Waterfowl populations face many challenges in the Twenty-First Century. From the loss of nesting habitat to changes in agriculture on Texas wintering grounds, very real threats imperil the future of ducks and duck hunting. That is why Texas Waterfowl book author and executive editor of Texas Fish & Game magazine, Chester Moore, is hitting the road December 8.

“I’m doing what I call the ‘Texas Duck Tour’, hunting seven locations in seven regions of the state in seven days,” Moore said. “The idea is to document the habitat and hunting opportunities in these different areas to show what amazing opportunities we have in Texas, and in turn show what we have to lose if we don’t take action now.” Full documentation of the tour will be posted om the magazine’s website, www.fishgame.com, along with conservation notes specific to the species pursued and various regions of the state.

“One example I could give is the hunts we are doing along the Texas coast, “Moore said. “The conservation problems there include a loss of rice production, which is believed to be causing major problems with pintails and leaving Texas in poor health, and also seagrass conservation in Lower Laguna Madre and in the Coastal Bend. “Waterfowl conservation is complex, and by hitting these different areas I hope to drive home to the people hunting those areas how important the habitat is, and that without successful nesting in the prairies, there will poor fall flights.”

Moore enlisted the help of Ducks Unlimited (DU) on this venture to provide logistical support and help choose key areas with specific conservation issues that need addressing. “DU is the leader in wetlands conservation, period,” Moore said. “We at Texas Fish & Game have a great working relationship with that organization, and Tim Soderquist of DU and I will be traveling together on this excursion, working to profile DU volunteers who are extremely important to conservation work, and making sure we maximize our efforts to raise awareness of important issues.”

Texas Fish & Game Publishing, LLC, released Moore’s Texas Waterfowl book last September, and Moore has pledged to donate 20 percent of the royalty proceeds to DU. “Half will be earmarked for the nesting grounds and the other half will go to the Texas CARE project, which is conserving crucial areas in Texas,” Moore said.

Texas Duck Tour Dates/Locations

Dec. 8 / Winnie
Dec. 9 / Crockett
Dec. 10 / Lubbock
Dec. 11 / Fredricksburg
Dec. 12 / Choke Canyon Reservoir
Dec. 13 / Rockport
Dec. 14 / Wharton

Hunters in the field for this weekend’s firearms deer opener are reminded that it remains illegal to shoot gray wolves, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

Federal officials removed the gray wolf - commonly referred to as the timber wolf - from the endangered species list earlier this year, and the DNR assumed management authority. While no longer endangered, State law classifies the gray wolf as a protected wild animal.

In the early 1970s, the extreme northeastern portion of Minnesota boasted the only population of gray wolves in the lower 48 states. Through the protections of the federal Endangered Species Act as well as successful federal and state recovery programs, the winter population of gray wolves has increased to about 3,000. The species now ranges throughout the forested portion of northern and central Minnesota.

“The recovery of wolves in Minnesota and the Great Lakes region is a conservation success story,” said Dan Stark, DNR wolf management specialist.

Shooting a wolf is illegal except in defense of human life and, under certain circumstances, to protect livestock or pets. Illegally shooting a wolf is a gross misdemeanor with fines up to $3,000 and up to one year in county jail. People convicted also must pay $2,000 in restitution.

“The management goal for wolves in Minnesota is to ensure the long-term survival of the wolf while resolving conflicts between wolves and humans,” Stark said. “With more people in the woods, the potential for conflict increases - particularly for any wolves that have been habituated to humans.”

Wildlife lands near Vantage to be closed to motor vehicles to protect wintering elk OLYMPIA*Some 44,000 acres of eastern Washington state wildlife land northwest of Vantage will be closed to motor vehicles from February through April to protect wintering elk from disturbance.

From Feb. 1 through April 30 next year and in 2009 the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) will close lands to motorized vehicle access on the Whiskey Dick and a portion of the Quilomene wildlife areas in Kittitas County. The area to be closed is north of the Vantage Highway, south of Quilomene Ridge Road, east of the Wild Horse Wind Farm, and west of the Columbia River. The area is about one-third of state winter range on the Whiskey Dick, Quilomene and Colockum wildlife areas.  “As early spring public recreational use of the area has increased over the past decade, elk have been abandoning their winter range on these wildlife areas as early as mid-February,” explained Ted Clausing, WDFW southcentral regional wildlife program manager of Yakima.

“Elk need to stay on winter range well into April to stay nourished and maintain overall herd health,” he said. When elk leave the wildlife area and head to adjacent private land, they compete with cattle for forage and damage crops and stock fences, Clausing noted. For over two years WDFW has worked to develop solutions to the problems with the Kittitas Big Game Management Roundtable, Kittitas Field and Stream Club, Kittitas County Cattlemen’s Association, Wenatchee Sportsmen, Kittitas Audubon, wildlife area citizen advisory groups and others. From those discussions and public meetings conducted last fall and this summer, several options were developed. “We looked options ranging from complete seasonal closures for both motorized and non-motorized access on all three wildlife areas, to no action,” Clausing said. “What we’ve come up with is a pilot approach, beginning with closing motorized access to some of the winter range, and watching carefully over the next two years to see what that does for elk and agricultural damage.” Clausing said WDFW will review results of the two years of seasonal closures and discuss modifications or expansions at a public meeting in 2009. The Whiskey Dick closure is consistent with other existing winter-range closures on the Oak Creek, Wenas and L.T. Murray wildlife areas, Clausing said.

The Duck Nesting Habitat Initiative (CP-37), announced by the USDA Farm Service Agency just over a year ago, is currently set to expire on Dec. 31, 2007.

This initiative is available through the Conservation Reserve Program on a continuous sign-up basis. It is open to landowners who have eligible cropland outside the 100-year floodplain in the Prairie Pothole Region of South Dakota, and whose land meets requirements for duck density set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Landowners with eligible cropland acres may enroll up to a 10-to-1 upland-to-wetland ratio under this practice.  While non-cropped wetlands are not eligible for annual rental payments, croplands surrounding non-cropped wetlands are eligible for enrollment. 

