Conserving waste rice for wintering waterfowl in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley

Journal of Wildlife Management
By: , and 

Links

Abstract

Rice lost before or during harvest operations (hereafter waste rice) provides important food for waterfowl in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley, USA, but >70% of waste rice is lost during autumn. We conducted experiments in 19 production rice fields in Arkansas and Mississippi during autumns 2003 and 2004 to evaluate the ability of common postharvest practices (i.e., burn, mow, roll, disk, or standing stubble) to conserve waste rice. We detected a postharvest treatment effect and a positive effect of initial abundance of waste rice on late-autumn abundance of waste rice (P ??? 0.022). Standing stubble contained the greatest abundance of waste rice followed by burned, mowed, rolled, and disked stubble. We recommend standing stubble or burning to maximize waste rice abundance for wintering waterfowl.
Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Conserving waste rice for wintering waterfowl in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Series title Journal of Wildlife Management
DOI 10.2193/2007-226
Volume 72
Issue 6
Year Published 2008
Language English
Larger Work Type Article
Larger Work Subtype Journal Article
Larger Work Title Journal of Wildlife Management
First page 1383
Last page 1387
Google Analytic Metrics Metrics page
Additional publication details