cropping management system, and/or seeding native species. Cover in riparian areas will reduce the amount of sediment and nutrients in runoff, help stabilize the streambank, and maintain water temperatures suitable for fish.

Stream Habitat Improvement and Management

Maintain, improve, or restore stream functions. Creating pools, riffles, and spawning habitat, providing shade and cover, or building barbs in the stream may be called for.

Wetland Creation, Enhancement, or Restoration

Wetland creation involves the use of small dams or dikes to establish wet habitats on dryland sites. Wetland enhancement and restoration involve the improvement of existing wetlands.

Wildlife Watering Facility

Developing watering places for wildlife will improve the quality and quantity of drinking water available to wildlife and may expand the amount of suitable habitat.

Wetland Wildlife Habitat Management

Maintaining, developing, or managing habitat for wildlife associated with wetlands by providing a variety of food and cover types and arranging habitat elements in proper amounts and locations to achieve a viable wildlife population within the species home range.

Upland Wildlife Habitat Management

Creating, maintaining, or enhancing areas to provide a variety of food and cover types and arrange habitat elements in proper amounts and locations to achieve a viable wildlife population within the species home range.

Conservation Security Program Enhancements

Under CSP there are several enhancements, directly benefiting wildlife, that you may be able to receive a payment for. If you decide to implement these enhancements under a CSP contract when your watershed is selected as a priority watershed, you will be improving wildlife habitat on your land while receiving a monetary benefit. CSP enhancements change every year as the program rotates to different watersheds. The following are an example of the wildlife habitat management enhancements offered under CSP in 2006.

  • Grazing management designed to protect/restore wetland habitat of the targeted wetland species.
  • Refrain from cultivating temporary and seasonal wetlands in cropland for the targeted wetland species.
  • Management of perennial vegetative buffers around wetlands in cropland for the target species.
  • Grazing management designed to protect/restore prairie habitat for the target species.
  • Management of restored riparian forest buffers in cropland/hayland to provide wildlife habitat for targeted species.
  • Management of fish screens installed at irrigation diversions to prevent entrainment of identified species.
  • Grazing management specifically designed to protect and facilitate riparian/stream bank restoration.
  • Leave unharvested grain on three percent of the cropland acres (minimum three acres) and leave undisturbed crop residue; stubble greater than 10 inches tall from harvest through March 15 to provide winter food and cover for target upland wildlife species.
  • Management of restored native woody cover plots to meet the needs for wildlife cover and food.

For More Information

For more information about conservation practices that will maintain or enhance wildlife habitat, contact your local USDA Service Center. Additional information about the practices outlined above is also available online at eFOTG.

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Wildlife Conservation Practices Offered Under 2002 Farm Bill Programs (PDF; 369 KB)

Last Modified: 10/22/2008