“This is a unique opportunity for landowners to enroll large tracts of marginal cropland into CRP using this continuous practice,” said GFP Habitat Biologist Chad Switzer of Huron.  “For example, if a landowner has a 16-acre cattail slough with no previous cropping history and it is surrounded by 144 acres of cropland eligible for this CRP practice, the landowner could enroll the entire quarter section into CRP and earn consistent income and provide wildlife habitat for 10 to 15 years.”

For landowners not eligible for the Duck Nesting Habitat Initiative, the Farmable Wetlands (CP-27 and CP-28) and Wetland Restoration Initiative (CP-23A) are continuous CRP practices available to address wetland and other marginal cropland areas, each with their own unique design to meet the needs of cooperating landowners.  In addition, landowners should be reminded that CRP rental rates were updated in the summer of 2007.

Landowners can learn more about these wetland practices and other CRP programs by visiting the USDA Farm Service Agency Web site at www.fsa.usda.gov or visiting their local USDA Service Center.  Landowners may also contact their local Pheasants Forever Farm Bill biologist to determine if acres of interest may be eligible at http://www.sdgfp.info/Wildlife/privatelands/FarmBillBiologists.htm.  

GFP also has information regarding these programs and can be found on the Private Lands Habitat Program Web site at www.sdgfp.info/Wildlife/privatelands/Index.htm.

“The intent of the practice is to restore wetlands and provide undisturbed nesting cover for breeding waterfowl, but landowners will see even greater rewards. Upland nesting birds like pheasants will benefit, as well as non-game birds. Setting aside these areas can improve the water quality and aesthetic values of wetland/grassland areas,” said GFP Habitat Biologist Rocco Murano of Huron.

The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy (SAHC) purchased 430 acres on Oct. 5 in the Highlands of Roan in Avery County, adding to a network of protected lands that is rich in wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities.

Biologists with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, who provided technical guidance to SAHC on the Powdermill tract’s importance to conservation strategies in the region, see this purchase as a significant advancement toward achieving the goals set forth in the State Wildlife Action Plan. This plan, adopted by the state in 2005, is an ambitious blueprint for fish and wildlife conservation for the next half century.

“The area’s size, juxtaposition to other important tracts and its diversity of priority habitats falls in line with the goals of the action plan, which are to conserve aquatic and terrestrial species and their associated habitats,” said Jeff Schwierjohann, the Commission’s Wildlife Diversity supervisor for the Mountain Region. “The plan also prioritizes the need for conservation of key large-acreage areas of high-quality habitat like the Powdermill tract.”

The tract, located near the Appalachian Trail and the Pisgah National Forest, comprises lush riparian areas, two types of mature forests, a grassy bald and a high altitude ridge of more than 5,000 feet in elevation. With its stunning long range views, habitat diversity, abundant wildlife and excellent trout fishing, the tract provides something for all outdoor enthusiasts — from anglers to hikers to wildlife watchers.

The land contains 1.4 miles of Powdermill Creek, a headwater source of the North Toe and Nolichucky rivers. Streams on the tract directly feed the nearby hatchery-supported trout waters of the North Toe River and are water supplies for several mountain communities.

According to Carl Silverstein, the SAHC executive director, the purchase was a complex transaction that took years to complete and involved partnerships among individuals, non-profit organizations and government agencies, including the Wildlife Resources Commission.

“Several developers had approached the landowners, offering to buy the property,” Silverstein said. “If we were not buying it now for conservation and protection of wildlife habitat, it would very likely have been lost to development.”

The purchase of this pristine acreage represents a major addition to SAHC’s decades-long effort to conserve the Highlands of Roan, which is located on the North Carolina/Tennessee state line. The North Carolina State Natural Heritage Program has designated a portion of the property as part of the nationally significant Roan Mountain Massif natural area.

The Powdermill tract is part of a 24,000-acre ecological network, which contains 16,000 contiguous acres already protected, including the Pisgah and Cherokee National Forests along the Appalachian Trail; 700 acres owned by the state of Tennessee at Hampton Creek Cove, which SAHC manages pursuant to a contract with the state; Roan Mountain State Park, and 900 more acres owned or managed by SAHC.

The remaining 9,000 acres of unprotected tracts in the region are on SAHC’s priority list for landowner outreach and negotiations, land acquisition and conservation easements. Active negotiations are under way on a number of those properties.

The Powedermill tract purchase was funded by a contingent of natural resources agencies and conservation organizations such as the Open Space Institute, the N.C. Clean Water Management Trust Fund, the Will Stevens Revolving Loan Fund and conservation supporters Fred and Alice Stanback of Salisbury.

For additional information on the Powdermill tract, visit the SAHC’s Web site, http://www.appalachian.org or contact Silverstein at carl@appalachian.org or (828) 253-0095.

The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) has received a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service Forest Legacy Program to purchase a conservation easement on the Big Island of Hawai’i.

This $2 million conservation easement represents the first of two installments totaling $4 million from the Forest Legacy Program to purchase an easement on 9,000 acres of the Kealakekua Heritage Ranch, located approximately 20 miles south of Kailua-Kona.

The Kealakekua Heritage Ranch is currently owned by the Pace family. Prior to the Pace family acquiring the land in May 2004, the County of Hawai’i had approved a $25-30 million development plan for the construction of 500 residential lots and an Arnold Palmer golf course.

However, instead of developing the land in that way, the Pace family decided to permanently protect the majority of the property through conservation easements. Residential development on the property will be limited to only the makai portions of the ranch.

The Forest Legacy Program identifies important forest lands that are threatened by conversion to non-forest uses, and provides funds to state agencies that are equipped to protect these lands in perpetuity. The program allows states to utilize the program to either fully or partially fund acquisitions of forest land.

“Thanks to the conservation-minded Pace family, and a partnership between DLNR and the U.S. Forest Service, this land will be preserved for future generations,” said DLNR Chairperson Laura H. Thielen.

