In Mecosta County, acres of public land at Martiny State Game Area are being utilized to their fullest potential through management activities made possible by Michigan’s new hunting and fishing license structure, which took effect earlier this year.
Under the new license structure, one big change is evident when hunters buy their first license of the year. A one-time base license, which includes a small game license, must be purchased before hunters can buy any other hunting license. The base license cost varies based upon age and residency; what doesn’t vary is the investment (from base license-generated revenue) in Michigan’s wildlife habitat.
“We are doing some really exciting work at the Martiny State Game Area,” said DNR wildlife biologist Pete Kailing. “Timber sales are the best way to hit the reset button on a forest, which really maximizes the wildlife value to the area.”
At Martiny SGA, DNR wildlife biologists and foresters selected timber to be removed and, with Dan Bundy Logging of Lake City, cut trees for pulp wood and shipped them to several local mills. Limbs were used to construct large brush piles that make excellent habitat for small animals. Certain large mast trees, like oak and beech, were not cut in order to maintain a continued food source for wildlife and provide a seed source for the next generation of trees. Although most trees on the game area were selected to be cut, large, standing dead trees also were left for those animals, like pileated woodpeckers, that require a cavity for nesting.
“Aspen is a tree you have to cut down in order for new aspen to grow,” said DNR forester Mike Lesinski. “Thick, young aspen are a great year-round food source for so many animals, and in one season aspen saplings can shoot up several feet – they are very fast growers.”
The area looks a lot different after the timber sale, but the benefits will be immediate. When trees are cut, they instantly become a great food source for deer during a harsh winter, because deer will eat the tops of recently cut timber. The timber sale also enabled the construction of brush piles to provide escape and nesting cover for small animals like rabbits, ruffed grouse, rodents, amphibians and song birds. As a result, a more abundant small game population will be found at Martiny State Game Area, and even better opportunities for small game hunting will be available for hunters when they purchase the base license.
Because of the new hunting and fishing license structure, hunters and wildlife viewers will see other changes like this in other parts of the 6,300-acre Martiny State Game Area as well as other areas throughout the state. The license structure also made possible new DNR grant programs for wildlife habitat work on both public and private land, as well as aquatic habitat work.
