650 IMPROVING AND MAINTAINING GROUSE COVERTS 



iiig may substantially ictanl cidwii cIumiic Ii\ inliiliiliiip suckering. 



British gamekeepers have long used coiilrollud Imrniiig as a means u{ assuring a fresh 

 growth (pf heather on grouse; moors. \^ ith adequate safeguards, the same principle may be 

 applied to keep open our own small, cut-over units in nmeh the same way as a railroad bums 

 the brush from its right of way or a farmer may l)urn over a field. The fire must, however, 

 be kept on the surface lest the soil be harmed or too many desirable food species be killed and 

 grass encouraged to take their place. The exceedingly dry periods, when fire is likely to get 

 out of control, as well as the months of May and June, when grouse are nesting or the broods 

 are small, obviously should be avoided. 



Where grass is likelv to follow repeated removal of the forest cover, a rotation of units to 

 be used as summer feeding grounds is called for. Other reasons for this practice have been 

 discussed in the preceding chapter. 



Correlation of Grouse Cover Improvement Work vi'ith Other Forest Practices 



In carrying out management, some conflicts in desirable forest and wildlife practices are 

 unavoidable, but the concessions, which must be made to encourage the production of several 

 crops concurrently, are seldom as serious as is generally supposed. 



In developing the covert, full advantage should be taken of forest management operations 

 such as thinning, improvement cuttings and the harvesting of wood products. In terms of 

 dollars and cents intensive cover development for grouse alone is apt to be a costly under- 

 taking. Combined with other forest improvement work, it can often be made to pay its 

 share of the total expense. 



Briefly, the steps by which this may be accomplished are the following: 



1. Determine what otlier products can be produced. 



2. Find out for which of these a profitable market exists. 



3. With the above in mind, select the other crops \sith due rejiard to their efTect on grouse. 



4. Enlist technical assistance, where available, in determining how best to encourage and 

 when to harvest each crop. 



5. Carry out forest stand and game cover improvement practices when labor costs are low. 



Since grouse coverts are largely wooded, one thinks naturally of lumber, pulpwood, acid 

 wood, ties and firewood, as the possible subsidiary crops. The local market demand for these 

 is not always easy to determine. Softwoods of siifTicient size to produce hmdier are usually 

 salable. The demand for hardwoods is less easil) i)redietal)le. With the de\elopment of new 

 processes, an increasing number of pulp mills are purchasing both hardwoods and softwoods 

 cut in standard eordwood lengths and with a diameter limit as low as four inches. Some mills 

 accept only peeled bolts, others can use the wood with the bark left on. In New York State 

 the market for acid wood is limited largely to the western Catskills. Ties are always in demand 

 though contact must usually be made with the district purchasing agent of the railroads in 

 the vicinitv to find out just what is salable. Likewise there exists in most communities a 

 market for fuelwood, although in limited quantities. 



Naturally the periodic harvesting of ain of these crops will alter the habitat for grouse to 

 some extent. On a long-time basis lumber iiroduction is quite eonipatilile with the mainte- 

 nance of high grouse populations providing the basic requirements of the bird are met. The 