The Kealakekua Heritage Ranch represents a “bargain purchase” of the property for less than the appraised value. The landowner may donate the remainder of the value as a match requirement of the program and/or utilize this value as a federal and state tax deduction. Half of the funds for this purchase, $2 million for 4,000 acres, has been allocated by the U.S. Congress through the Forest Legacy Program and the remaining half stands a high chance of being funded.

The $4 million grant request was based upon costs associated with the completion of conservation easement transaction, and the further implementation of a forest management plan.

In 2005, a preliminary assessment of the value of the easement was conducted by the Hallstrom Group of Honolulu, which provided a value of $30,750,000. Prior to conveyance, a full appraisal of the easements will be required to assure that the easement’s value exceeds a minimum of $5,334,000, which totals the $4 million request plus the necessary 25 percent match requirement of the Forest Legacy Program.

While some development protection already exists on the mauka portions of this land as part of a rezoning ordinance, the most significant of those restrictions are only in place for 40 years.

For the Paces, protection also means implementing a land/forest management plan that truly demonstrates their commitment to sustainability, as well as their eagerness to provide for the surrounding community. The property is serving as a community hub for numerous local and regional interests as well as an important research area that will provide valuable insight into quantifying groundwater percolation rates among differing land cover regimes.

Within the ranch’s history of nearly 200 years of timber extraction, many of the large trees, specifically koa and sandalwood, were cut for long straight boards, leaving the remainder of the trees to decay. These practices ultimately resulted in significant loss of forest cover. After buying the property, the Pace family built a wood shop and kiln and hired local woodworkers to salvage the dead wood for use in wood floors, cabinets, and furniture.

To further restore the land, the ranch owners have opted to enter into the state’s Forest Stewardship Program (FSP) for the next 30 years. A contract is currently being developed that outlines management plans and provides a 50 percent reimbursable cost-share with the landowner for practices carried out under FSP.

These practices include, but are not limited to, a reduction in size of the existing cattle herds and fencing sensitive and designated areas for natural regeneration and plantings. Restoration efforts will focus on the improvement and expansion of critical habitat for a number of threatened and endangered species.

A wanderlust lynx, originally released in Colorado as part of a restoration project, died earlier this week in Union County near Creston.
The cat was wearing a radio collar and had been tracked in Iowa for approximately six weeks. It was hit by a car near Creston on Monday night and then euthanized.
“It probably was a blessing because it was severely emaciated,” said DNR Biologist Ron Andrews.
The lynx was approximately six or seven years old and would normally weigh about 40 pounds at that stage of life, feeding primarily on small rodents. It weighed only about 13 pounds at the time of its death.
A trip to Iowa was not the first long range wandering for this lynx. It had been discovered in Kansas earlier this year and returned to Colorado before taking off again on what would be its final journey ending in Iowa.
Andrews said the last reported sighting of a lynx in Iowa was in the northwest part of the state in the 1960s.
For more information, contact Kevin Baskins at 515-281-8395.

Department of Natural Resources Secretary Scott Hassett joined officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in a wolf spotting flight from Siren to Ashland Monday, March 12. At a press conference at the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute at Northland College in Ashland following the flight, Hassett discussed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s removal of the gray wolf from the federal list of threatened and endangered species and the transfer of wolf management in Wisconsin to a state management plan.
“Today celebrates the decades of partnership, hard work and dedication shown by the partners, organizations and individuals that made this event possible,” Hassett said. “Perhaps more than any other mammal, the wolf symbolizes the wild and the free. The wolves we saw from the air today don’t know that they are special or different in any way from their ancestors who were removed from Wisconsin by bounty hunting and trapping earlier in the past century.”
The press conference and flight recognized the success of gray wolf recovery in Wisconsin under the Endangered Species Act . Since the gray wolf was first listed under the ESA in 1974, recovery programs have helped wolf populations rebound. Unregulated shooting and trapping, encouraged by a legislative state bounty, resulted in the extirpation of the wolf in Wisconsin by 1960. Wolves reentered the state on their own from Minnesota in the mid-1970s.
A late winter 2005-2006 estimate puts Wisconsin’s gray wolf population at 465-502. This includes an estimated 16 to 17 wolves on Indian reservations for an estimated 449-485 outside of reservations. Wisconsin’s Wolf Management Plan calls for a population of 350 wolves outside of Indian reservations.
The final rule to delist the wolf in Wisconsin was published in the Federal Register on Feb. 8. The rule became effective March 12. The Wisconsin Wolf Management Plan guides wolf management actions in the state. Protecting wolves, controlling problem animals, consideration of hunting and trapping, as well as maintaining the long-term health of the wolf population will be governed by the state or appropriate tribe.
“Like our neighbor states, we have a management plan, forged in partnership with the citizens of Wisconsin, the tribal nations within our borders, scientists, wildlife managers and many, many stakeholder groups,” Hassett said. “It is a good plan. It is a framework for the existence and management of the wolf in Wisconsin and at the same time provides landowners protections and recourse for verified wolf depredations.”
Key to Wisconsin’s wolf management efforts is the ability of the state to remove depredating wolves from the landscape and for landowners to protect their livestock and pets. Wisconsin’s management plan provides for both. The plan also sets stepped levels of tolerance for wolves on the land based on geography and population.
“The Department of Natural Resources, on behalf of the citizens of the state, accepts the responsibility to manage the gray wolf–and we will do this with respect to the citizens of the state and the wolf itself,” Hassett said. “Our goal is to maintain a self-sustaining population of gray wolves in Wisconsin and address human-wolf conflicts quickly.”

