Primary purpose
To provide a process for assessing existing wildlife habitat conditions and developing a plan for their management. Designed for use in developing wildlife management plans on Pennsylvania State Game Lands, Farms Game Projects, and similar situations.
Expertise needed
Team with the following four designated voting members: Land Management Officer for project area; Field Forester for project area; Food and Cover Corps Foreman for project area; and Pennsylvania Game Commission Game Biologist or Technician, or NRCS Biologist or Technician.
Applicable habitat types
Most terrestrial, wetland, and aquatic habitats in Pennsylvania.
Category assessed
Habitat suitability of selected fish, wildlife, or invertebrates.
Procedure
The users select a few evaluation species that could potentially use cover types within the study area and review the available PAM HEP habitat suitability index models. The models (a) identify the individual model variables, (b) list direct or indirect measures of model variables, (c) assign a suitability index (scale 0-1.0) to conditions for each variable, and (d) include the equation for calculating the habitat suitability index (HSI). The users visit the study area (or reviews plans for predicted future conditions) to measure the habitat features listed in the models. The HSIs and habitat units (HUs) are calculated.
Key Terminology
Compartment: an area on a map with a designated landuse or wetland classification, and separated from areas with the same or different classifications.
Evaluation species: individual animal species, groups of species, life stages of a species, or life requisites of a species selected for purposes of analysis.
Habitat suitability index: unitless number bounded by 0 and 1 where 0 represents no habitat and 1 represents optimum habitat.
Habitat unit (HU): a value derived from multiplying the HSI for an evaluation species by the size of the areas for which the HSI was calculated (HU = HSI x size of habitat).
Output
Measures of habitat suitability of each cover type and the entire project area for each evaluation species. The PAM HEP model HSI measures habitat suitability of a compartment relative to optimum habitat suitability for a species in Pennsylvania.
Estimate time to assess 1 acre site
Total 16 hours per study area.
8 hours: Define study area (step 1) and select evaluation species (step 2).
8 hours: Determine baseline habitat units (step 3).
Comparison of habitat types
Can directly compare habitats within Pennsylvania.
Use as guide to design
The PAM HEP models may be used as a guide to design. Users can refer to the model variables to determine which conditions increase or decrease habitat suitability. Habitat suitability for the mallard is increased when the wetland is designed to have > 20% emergent vegetation in the littoral zone (variable V3). Each variable provides information on conditions that should be avoided. For example, to be suitable for mallards, there must be at least 10% herbaceous canopy cover > 18 in. in height (variable V3). Finally, the information in the PAM HEP models is useful because it provides design criteria with explicit measurements (e.g., > 30% herbaceous canopy cover > 18 in.).
Contact person
Hugh Palmer, Pennsylvania Game Commission, P.O. Box 292, Millville, PA 17846 phone: (717) 458-6320; fax: none; e-mail: none
Related procedures
WHAMS is based on HEP (USFWS 1980) and PAM HEP (Palmer et al. 1985), but modified to reduce application and analytical time. WHAMS differs from PAM HEP in the following ways:
• Users do not have to be HEP certified.
• WHAMS is designed specifically for use in developing wildlife management plans on Pennsylvania State Game Lands, Farms Game Projects, and in similar situations.
• WHAMS requires using existing PAM HEP HSI models that are approved by the PA Game Commission. WHAMS does not allow for model development, since it is time consuming and a complex process.
• Evaluation species are selected only for the two major habitat types.
• WHAMS does not include calculation of the relative value index.
Extent of use/field testing
WHAMS has been used on development of game lands management plans and the assessment of one federal flood-control project. It has been used approximately 25 times over the last two years.
Proposed future revisions
There are plans to modify WHAMS to allow the use of current statewide GIS mapping (scheduled availability: July 1999).
Key References
Palmer, J.H., R.H. Muir, and T.M. Sabolcik. 1993. Wildlife Habitat Assessment and Management System: Habitat Evaluation Procedure Technology for Wildlife Management Planning. Pennsylvania Game Commission, Bureau of Land Management, Harrisburg, PA.
Palmer, J.H. 1995. Wildlife Assessment and Management PAM HEP Habitat Suitability Index Model Manual. Pennsylvania Game Commission, Bureau of Land Management, Harrisburg, PA.
Palmer, J.H., M.T. Chezik, R.D. Heaslip, G.A. Rogalsky, D.J. Putman, R.W. McCoy, and J.A. Arway. 1985. Pennsylvania Modified 1980 Habitat Evaluation Procedure Instruction Manual. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, State College, PA.