Making a Wildlife Management Plan

Creating a Wildlife Management Plan

A wildlife management plan helps you set realistic goals, understand what your land can support, and identify the steps needed to improve habitat over time. Use this simple five‑step process to guide your planning.

Define Your Objectives

  • Decide what you want to achieve for wildlife—such as improving deer quality, increasing quail or rabbit numbers, or attracting more songbirds.
  • Include your economic and aesthetic goals as well.
  • Rank your objectives so you know where to focus your time, effort, and resources.

Learn the Habitat Needs of Your Target Species

Understand the basic requirements of the wildlife you want to support: 

  • Plant communities
  • Cover and food needs
  • Home range size
  • General natural history

The more you know, the more effective your plan will be.

Assess Your Property and the Surrounding Landscape

  • Map your land, noting woods, fields, grasslands, wetlands, and idle areas.
  • Divide major areas into distinct habitat types (e.g., mature hardwoods, young pines, pasture).
  • Use aerial photos from your county tax office, USDA Service Center, or online tools.
  • Identify how surrounding land uses—within about a mile—support or limit your goals.
  • Mark where you regularly see wildlife to establish a starting point.
  • Collaborate with neighbors when possible; larger managed areas produce better results.

Identify Limiting Factors and Plan Improvements

  • Revisit your objectives with what you now know about your land.
  • Adjust goals to match what is realistic for your habitat.
  • Determine which habitat components are missing or limiting.
  • Plan short‑term and long‑term actions, from annual management (burning, thinning, disking) to long‑term changes (forest maturation).
  • Begin implementing improvements based on your priorities.

Evaluate Your Progress

Monitoring is essential and can be simple:

  • Keep notes on wildlife sightings
  • Maintain a hunting or observation log
  • Take photographs over time

Good records help you adjust your plan and see the results of your work.

If you need additional support, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission biologists can help develop or refine your plan.

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