As part of an on-going effort to reintroduce wild turkeys to southwest Minnesota, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources released 10 female wild turkeys in the East Chain Lake corridor east of Fairmont on January 18 and an additional seven female wild turkeys and two juvenile male wild turkeys on January 26.
According to Rob Baden, DNR assistant area wildlife manager at Windom, the turkeys were released on land owned by Merlin Christensen, just north of the East Chain Wildlife Management Area . Baden said additional adult male wild turkeys will be released at the same site within the next couple of weeks, depending on trapping success in southeast Minnesota where these birds are being captured.
Wild turkeys were released near Murphy Lake, north of Fairmont, in 2002 and have done very well, Baden noted, although they have not yet expanded to areas south of Fairmont. The habitat surrounding the release site consists primarily of oak, black cottonwood, and other hardwood trees along the shorelines of the series of lakes that run south into Iowa.
Baden said the 120-acre East Chain WMA is located in the heart of the release area, and other private CRP holdings dot the surrounding landscape. In case of deep snow, winter corn food plots have been established near the release site to provide the birds with a stable winter food source.
The hope is that the release will result in the establishment of a viable population of wild turkeys that would be able to disperse into other areas of Martin County, such as the nearby Fairmont chain of lakes. One factor that can limit the success of a wild turkey release is the presence of domestic, or game farm turkeys near the area of reintroduction. The DNR encourages people not to release domestic or game farm turkeys into the wild as these pen-raised birds carry and can transmit diseases to the wild birds.
“In addition, domestic turkeys may interbreed with wild birds, thus reducing the natural hardiness and wariness of the wild strain,” Baden pointed out. “Domestic turkeys also have a way of becoming quite a nuisance by feeding in gardens, defecating on buildings, vehicles, and lawns, and by roosting on or near buildings. It is never a good idea to release pen-raised animals in to the wild.”
For additional information or to report the sightings of wild turkeys seen near East Chain WMA, please contact the Windom Area Office at 831-2900 extension 229.

The final release of bighorn sheep captured and transported from Montana has been made in Nebraska’s Wildcat Hills, according to Todd Nordeen, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission district wildlife manager at the Alliance office.
Nordeen said a total of 51 bighorns have been released on a private land site south of McGrew. The first release was made Jan. 21 when 20 sheep captured in the Missouri River breaks south of Havre, Mont., were released. The remaining 31 were released Jan. 27 after being captured in the Sun River Canyon near Augusta, Mont.
“Overall, the capture and release project went extremely well, even though the trapping crew s helicopter was grounded for several days due to high winds,” Nordeen said.
He said the January releases south of McGrew included 42 adult ewes, seven adult rams and two ram lambs.
The released bighorn herd will expand almost immediately with the lambing season, which usually begins in late April and extends through July. The bighorn breeding season occurs in November and December and the ewes normally give birth to a single lamb. The twin ram lambs and adult ewe transported from Montana are rare for bighorn sheep.
According to Nordeen, bighorn sheep once roamed the Wildcat Hills and the edges of the North Platte River valley, with numerous historical accounts recorded by pioneers and emigrants traveling the Oregon and California trails. Bighorn sheep were expatriated from western Nebraska by about 1900.
The Wildcat Hills release is the state’s fourth bighorn re-introduction, with herds also in Fort Robinson State Park, Bighorn Wildlife Management Area southeast of Crawford and Cedar Canyon WMA southwest of Gering and Scottsbluff.
All 51 bighorn sheep released in January carry radio transmitter collars. Chadron State College graduate students Jennifer Malmberg and Kristina Kasik already have located the new bighorn herd several times and most of the sheep have remained within one mile of the release site. Malmberg is monitoring the Cedar Canyon herd and will monitor the Wildcat Hills bighorns during her post-graduate research project.
CSC professor Chuck Butterfield accompanied the Commission trapping crews that traveled to Montana to examine, radio collar and test the sheep captured by a helicopter net crew. Each sheep was fitted with a radio collar, blood and DNA samples were taken, and all sheep received vaccinations. All samples are tested to an established, national protocol for bighorn sheep before transport to help reduce stress and maintain the health of the newly released transplants.
Bighorn sheep populations in Montana and other parts of the West are growing and the re-introductions of bighorn into their historical range have received tremendous support from state and federal agencies, private individuals, sportsmen’s groups, conservation groups and others.
Bighorn management efforts from capture to release and the continued monitoring of the herd’s progress requires the commitment of numerous partners. The Foundation of North American Wild Sheep , Iowa FNAWS, Safari Club International, Grand Slam Club Ovis, Conklin Foundation, Platte River Basin Environments and the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Foundation have participated in Nebraska’s bighorn management efforts. Since 1998, the sale of lottery and auction hunting permits has raised over $600,000 to help fund the on-going bighorn management program in Nebraska.
“No tax revenues were used for the bighorn sheep capture and relocation project and we are very gratified by the response of private landowners and all of the families and others that joined us for the releases this week,” Nordeen said.
The Commission is conducting a bighorn project at Fort Robinson SP this week as well. Biologists will capture and radio collar 25 bighorns to determine the cause of lamb morality, diet selection and movements and distribution for the Fort Robinson bighorn herd.
For more information on Nebraska’s bighorn sheep herds, contact the Commission’s district office, 299 Husker Rd., 763-2940 in Alliance and the Commission’s popular Web site at www.OutdoorNebraska.org.

The Division’s Turkey Restoration Project represents one of the greatest wildlife management success stories in the history of the state. By the mid-1800s, turkeys had disappeared in New Jersey due to habitat changes and killing for food. Division biologists, in cooperation with the NJ Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation, reintroduced wild turkeys in 1977 with the release of 22 birds. In 1979 biologists and technicians began to live-trap and re-locate birds to establish populations throughout the state. By 1981 the population was able to support a spring hunting season, and in December, 1997, a limited fall season was initiated.
There is now an abundance of wild turkeys throughout the state with turkeys found wherever there is suitable habitat. Even in South Jersey, where wild turkeys had been struggling just a few years ago, intensive restoration efforts have improved population numbers significantly. The population is estimated at 20,000 - 23,000 with an annual harvest of more than 3,000.
Youth turkey hunters aged 10 to 16 with a permit can hunt in any hunting period in the zone that they draw a permit for during the spring season. Youth hunters aged 10 to less than 14 must be under the supervision of a licensed adult who is at least 21 years of age. The adult does not have to have a turkey permit, but they do have to have a regular license. This regulation applies until the youth takes a turkey. After taking a turkey, the youth is subject to the same hunting period and zone restrictions as an adult.

