Even in a dry summer my dam has continued to provide water to hog deer and other wildlife.
FEATURE Peter McDonell
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My hog deer hunting block is low-lying sandy country in coastal East Gippsland. Although the block had been farmed in the past, when I bought it there were no water sources for wildlife. Most animals need water in one form or another, either from vegetation or from a dam, waterway, wetland or soak. A lack of surface water on my land therefore meant that animals had to leave the block to get a drink, something that I definitely wanted to remedy.
Not long after acquiring the land I set about installing three water points; one at the front of the property, one in the middle and one at the rear. These were simple constructions of four pine posts, a galvanised iron roof, spouting and a storage tank with a pipe leading from the 1,000-litre tank to a trough. The troughs were made from 44-gallon drums cut in half with a ball valve to control water flow. These troughs soon rusted out and were replaced with their plastic equivalents.
I have always been fascinated how animals can find water, as to me it has no smell. A little research indicated that it is not the scent of water that attracts animals, but rather the associated scents - wet leaves, grasses, soil, and microbes in and around the water. An animal’s sense of smell is so much greater than ours too. I am by no means a scientist, but this explanation made sense to me.
Anyway, as soon as it rained and the troughs held water, the wildlife found them within a day or two. They were a success!
These water points worked well for five years until a dry spell, when their use by wildlife, including kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, deer and birds, also peaked and the tanks ran dry. What to do?
I decided to use a post-hole digger to explore for shallow groundwater by digging holes in various locations around the block and then revisited to check if water had seeped into them. Two holes had water!
At these two locations I dug small dams just down to the water table so that water would seep in. One of those dams has clear freshwater and never goes dry, even in drought years, which is great. One point to consider with shallow groundwater is its salt content. If it is too salty wildlife will avoid drinking it. The best way to check for salt content is to contact your local DEECA office to see if they can do a quick test to see if it is OK.
The numbers and variety of birds and animals that use my troughs and dams is amazing and it is very rewarding and informative to sit and watch their visits and to consider how the time of day and weather influences their comings and goings.
Years ago, some hunters questioned whether providing water for hog deer on private property might be illegal under the Victorian Game Regulations, but the consensus is that so long as the water is available year-round and for all wildlife, not just hog deer, this is OK. However, this applies only to private land and not to public land.
Roofs and tanks feeding to troughs were installed soon after I purchased my hog deer management and hunting property.
A hog deer stag attracted to the water in a recently installed trough.
Iron drums soon rusted out and were replaced by plastic drums.
A dam dug to the shallow water-table isn’t affected by low rainfall and heavy usage.
While hog deer were of major consideration, water points are of benefit to all wildlife in an otherwise dry environment.
Observing the wildlife coming for a drink is a rewarding way to spend time in the field.
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