to re-colonize. In these situations, habitat management can be used to mimic the
effects of these natural processes in a controlled manner to maintain a continuity of
suitable conditions for desired species.
The main way of manipulating succession and creating suitable vegetation
structure in terrestrial systems is by removing vegetation, either by cutting,
grazing/browsing, burning, or herbicide use. Succession in wetlands can also be
manipulated by controlling water levels and, in some cases, nutrient inputs.
When considering habitat management, it is useful to distinguish between
phases of management aimed at restoring suitable conditions (restorative man-
agement) and those aimed at maintaining them (maintenance management).
Wholesale habitat creation on land of little or no conservation value, such as
arable land, usually involves increasing the rate of succession by optimizing con-
ditions for the establishment and growth of desired vegetation, and in some cases
also introducing seeds and plants. Techniques for habitat creation are outside the
scope of this chapter.
Habitat management for birds has only been widely used in more intensively
managed regions, such as Europe and parts of North America. Most of this
chapter is therefore based on experience and research from these areas, although
the principles involved are applicable elsewhere. An understanding of the general
principles and effects of habitat management is fundamental to good site man-
agement, but the specific aims and details of any management should always be
decided on a site by site basis. Habitats have been excluded where management
is rarely, if ever, driven by the specific requirements of birds, such as deserts,
mountain tops, sea cliffs, marine habitats, and rivers.
14.2 Deciding what to do
Habitat management has the potential to damage, as well as to benefit, import-
ant populations of plants and animals and ecological processes. Therefore, it is
important to think out clearly what you want to achieve and how best to achieve
it with minimal harm to other desired species. A good way to do this is first:
- To collate and summarize information relevant to the management of
the site
and then to identify:
- The current and potential important features of the site. These can be
individual species, groups of species, habitats, processes, or landscapes. - The ideal “condition” of these features. This ideal condition may be a range
of states with fluctuations influenced by semi-natural processes.
330 |Habitat management