ABERDEEN, S.D. - The dwindling mountain goat population of the Black Hills will get a much-needed infusion of new blood when as many as 40 mountain goats are imported from Colorado this fall.
At its October meeting held in Aberdeen, the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Commission heard about the plan to bring in Colorado goats from Tony Leif, GFP game program administrator.
Leif explained to the commissioners that the mountain goat population of the Black Hills has been in decline since 2000. “We’re not really sure what has caused the decrease,” Leif said, noting a number of factors could be contributing to the smaller herds. He said changes in habitat, increased activity by humans and the surge in the mountain lion population could all be factors.
The lack of genetic diversity could also be a problem. The original mountain goat herd was started from six goats imported from Alberta, Canada. “From the 1940s through 2000, we had a pretty strong population,” Leif said. The goal is to bring the Black Hills population back to as many as 400 mountain goats.
Leif said the project could cost as much as $40,000. All of the transplanted goats would have radio collars. Safari Club International has donated the funds to pay for 20 of the collars at a cost of $325 each. The collars will be used to track the new goats which would help GFP get a better estimate on the size of the entire herd.
The proposed dates for the project are Nov. 1 through Nov. 4. The animals will be captured near Leadville, Colo., at a wilderness area that has a surplus of mountain goats. A contractor, Quicksilver Air Inc. of Fairbanks, Alaska, will handle the capture of the goats.

More than 170 people from across Idaho, interested in the conservation of rural quality of life and wildlife resources in balance with development and growth, attended the Idaho Land Use Summit in September in Nampa.
They included ranchers, county commissioners, realtors, hunters, anglers, state legislators, and representatives from state and federal agencies, city governments, land trusts, American Indian tribes, Boise State University, University of Idaho, Idaho State University, private businesses, soil conservation districts and the media.
Together they represented more than 30 of Idaho’s 44 counties.
Speakers talked about how the West is changing and about what causes those changes. They gave real-world examples of how areas across the West are working to direct those changes to preserve the rural quality of life, wildlife habitat and resource-based communities.
Summit attendees learned about activities in New Mexico, Colorado and Montana and how these might help them find solutions to conditions and changes in Idaho.
Panels on the Traditional vs. the New West and the role of government in land use led to discussions among panelists and attendees related to:
” Proposition 2-an initiative on the November ballot that would require government to compensate landowners for any reduction in the value of their land resulting from ordinances, zoning or planning.
” The need for more funding to compensate landowners for the public trust or ecological services they provide on their lands, such clean water, wildlife habitat and public access.
” County governments’ need for technical, legal and comprehensive planning assistance to help them direct growth and development-most rural counties are out-manned and out-gunned when approached by developers.
” The need to improve networks and cooperation among those who seek to maintain the rural quality of life in Idaho.
At the end of the Summit, attendees were asked to list the rural qualities of life they wanted to preserve, and the priority of immediate and long-term strategies necessary to maintain those qualities.
The Summit was concluded by attendees identifying the rural qualities of life they wanted to promote and the conservation of and the priority of immediate and long-term strategies they felt are necessary to maintain these qualities of life.
For information on the Summit program, speakers, presentations and products of the Summit; please visit the Summit website: http://www.ictws.org/summit.html.

PIERRE, S.D. - A group working to restore and conserve the nation’s wildlife is looking for new members in South Dakota.
Teaming with Wildlife is a national coalition of more than 3,000 groups working to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered. The coalition supports increased funding for wildlife conservation and associated recreation and education in every state.
The Teaming with Wildlife Coalition includes biologists, state wildlife agencies, conservationists, hunters, anglers, trappers, birdwatchers, nature-based businesses and many others who support the restoration and conservation of our nation’s wildlife.
This grass-roots campaign starts at the state level. South Dakota recently gained 14 new members and is on its way to meeting a goal of at least 100 South Dakota organizations or businesses by this fall.
The newest coalition members are:
29-90 Sportsman’s Club
Batworks
Biodiversity Divisions, Bad River Ranches
Brookings County Pheasants Forever Chapter
Custer State Park
Environmental Education Connections of South Dakota
Girl Scouts of Minn-Ia-Kota
How-Kota Archers
Human Dimensions Consulting
Madison Area Ducks Unlimited
National Association for Interpretation
Oahe Sportsman’s Club
S.D. Department of Health
SDSU Student Subunit of the American Fisheries Society
The coalition is free to join. Members simply go on record to show support for the need to ensure the conservation of wildlife and their habitats and, in the process, maintain the high quality of life South Dakotans enjoy.
Visit South Dakota’s Teaming with Wildlife Web site at http://www.sdgfp.info/Wildlife/Diversity/teaming.htm. View South Dakota’s complete coalition list and learn how an organization or business can join the coalition and keep South Dakota the kind of place where both people and wildlife find the clean water and air and healthy landscapes they need to thrive.
For more information on South Dakota’s Teaming with Wildlife Coalition, contact Eileen Dowd Stukel at eileen.dowdstukel@state.sd.us or 605-773-4229.

North Dakota ’s Wildlife Action Plan, a strategic plan designed to identify and help fish and wildlife species that are in decline, has been approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
For the past five years, Congress has provided states with supplemental funding through the State Wildlife Grant program to conserve species that typically receive no monetary support. The SWG program does not take away from current game management programs, but instead complements funding shortfalls in programs already in place, and fills in gaps where funding has been lacking.
As a condition of accepting these funds, all 50 states were required to develop a Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy - now called Wildlife Action Plan - and submit it to the USFWS by Oct. 1, 2005. The Wildlife Action Plan is intended to identify and focus on species of conservation priority, yet address each state’s full array of wildlife.
“This benefits all species of fish and wildlife, not only those at potential risk,” said Terry Steinwand, North Dakota Game and Fish Department director.
According to Steinwand, the SWG program represents an ambitious endeavor that allows states to take a more active role in keeping species from becoming threatened or endangered in the future. ” North Dakota’s Wildlife Action Plan will provide much of the framework for working toward that goal and preserving an important part of our state’s heritage for future generations,” he said.
North Dakota ’s Wildlife Action Plan, available on the Game and Fish website at gf.nd.gov, contains information on species of conservation priority, threats that are causing species to decline, and actions for conserving them.
Game and Fish Department nongame biologists started developing the plan in 2002, and received input from land management agencies, tribal interests, nongovernmental organizations, researchers, experts and private citizens.
For more information on North Dakota’s Wildlife Action Plan contact Game and Fish Department biologists Sandra Hagen at 328-6382 or Patrick Isakson at 328-6338.

A cooperative program involving the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will once again provide North Dakota agricultural producers with the necessary tools to tackle chronic crop depredation caused by Canada geese, according to Greg Link, assistant wildlife chief for the state Game and Fish Department.
The program has been in place each spring and summer since 2002, and provides landowners with equipment and technical assistance to ward off depredating Canada geese. Past efforts have shown Canada goose depredation control is most effective when a combination of techniques are used in concert: hunting seasons , egg addling and non-lethal treatment methods .
“As part of the program, special depredation permits can be issued on a last-resort basis,” Link said. “However, federal authorization requires that all treatment methods be exhausted before a permit is issued. This is the public’s wildlife resource, and this removal method has to be used with much discretion.”
Landowners experiencing crop depredation caused by Canada geese must first contact Wildlife Services so it can assess and address the situation. Wildlife Services personnel will make an on-site visit, provide consultation, and make a written recommendation.
Landowners who were issued special permits last year will receive a special permit application packet by the end of March. The special depredation permit, which is valid from April through July, allows each eligible landowner to kill up to 30 geese and destroy 15 nests.
North Dakota’s authorization from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service allows for the taking of no more than 6,000 geese and 1,000 nests, including all the eggs.
This is the fifth year special permits are available to North Dakota landowners. In 2005, 86 landowners used the special permit, taking 947 Canada geese and destroying 141 nests under provisions provided by the permit. Canada geese were taken in 28 counties in eastern and northwestern North Dakota.
Landowners wanting more information about Canada goose depredation assistance can contact the Game and Fish Department at 328-6300.
Nonresident Any-Deer Bow Licenses Still Available 031506
Approximately 250 any-deer bow licenses are still available to nonresidents in 2006, according to Carrie Whitney, licensing supervisor for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department.
The Game and Fish Department began issuing nonresident any-deer bow licenses March 1, and slightly more than 900 of the allotted 1,155 licenses for 2006 have been purchased.
Remaining licenses are issued on a first come, first served basis. Nonresidents can print out an application for mailing at the Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov, or call 701-328-6300 to request an application. Only one license is allowed per hunter.
The number of nonresident any-deer bow licenses available is 15 percent of the previous year’s mule deer gun license allocation. The department issued 7,700 mule deer licenses in the 2005 deer gun lottery.

The Migratory Bird Conservation Commission recently approved additions to the National Wildlife Refuge System as well as 35 conservation projects under the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund to help conserve migratory bird populations and habitats.
The Cabinet-level Commission, chaired by Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton, includes Senators Thad Cochran of Mississippi and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, Representatives John Dingell of Michigan and Curt Weldon of Pennsylvania, Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns, and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen L. Johnson.
At its March 8, 2006 meeting, the Commission approved more than $3 million to acquire 2,169 acres of wetlands and associated upland habitats for the National Wildlife Refuge System in Vermont, New Jersey, Louisiana, Texas, and California. Funding for these acquisitions comes primarily from the purchase of Federal Duck Stamps by hunters and other conservationists.
The Commission also approved more than $18.5 million from the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund for 35 conservation projects in 18 U.S. states and Mexico. U.S. partners in 19 of the projects will match that amount with nearly $65 million, enabling partners to restore more than 105,000 acres of wetlands, while partners in Mexico will add more than $3.8 million to conserve nearly 36,000 acres of habitat in that country. The Commission also approved nearly $370,000 to complete two previously approved projects that suffered hurricane damage.
“This is a great example of how the public and private sectors can work together to maintain and expand opportunities for Americans outdoors,” said Interior Secretary Gale Norton. “Acre-by-acre, public and private partners are joining together to restore wetlands across the nation. Wetlands provide excellent habitat for wildlife and offer millions of Americans a broad range of outdoor recreational opportunities.”
More than 2,400 partners have been involved in nearly 1,500 wetlands conservation projects throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico since 1990. Projects in all three countries focus on long-term protection, restoration, or enhancement of important wetland habitats. In Mexico, partners may also develop training, management, and environmental education programs and conduct studies on sustainable use. To date, more than $700 million in Act grants have been invested in the three countries, and partner contributions have topped $2 billion. Nearly 23 million acres of wetlands and associated uplands have in some way been enhanced through this program.
The Commission funds grants to states and other partners through provisions of the North American Wetlands Conservation Act . The grants are financed by congressional appropriation; fines, penalties and forfeitures under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act; interest accrued to the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act; and excise taxes paid on small engine fuels through the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Fund.
Refuge land acquisitions are funded by Duck Stamp sales and from import duties collected on arms and ammunition, right-of-way payments to the refuge system and receipts from National Wildlife Refuge entrance fees. Since its inception in 1934, the Federal duck stamp program has generated more than $700 million. That has been used to acquire more than 5.2 million acres for the refuge system.
New National Wildlife Refuge System acquisitions, all previously approved by the respective states, include:
California: Purchase of easements on of 316 acres in the North Central Valley Wildlife Management Area across 11 counties to protect, restore and maintain wetlands for waterfowl and other migratory bird populations.
Texas: Acquisition of 1,802 acres to provide habitat for waterfowl at the San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge.
New Jersey: Acquisition of 31 acres at the Cape May National Wildlife Refuge for migratory bird resting habitat.
New Jersey: Acquisition of 19.69 acres to protect wintering and nesting waterfowl habitat, especially black ducks, at Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.
Vermont: Acquisition of 10.1 acres for Missisquoi National Wildlife refuge to provide resting and feeding habitat for several waterfowl species as well as marsh birds and many species of songbirds.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.

