3.0 Wildlife Foods and Concepts
3-1. Study Materials for Foods
Species Descriptions - see section about "diet" for each species
Southeast Mixed and Outer Coastal Plain Forest
barred owl, loggerhead shrike, mourning dove, northern bobwhite, prothonotary warbler, red-cockaded woodpecker, red-eyed vireo, wild turkey, wood duck, coyote, eastern cottontail, eastern fox squirrel, raccoon, white-tailed deer, wild pig, American alligator, eastern snapping turtle, American bullfrog, channel catfish, largemouth bass, American bumble bee, monarch butterfly.
Learn how foods are categorized for the contest. For example, a flower by itself represents "nectar." A chicken egg represents many types of eggs including frog eggs but not insect eggs.
3-2. Study Materials for Concepts
Learn these concepts and terms about ecology and management. It will help deepen your understanding of when, where, and why certain practices are employed.
Don't understand a particular word or terminology? "Litter" may be trash found beside the road, but "ground litter" has another meaning in wildlife science. This alphabetical list offers definitions of words used in the contest.
3-3. Scorecard
The scorecard consists of multiple choice, true/false, and matching questions, and sometimes fill-in-the-blank questions about ecology concepts and terms. The questions are developed from the study materials for foods and concepts (above).
A portion of the Wildlife Foods & Concepts typically includes stations where contestants will be presented with a food specimen, photo, or other visual clue for responding to the question. For example, a twig and leaf may be present at a station with a number. The contestant will be asked, which species eats this food item from a list of species. The twig and leaf represents a food item for the white-tailed deer.
Following are examples from a previous contest:
3-4. Event Description
Objective
Contestants demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of wildlife management concepts and terminology, and an understanding of the foods wildlife eat. Additionally, Senior contestants are expected to describe and compare wildlife management practices (see Wildlife Management Practices), and characteristics of the announced ecosystem.
Overview
For the Wildlife Foods & Concepts, contestants need to be able to:
- define and apply wildlife management concepts and terms;
- know food habits and habitat needs of wildlife species in the announced ecoregion;
- describe wildlife management practices (Seniors only); and
- describe the physical, habitat, and land use characteristics of the announced ecoregion (Seniors only).
Contest Rules
- Contestants need to bring pencils and a clipboard for this event.
- Contestants will complete the scorecard individually, thus no talking is allowed.
- The question format can be multiple-choice, true/false, matching, or fill-in-the-blank.
- A portion of the event may include stations with visual items for determining the answer to a question, such as a wildlife food sample, picture or other prop.
- Contestants will be given 30 minutes to answer questions and record information on a score sheet.
Content Areas
1. Wildlife management concepts and terms. Be able to define and apply concepts and terms. Apply concepts and terms to the characteristics of wildlife species in the region. Study materials include Wildlife Concepts and Terms and the Glossary.
2. Food habits and habitat needs of wildlife species in the announced ecoregion. Study the Wildlife Species Descriptions for those wildlife species in the announced region. Be able to identify the category for a food sample (e.g., grasshopper = insect) and which species consumes the sample (e.g., Northern bobwhite). Also know the type of habitat they prefer. Note: Foods have been placed in categories of food group definitions to facilitate this portion of the contest. For example, a station displaying a tree branch with leaves and flowers is considered a “leaf and twig,” whereas a flower by itself represents “nectar.” To indicate which foods are eaten by specific wildlife species, be familiar with the food group definitions.
Seniors are expected to demonstrate an in-depth understanding and application of the knowledge areas described below.
1. Wildlife management concepts and terms. Be able to define and apply concepts and terms. Apply concepts and terms to the characteristics of wildlife species in the region. Study materials include Wildlife Concepts and Terms, and Glossary.
2. Food habits and habitat needs of wildlife species in the announced ecoregion. Study the Wildlife Species Descriptions for those wildlife species in the announced region. Be able to identify the category for a food sample (e.g., grasshopper = insect) and which species consumes the sample (e.g., Northern bobwhite). Also know the type of habitat they prefer. Note: Foods have been placed in categories of food group definitions to facilitate this portion of the contest. For example, a station displaying a tree branch with leaves and flowers is considered a “leaf and twig,” whereas a flower by itself represents “nectar.” To indicate which foods are eaten by specific wildlife species, be familiar with the food group definitions.
3. Wildlife management practices. Be able to describe a particular management practice and the tools needed to implement the practice. The section on Wildlife Management Practices has descriptions and photos about each one. Additionally, know under what conditions a management practice can be implemented, including the specifics about when and where it can be applied. For example, understand that seed-tree removal as a forest practice is typically used for regenerating pine stands, not hardwood stands.
4. Knowledge and understanding of the ecoregion. Study the description for the announced ecoregion. Be able to describe the features of the announced ecoregion, including geographic location in the state and characteristic plant species.
