U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service HABITAT MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR MANDALAY NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana Southeast Region Mandalay National Wildlife Refuge Habitat Management Plan U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Southeast Region May 2013 Table Of Contents HABITAT MANAGEMENT PLAN Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 1 I. Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 4 Scope and Rationale .......................................................................................................................... 4 Vision .............................................................................................................................................. 4 Scope ............................................................................................................................................. 4 Rationale ........................................................................................................................................ 5 Legal Mandates .................................................................................................................................. 5 Refuge Purposes ............................................................................................................................ 6 Relationship to Other Plans ................................................................................................................ 6 Refuge Plans .................................................................................................................................. 6 Regional and National Bird Conservation Plans .............................................................................. 6 Regional Plans and Initiatives ......................................................................................................... 8 II. Background, Inventory, and Habitat Descriptions ..................................................................... 10 Location ........................................................................................................................................... 10 Management Units ........................................................................................................................... 10 Physical Features ............................................................................................................................. 13 Climate ......................................................................................................................................... 13 Geology and Topography ............................................................................................................. 14 Hydrology ..................................................................................................................................... 15 Soils.............................................................................................................................................. 16 Flyways ........................................................................................................................................ 16 Ecosystem Context .......................................................................................................................... 17 Historic Condition of Refuge Habitats ............................................................................................... 17 Prehistoric Human Occupation ..................................................................................................... 17 Historical Human Occupation........................................................................................................ 17 Recent History .............................................................................................................................. 19 Current Habitat Conditions ............................................................................................................... 19 Vegetation Types .......................................................................................................................... 19 Loss of Bottomland Hardwood Forest Habitat ............................................................................... 23 Conversion of Open Water to Exotic Floating Mat Vegetation ....................................................... 23 Damage to Marsh Vegetation by Exotic Animals .......................................................................... 24 Construction of Canals and Spoil Banks, and Associated Bank Erosion ....................................... 24 Changes in Fire Regime ............................................................................................................... 24 Changes Associated with Global Climate Change ........................................................................ 25 III Resources of Concern .................................................................................................................. 27 Identification of Refuge Resources of Concern ................................................................................. 27 Waterfowl ..................................................................................................................................... 27 Marsh Birds .................................................................................................................................. 28 Colonial Nesting Wading Birds ...................................................................................................... 29 Raptors ......................................................................................................................................... 30 Habitat Requirements of Resources of Concern ............................................................................... 31 Waterfowl ..................................................................................................................................... 31 Table of Contents i Marsh Birds .................................................................................................................................. 33 Colonial Nesting Wading Birds ...................................................................................................... 36 Raptors ......................................................................................................................................... 37 Potential Refuge Contribution to Habitat Requirements of Resources of Concern ............................ 39 Waterfowl ..................................................................................................................................... 39 Marsh Birds .................................................................................................................................. 39 Colonial-nesting Waterbirds .......................................................................................................... 39 Raptors ......................................................................................................................................... 39 Species with Complementary Habitat Requirements ........................................................................ 39 Neotropical Songbirds .................................................................................................................. 40 Shorebirds .................................................................................................................................... 40 Reconciling Conflicting Habitat Needs .............................................................................................. 40 IV Habitat Management Goals and Objectives ................................................................................ 41 Freshwater Marsh and Shallow Open Water .................................................................................... 43 Objective 1.1: Freshwater Marsh Habitat Management ................................................................ 43 Habitat Management Objective 1.2: Freshwater Marsh Restoration ............................................. 44 Forested Wetlands ........................................................................................................................... 45 Habitat Management Objective 2.1: Forested Wetland Management ........................................... 45 V Management Strategies ................................................................................................................ 47 Freshwater Marsh Management Strategies ...................................................................................... 47 Potential Strategies ....................................................................................................................... 47 Management Strategy Prescriptions ............................................................................................. 51 Forested Wetland Management Strategies ...................................................................................... 52 Potential Strategies ....................................................................................................................... 52 Management Strategy Prescriptions ............................................................................................. 53 APPENDICES Appendix