SALEM - Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Access and Habitat Program today announced a series of projects it funds to improve winter range for big game species.
Winter range is a crucial factor in the health and survival of Oregon’s big game herds. The availability of good winter range - where elk, deer, pronghorn and bighorn sheep can find shelter and adequate food - means all the difference between strong populations or a herd weakened by starvation and at increased risk for disease and predation.
Poor habitat conditions from past management practices, disturbance of animals on winter range by people and motor vehicles and the loss of winter range from development can all spell trouble for big game animals when winter arrives.
The Access and Habitat Program, created by the Oregon Legislature in 1993 and funded by a $2 surcharge on hunting licenses, funds programs where individual and corporate landowners, conservation organizations and others work to improve wildlife habitat and hunter access throughout the state.
In southwest Oregon, factors affecting elk and deer winter range include encroaching human development that removes land from the habitat base and years of fire suppression, which has allowed big game forage to become overgrown and decadent.
The A&H Program has funded a number of projects designed to cut-back dense stands of ceanothus, an important big game forage shrub, allowing it to grow back to a more robust and nutritious state.
A&H winter range enhancement projects in southwest Oregon in 2005 included a $31,450 grant to cut ceanothus on 134 acres of timberlands owned by the Swanson Group, Inc. and a $34,834 grant for a similar project on 133 acres of Forest Capital timberlands. In 2004, the A&H Program contributed $12,000 for another brush cutting project within the Jackson Access and Cooperative Travel Management Area in Jackson County.
The Blue Mountains region of northeast Oregon also is an important area for A&H Program big game winter range habitat enhancement projects. Although many winter ranges in this area are in good shape and remote enough that wintering animals are not disturbed by people, there remains a need for direct management.
For example, the A&H Program provided a $5,000 grant to conduct a burn on the Lostine Wildlife Area in 2005 to remove conifers that were encroaching on winter range habitat.
“That area is used by bighorn sheep as well as deer,” said Pat Matthews, ODFW’s assistant district wildlife biologist in Enterprise. “The bighorns won’t go in there if the conifers grow to a certain height and density because they don’t feel safe.”
One of the major big game winter range habitat projects that the A&H Program helps fund is the Oregon Hunters Association’s Murderers Creek Winter Range Shrub Planting Project in Grant County. Going into its seventh year, more than 250 volunteers spend a weekend in late March or early April planting a variety of native shrubs to provide forage for deer and elk. The group has planted more than 650,000 shrubs. Last year the A&H Program provided a $12,000 grant to purchase shrubs for the project.
Other recent winter range improvement projects funded by the A&H Program include noxious weed control and juniper removal on the Foster Ranch in Baker County, cooperative noxious weed control projects in Harney County, and a multi-year juniper control project on the Scanlan Ranch in Klamath County. In addition, the A&H Program supports a number of travel management areas that help control motor vehicle traffic in winter range, reducing the amount of energy-wasting disturbance deer and elk experience.
These kinds of projects, supported by A&H Program grants, will help ensure Oregon’s big game populations continue to have high-quality habitat in which to spend their winters.
For information about the A&H Program call program coordinator Nick Myatt, 503-947-6087 or visit the Web site at www.dfw.state.or.us/AH/.

