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The Game and Fish Department can cost-share on management of cropland to benefit wildlife and soil health, as well as pay an access payment to these acres. Access for walk-in hunting is required on most cost-share agreements. The PLOTS programs for cost-share on cropland practices include Habitat Plots, Wildlife Food Plots, and the Working Lands programs.
No bird or animal species solely depend on cropland for survival, or as a requirement to complete their life cycle. However, some species can benefit from cropland. These benefits will vary depending on the season, species and type of crop, mechanical disturbances and availability of food, water and cover.
Many bird species use cropland during portions of their annual life cycle. Migratory waterfowl and songbirds feed on weed seeds, waste and volunteer grain during spring and fall migration. Overwintering birds, such as sharp-tailed grouse, use cropland as a winter food source and for food and cover during the breeding season. Only a few bird species, such as killdeer and horned larks, prefer bare cropland fields for nesting. Some birds will nest in cropland after the crop has been planted. Exposure to predation and chemical applications is a concern. Nests and young are vulnerable if harvesting or other mechanical disturbances occur during the nesting and brood-rearing season. Winter cereal crops are attractive to some nesting birds because of early green-up and fewer disturbances in spring.
White-tailed deer, elk, moose and pronghorn are attracted to cropland for food. Mature or taller crops such as sunflowers, corn or wheat can also provide cover. Pronghorn use grains, weeds and crop residues as a replacement or substitute for their preferred foods of sage and coarse forbs. Small and medium-sized mammals also use cropland as cover and as a source of food. Many small mammal species eat crop seeds or plants when available. Medium-sized predators, such as red fox, striped skunk and raccoon hunt for birds, nests, rodents and insects in cropland, and occasionally feed on grains.
In prairie regions, cropland can be restored by returning it to perennial vegetative cover. An appropriate mix of native grasses and forbs can be established. A combination of grasses and forbs will provide nesting cover, brood-rearing habitat and foods for many species, including nesting waterfowl, upland game birds and many other grassland birds. Agricultural areas that were formerly wetlands can be restored by removing sediments, plugging drains and reestablishing native wetland plants.
Many species of waterfowl and some shorebirds require upland grasslands for nesting, but also need wetland habitats for foraging and raising young. Pheasants and sharp-tailed grouse nest in grasslands and often roost in tall emergent wetland vegetation, especially during winter.
Wildlife habitat on cropland can be improved by using various techniques: