Wildlife Enthusiast Habitat Assessment
The Wildlife Enthusiast Package is for the serious property owner who wants to maximize management efforts on their land to benefit wildlife. This package is a 5-layer analysis conducted by our master’s level wildlife biologist and will give landowners the whole picture of what’s on their land and how best to achieve management goals.
Wildlife Enthusiast deliverables include:
Vegetation Composition Analysis
The first step towards achieving habitat and wildlife goals on your property is knowing what you have. All wildlife species that inhabit your land rely on the vegetation for food, cover, nesting material, hunting grounds, and breeding grounds through all phases of their life cycle. A vegetation analysis will provide you with a detailed report on dominant grasses, forbs, shrubs, and tree species on your land. This will identify any invasive/exotic species, desirable species specific to your management goals, rare species of interest, and relative abundances of each. The development of goals and any management actions undertaken to achieve them should begin with a thorough understanding of the current vegetation on managed lands.
Full Soil Report
Understanding soil limitations is vital to ensuring desired vegetation can survive on site before planting or seeding and if actions should, or can, be taken to improve soil conditions. Before collecting soil samples, we will visit with you to ascertain specific goals for each area of the property. The number of samples collected for analysis will be determined by the number of soil types and areas of interest. A soil map will be generated using the USDA’s Web Soil Survey service. Soil samples are sent to a professional lab run by a PHD soil scientist who personally tests each sample and provides personalized recommendations for optimal vegetation per site, detailed instructions for required actions and/or amendments required.
Mapping – Advanced Features (2 ft. x 3 ft.)
Maps are vital tools for rural landowners who are actively managing their lands. Aerial maps will allow you to visualize your land in a new way, helping delineate and plan management activities by area. Maps also help communicate management goals and tasks to contractors and other hired help. Property maps provided in the Wildlife Enthusiast Package will include property lines, gates, houses, interior roads, state or county roads, plus any extra features that need to be displayed like hunting blinds, feeders, wells, or other features (view sample map). All maps are created using Arc-Map with the most recent aerial photography available. You’ll receive your maps as both a printed version and digitally as a PDF. PDF maps are georeferenced for use with available phone map applications so users can track their current location on their land. The standard size for the printed version is 24 in. x 36 in., with other sizes up to 32 in. x 48 in. available at an additional charge. Laminated maps are available for an additional $25.
Brush Analysis
Many rural lands are overgrown with various brush species from years of neglect and fallow conditions. Our brush analysis will go farther than the vegetation composition analysis and offer detailed instructions on how to best manage brush to achieve your goals. Brush is essential to many wildlife species but can impede access to areas of your land and become a wildfire hazard. We will help you determine the best balance of brush to provide wildlife cover and food while increasing access and reducing the risk of wildfires.
Habitat Enhancement Recommendations
Habitat requirements are varied and very specific to each animal being managed for. Habitat enhancement recommendations in the Wildlife Enthusiast Package will be catered to the species you wish to improve conditions for, or for overall biodiversity improvement. We will provide detailed requirements for each species’ habitat needs and how to provide it for them. Many species require different types of habitat during different life cycles and seasons, which requires retaining or creating a well-integrated, heterogeneous landscape. Proper execution of the recommendations detailed in this report will help you ensure the wild species on your property have adequate food, cover, water, shelter, and any other specific needs they may have.
Wildlife Enthusiast Habitat Assessment Pricing:
Properties less than 200 acres | $3,799* |
Properties 200 to 500 acres | $4,799* |
Properties 500 to 1,000 acres | $5,899* |
*Plus mileage. |