DNR Wildlife Manager Bob Smith, DNR Conservation Officer Aaron Clevenger Recognized by WV Chapter of National Wild Turkey Federation
Two wildlife and law enforcement professionals of the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources were recognized with awards presented by the West Virginia Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation during that organization’s annual banquet January 21, 2006.
Robert W. Smith, DNR wildlife manager, received the prestigious Outstanding Wildlife Manager of the Year Award, which is presented annually to recognize and honor a wildlife manager in West Virginia who has demonstrated outstanding efforts in the management and conservation of the wild turkey and other wildlife resources of the state.
In presenting this year’s award, NWTF Regional Director Bob Farkasovsky congratulated Smith for his many years of service to the sportsmen and women of West Virginia. “We are very proud of the work accomplished by wildlife managers throughout the state,” said Farkasovsky. “The hunters of this state can be most thankful for the dedication and hard work that Bob and many other wildlife managers demonstrate every day.”
Working as wildlife manager on Nathaniel, Short, Allegheny and Fort Mill Ridge Wildlife Management Areas, Smith has been most active in the management of the wild turkey while serving the citizens of West Virginia. Throughout this career, Smith has trapped and radio-tracked more wild turkeys for various projects in DNR District II than any other wildlife manager or wildlife biologist. These projects include trap and transfer activities associated with past wild turkey restoration efforts, recently completed wild turkey population dynamics research focusing on hen mortality, and ongoing research dealing with gobbler behavior and mortality. These research efforts, which have been funded in large part by the NWTF, are considered to be the defining work in wild turkey population dynamics studies for the mid-Appalachian region of the United States.
“Throughout his 34-year career, Bob Smith has made notable contributions to the state’s wildlife management program and the sportsmen and women that enjoy our abundant wildlife resources,” said Curtis Taylor, Chief of the Wildlife Resources Section. “Bob’s dedication to the wild turkey resource is evident by his involvement with NWTF events, including fundraising dinners, turkey calling contests and the ‘JAKES’ program that benefit the state’s young people. As an avid turkey hunter himself, Smith has called numerous birds in for both novice and experienced hunters and never hesitates to introduce new hunters to the wild turkey hunting experience.”
DNR Conservation Officer Aaron Clevenger was recognized by the West Virginia chapter of NWTF as the West Virginia Wildlife Law Enforcement Officer of the year at the annual state chapter banquet, and he will represent the state and be recognized at NWTF’s 30th annual Convention and Sport Show February 23-26 in Nashville, Tennesee. Each year NWTF presents the awards to acknowledge top officers such as Clevenger across North America. Clevenger and the other state winners are eligible for NWTF’s National Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award, which will be announced during the Nashville show.
According to DNR Major Jerry Jenkins, Officer Clevenger, who is stationed in Hampshire County, works tirelessly to apprehend wildlife law violators and continually works on new ways to bust poachers. In addition to enforcing game laws, Clevenger works patiently with future hunters to teach them ethics and sportsmanship as well as proper firearms safety and survival as parts of the Hunter Education classes.
“Officer Clevenger is truly dedicated to the protection of the wild turkey resource,” said Jenkins. “He has performed numerous patrols attempting to apprehend pre-season turkey poachers. Officer Clevenger has been extremely instrumental in establishing a decoy program using different styles of turkey decoys. He assisted in building a turkey gobbler decoy with struts and gobbles. He has, with the help of other officers, assembled a ‘flock’ of both movable and stationary decoys, which has led to more than 20 arrests of turkey poachers. He also is active in the NWTF and plays a lead role in the JAKES program in Hampshire County, and is to be commended.”
The West Virginia State Chapter NWTF is one of the state’s largest and most active sportsmen’s organizations. Its primary goal is to support and promote the sound management and use of the state’s wild turkey resource. The NWTF is also committed to delivering conservation education and outdoor skills training to women and children throughout the country.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed voluntary guidelines and a regulatory definition designed to help landowners and others understand how they can help ensure that bald eagles continue to be protected consistent with existing law. The Service also reopened the public comment period on its original 1999 proposal to remove the bald eagle from the Federal list of threatened and endangered species, in order to solicit current information regarding bald eagle populations and trends and to give the public time to comment on the proposed delisting in light of the draft voluntary guidelines.
“The recovery of the bald eagle, our national symbol, is also a great national success story,” said H. Dale Hall, Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “The actions we take today reemphasize the management efforts that have proven so successful in recovering eagle populations. Should the eagle be delisted, we expect that the public will notice little change in how eagles are managed and protected.”
Hall noted that when they are delisted from the Endangered Species Act, bald eagles will continue to be protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act . Both acts protect bald eagles by prohibiting killing, selling or otherwise harming eagles, their nests or eggs.
The draft voluntary National Bald Eagle Management Guidelines are not Federal regulations. They are intended to provide information for people who engage in recreation or land use activities on how to avoid impacts to eagles prohibited by these two Federal laws. The guidelines are crafted to reflect the current way that Federal and State managers interpret BGEPA and MBTA. For example, the guidelines recommend buffers around nests when conducting activities that are likely to disturb bald eagles. These areas serve to screen nesting eagles from noise and visual distractions caused by human activities.
The Service is also proposing a regulation to clarify the term “disturb” under BGEPA that is consistent with existing Federal and State interpretation. Under the clarification, “disturb” would be defined as actions that disrupt the breeding, feeding or sheltering practices of an eagle, causing injury, death or nest abandonment. This is the standard the Service has used informally over the years and how states have interpreted the statute. The proposed regulation defining “disturb” would codify it. This definition will provide clarity to the public while continuing protection for bald eagles, which will help ensure an almost seamless transition from ESA listing to delisting.
The bald eagle once ranged throughout every state in the Union except Hawaii. By 1963, only 417 nesting pairs were found in the lower 48. Since the delisting proposal in 1999, recovery of the bald eagle has continued to progress at an impressive rate. In 2000, the last year a national bald eagle census was conducted, there were an estimated 6471 nesting pairs of bald eagles.
Today this number has risen to an estimated 7,066 nesting pairs, due to recovery efforts by the Service, other federal agencies, tribes, state and local governments, conservation organizations, universities, corporations and thousands of individual Americans. Five regional recovery plans were created for the bald eagle. The delisting criteria for all five plans were met or exceeded by the year 2000.
If the bald eagle is delisted, the Service will work with state wildlife agencies to monitor the status of the species for a minimum of five years, as required by the Endangered Species Act. A draft monitoring plan is expected to be released for public comment should the species be delisted. If at any time it becomes evident that the bald eagle again needs the Act’s protection, the Service will propose to relist the species.
The bald eagle first gained federal protection in 1940, when Congress passed the predecessor to the Bald Eagle Protection Act. The Act, which was later amended to include golden eagles, increased public awareness of the bald eagle. Soon after, populations stabilized or increased in most areas of the country. However, declines in its numbers during later decades caused the bald eagle to be protected in 1967 under the Federal law preceding the current Endangered Species Act.
The legal protections given the species, along with a crucial decision by the Environmental Protection Agency to ban the use of the pesticide DDT in 1972, provided the springboard for the Service and its partners to accelerate the pace of recovery through captive breeding programs, reintroduction, law enforcement efforts, protection of habitat around nest sites during the breeding season and land purchase and preservation.
The success of these efforts resulted in the recovery of the species to the point that in 1995 its listing status was changed from endangered to threatened in most states in the continental U.S. — with the exception of Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and Wisconsin, where it was always designated as threatened. The species was never listed as threatened or endangered in Alaska.
The Service’s re-opening of the public comment period on the proposed delisting, the draft National Bald Eagle Management Guidelines and the proposed definition of term “disturb” will be published in the Federal Register.
Comments on the proposed delisting, draft National Bald Eagle Management Guidelines and draft definition of the term “disturb” must be received by May 17, 2006.
Comments on the proposed delisting should be sent to Michelle Morgan, Chief, Branch of Recovery and Delisting, Endangered Species Program, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Headquarters Office, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 420, Arlington, Virginia 22203. Comments on the proposed delisting may also be transmitted electronically at .
Comments on the draft National Bald Eagle Management Guidelines should be sent to Brian Millsap, Chief, Division of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MBSP-4107, Arlington, Virginia 22203. Comments on the draft guidelines may also be transmitted electronically at .
Comments on the draft definition of the term “disturb” should be sent to Brian Millsap at the above address. Comments on the definition of “disturb” may also be transmitted electronically at .
Alternatively, comments on any of the above three documents may also be transmitted electronically at the Federal eRulemaking Portal: . Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.