U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service HABITAT MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR TALLAHATCHIE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Grenada and Tallahatchie Counties, Mississippi Southeast Region Table Of Contents HABITAT MANAGEMENT PLAN Chapter I. Introduction ............................................................................................................ 6 Scope and Rationale ...................................................................................................... 6 Planning Process ........................................................................................................... 6 Refuge Vision ................................................................................................................. 7 Legal Mandates .............................................................................................................. 7 Relationship to Other Plans ............................................................................................ 8 Chapter II. Background, Inventory and Description Of Habitat ..........................................11 Location .........................................................................................................................11 Management Unit Descriptions ......................................................................................11 Historic Habitat Conditions .................................................................................19 Current Habitat Conditions .................................................................................19 Habitat Changes from Historic to Current Condition ...........................................22 Potential Impacts Associated with Global Climate Change ............................................25 Chapter III. Resources Of Concern .......................................................................................27 Migrating and Wintering Waterfowl ................................................................................27 Significance .......................................................................................................27 Identification of Habitat Requirements ................................................................28 Potential Refuge Contribution to Habitat Needs .................................................29 Reconciling Conflicting Habitat Needs ...............................................................29 Breeding Wood Ducks ...................................................................................................30 Significance .......................................................................................................30 Identification of Habitat Requirements ................................................................30 Potential Refuge Contribution to Habitat Needs .................................................30 Reconciling Conflicting Habitat Needs ...............................................................31 Birds of Bottomland Hardwood Forests .........................................................................31 Significance .......................................................................................................31 Identification of Habitat Requirements ................................................................31 Potential Refuge Contribution to Habitat Needs .................................................33 Reconciling Conflicting habitat Needs ................................................................34 Federal and State Listed Species and Species of Special Concern ...............................34 Significance .......................................................................................................34 Table of Contents i Identification of Habitat Requirements ................................................................35 Potential Refuge Contribution to Habitat Needs .................................................36 Reconciling Conflicting Habitat Needs ...............................................................37 Paddlefish .....................................................................................................................37 Significance .......................................................................................................37 Identification of Habitat Requirements ................................................................37 Potential Refuge Contribution to Habitat Needs .................................................37 Reconciling Conflicting Habitat Needs ...............................................................38 Chapter IV. Habitat Goals and Objectives ............................................................................40 Goal 1. Bottomland Hardwood Forest Habitat ...............................................................40 Objective 1.1 Reforestation ...............................................................................40 Objective 1.2 Cavity Tree ..................................................................................41 Objective 1.3 Invasive Animal Control – Feral Hogs ..........................................42 Goal 2. Wetland Habitat ...............................................................................................42 Objective 2.1 Moist-soil Management ...............................................................42 Objective 2.2 Flooded Cropland ........................................................................43 Objective 2.3 Shrub Swamp ..............................................................................43 Objective 2.4 Invasive Animal Control– Nutria ..................................................44 Goal 3. Aquatic Habitat .................................................................................................45 Objective 3.1 Paddlefish Habitat .......................................................................45 Objective 3.2. Water Quality .............................................................................45 Objective 3.3. Invasive Plant Control .................................................................46 Chapter V. Habitat Management Strategies .........................................................................48 Bottomland Hardwood Forest Habitat ............................................................................48 Reforestation and Cavity Tree Management ..................................................48 Potential Management Strategies ......................................................................48 Selected Management Strategies ......................................................................49 Management Strategy Prescriptions for Units 1 – 15, 17 – 24, 29, 32 – 34, 37 – 45, 52, 58, 59, 62 – 73, 75 – 86, 89 – 91, 93 – 95, 111, 112, 114 - 134 .............49 Invasive Animal Management – Hogs and Nutria ..........................................50 Potential Management Strategies ......................................................................50 Selected Management Strategies ......................................................................50 Management Strategy Prescriptions for All Refuge Units ...................................51 Wetland Habitat .............................................................................................................51 ii Tallahatchie National Wildlife Refuge Moist-soil Management ...................................................................................51 Potential Management Strategies ......................................................................51 Selected Management Strategies ......................................................................52 Management Strategy Prescriptions for Units 46, 48, 53, 54, 56, 101, 103 ........52 Flooded Cropland Management ......................................................................52 Potential Management Strategies ......................................................................53 Selected Management Strategies ......................................................................53 Management Strategy Prescriptions for Units 46 – 51, 53 – 56, 60 ....................53 Shrub Swamp Management ............................................................................53 Potential Management Strategies ......................................................................53 Selected Management Strategies ......................................................................54 Management Strategy Prescriptions for Units 25 – 28, 30, 31, 102 ....................54 Aquatic Habitat ..............................................................................................................54 Paddlefish Habitat Management .....................................................................54 Potential Management Strategies ......................................................................54 Selected Management Strategies ......................................................................55 Management Strategy Prescriptions for Unit 16 .................................................56 Water Quality Management .............................................................................56 Potential Management Strategies ......................................................................56 Selected Management Strategies ......................................................................56 Management Strategy Prescriptions for Units 11, 16, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 89, 93, 96, 112, 118, 119, 121, 124, 135 ....................................56