Water for Wildlife

TEXAS LAND / Roundup Issue
Water for Wildlife
WRITTEN BY GREG SIMONS
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V
alues associated with wildlife are significant and
diverse. It’s been estimated that the economic impact
of hunting and fishing in Texas contributes over $3.3
billion annually to our state’s economy. Additionally,
people not only simply value wildlife from a monetized
standpoint, but also in other contexts, as well. These other
diverse values of wildlife may include recreational, aesthetic,
spiritual, emotional, and ecological values. Thus, attention to
providing requisites for enhanced wildlife habitability is not
only good for wildlife, but it’s good for society. Since much of
Texas is often described as an arid to semi-arid environment,
there exists plenty of opportunities through creative, financial,
and sweat equities to invest in water as a means of providing a
better home for wild creatures and for people.
Water as a Nutrient
When discussing nutrients as part of the wildlife management
conversation, it seems that there tends to be more gravitation
toward discussing supplemental feeding and forage
management, with water being an afterthought in many of
these discussions. Protein pellets and food plots tend to be
sexier than the colorless,
tasteless, and odorless
properties of water.
However, make no mistake,
when it comes to servicing
the diverse function of the
living body, water reigns
king. Water is intricately
involved with transport of
other nutrients, oxygen,
and waste into and out of
the cells. It contains several
necessary electrolytes, it
is critical in the digestive
process, and even acts as
a cushioning component
for joints, spinal cord, and
brain. Though water has no
calories, it does serve as a medium for chemical reactions that
are part of our normal bodily processes including the metabolic
reactions involved in energy production. So, when discussing
strategies for growing bigger deer, more quail, and creating
greater wildlife diversity for backyard pleasure, it may be wise to
move water to the front of the discussion line.
Sources and Catchments
When we think of how water ends up on our landscape, many
people tend to think of that which falls from the sky. Indeed, the
moisture that we receive from our atmosphere is necessary for
our planet’s survival, and when you look across the lands of
Texas, the water that you see in the form of dirt tanks, lakes,
rivers, and potholes, is almost exclusively the result of rainfall.
But let’s be reminded that there are some locales where soil
types are simply not conducive for holding water, as the porosity
may be too great. And as already mentioned, many areas of the
state have long stretches in-between rainfall events, creating an
environment where evaporation, percolation, and water usage
simply exceeds what is captured from rainwater run-off. There
are ways to manage around some of this shortfall, such as lining
dirt tanks with bentonite clay or even using artificial liners, but
droughts can still create problems when we are strictly relying
on rainwater in arid regions.
The other primary source for creating available surface water
for the benefit of wildlife (and livestock), is by pumping it from
the depths of the earth to the surface of the land, and then
distributing it and making it available through drinking devices.
The primary options for pumping groundwater to the surface is
either through windmills or submersible pumps. Once pulled to
the surface of ground, the now available water is often stored
in an artificial tank, and is then delivered to a trough or drinker.
Troughs are typically in the form of cement, plastic, or metal
containers. Large properties will often feature extensive pipeline
infrastructure where miles of pipelines are laid, generally
through PVC, or these
days, through polyethylene
pipe, which is more durable
than traditional PVC.
Guzzlers are another option
for providing wildlife water
in arid regions or locales
where groundwater is not
available. The guzzler
concept is typically based
on having an apron which
increases the collection
area from rainwater, and
the apron will funnel into
a storage container that is
fully enclosed to reduce
evaporation, and is then
fed through a pipe into a small drinker. Guzzlers have been
especially popularized through some of the desert bighorn
restoration projects in Texas and elsewhere.
Distribution Counts
Since water can be a weak link in the habitability matrix for
a variety of wildlife, one of the fundamental premises is that
increased distribution of water allows for increased usable
space for those localized populations of wildlife. Thus, there is
enhanced efficiency in making use of all habitat features across
the landscape by bridging this distribution of use through water
provisions. Increased water distribution addresses fragmented
characteristics of habitat, minimizing “island-affects” and
helping to transform patchy habitat characteristics into larger
livable space for those populations of wildlife living in those
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TEXAS LAND / Roundup Issue
areas. In addition to increasing wildlife population numbers
through improved water distribution, these same populations
tend to also be more stable with greater resilience to various
environmental pressures.
Don’t Forget the Small Critters
Accessibility to surface water is sometimes an overlooked feature
when water troughs are implemented. The limiter for accessibility
is generally created through too much distance from the top of the
trough to the surface of the water. Fawns, birds, small mammals,
and even reptiles are sold short when they cannot access the
water. This accessibility issue can be easily mitigated by stacking
large rocks at one end of the trough, or using expanded metal
that is shaped like inverted V and provides a sloping platform
for crawling up from the ground and down to the water’s edge,
or even wiring a log to the side of the trough; anything creates a
perch for accessing the water. Overflows are also great ways to
create wildlife-friendly watering locations.
Water and Tax Consequences
Passed in 1995, Proposition 11 allows Texas private landowners
to qualify for their 1-d-1 Open Space Ag. Valuation through a
provision of wildlife management use. Part of the requirements
of this ad valorem tax valuation is an approved wildlife
management plan that includes at least three of the seven
designated wildlife management practices, including water
development. Thus, another important feature of private
landowners actively implementing water improvements for
wildlife, is that this investment may be applied toward a wildlife
valuation, should the landowner choose to go that route. The
central appraisal district (CAD) within each county can provide
more details, or you can consult a private consultant, such as
Wildlife Consultants, LLC.
To seek consultation on various wildlife and hunting
related matters, contact Greg Simons or Ruben Cantu at
(325) 655-0877 or go to www.TheWildlifeConsultants.com.
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G r e g S i m o n s
Wildlife Biologist
Wildlife@WildlifeSystems.com
O u r P h i l o s o p h y
The health of habitat and
wildlife is related directly to
the committed stewardship
of private landowners and
land managers. As wildlife
biologists, we understand
that it’s our job to help
landowners and land
managers achieve their goals,
which in turn helps keep
open space land sustainably
productive and ecologically
functional, benefiting us all.
R u b e n C a n t u
Wildlife Biologist
Ruben@TheWildlifeConsultants.com
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