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The Cajun Becasse Chapter of the Ruffed Grouse Society has donated $6,400 to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Foundation for woodcock habitat improvement work on Sherburne Wildlife Management Area. The donation was used to improve 128 acres of habitat by removing nonmerchantable (small) trees.
"The Ruffed Grouse Society^s contribution enabled us to do some habitat improvement work through the use of commercial logging," noted LDWF wildlife biologist Fred Kimmel. "When a tract contains too much nonmerchantable timber, it^s difficult to get a logger to bid on the tract and remove both the nonmerchantable as well as the merchantable timber. If the merchantable timber is of low value, as was the case on Sherburne, it becomes even more difficult to get the nonmerchantable timber removed. The Ruffed Grouse Society contribution was important because there was a high percentage of nonmerchantable timber that needed to be removed."
Woodcock are migratory birds and south central Louisiana is one of the most important wintering areas in the nation. Maintaining favorable wintering habitat is critical to the species and is an important component of the American Woodcock Management Plan.
Woodcock require the thick cover types that grow after a logging operation. The tree canopy in the designated area was too dense and ground vegetation was shaded out. Thinning the stand allowed sunlight to reach the ground and encourage the development of understory vegetation. Logging also improves habitat for deer, rabbits, certain songbirds and other wildlife. Other species such as squirrels, turkeys and forest canopy songbirds will eventually benefit from the improvement in the tree species composition of the stand.
The Ruffed Grouse Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving habitat for ruffed grouse, woodcock and other forest wildlife. The Cajun Becasse Chapter, located in Opelousas, is the only chapter in the state and their efforts are focused on woodcock management
Uploaded: 8/26/2000
Uploaded: 8/26/2000