4.4 Terrestrial Communities
• Collect demographic information on all bat species; investigate specifc habitat needs and conduct life history studies. Management Practices. Management practices that reduce impacts and work synergis- tically with other conservation actions are needed to enhance the resilience of natural resources. Particular needs include preserving biodiversity, protecting native populations and their habitats, and improving degraded habitats. • Maintain connections between habitat blocks, not only to allow adjustments in range in response to climate change, but to maintain population resilience and adaptability more generally. • Create transportation facilities that utilize longer bridges at streams and wetlands to minimize impacts (and thereby reduce mitigation requirements) and provide cross- ing options for wildlife that often travel riparian corridors and disperse to upland communities. • For protected and unprotected sites, control the exotic plants that are present or may potentially invade. Conservation Programs and Partnerships. Conservation programs, incentives, and part- nerships should be utilized to the fullest extent in order to preserve high-quality resources and protect important natural communities. Protective measures that utilize existing regu- latory frameworks to protect habitats and species should be incorporated where applicable. Land conservation or preservation can serve numerous purposes in the face of anticipated climate change, but above all, it promotes ecosystem resilience. • Create cooperative programs with non-industrial foresters that promote and increase silvicultural practices (e.g., canopy gap management, longer rotations, introduction of fre), as this could beneft birds of conservation concern as well as small mammals, bats, reptiles, and amphibians. • Give high priority to protecting movement corridors that allow dispersal between hab- itat blocks, especially as development and roadways fragment the few remaining large tracts of habitat. • Give priority to restoring connections that are lost due to construction of four-lane high- ways and other roads that create near-impassible barriers for all animals except those capable of fight. • Ensure that conservation actions include land acquisition, easements, and protection to promote remaining large, unfragmented tracts as well as management to maintain and reestablish mesic forest. Tis is a relatively rare forest type and great efort should
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2015 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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