The popular Pike River Ruffed Grouse and Woodcock Management Area, south of Dunbar in Marinette County, has been expanded by an additional 500 acres thanks to the cooperation of several organizations interested in increasing opportunities for ruffed grouse and woodcock. The original 1675 acre management area was established in 1988 as a cooperative project between the Marinette County Forestry and Parks Department, the land manager’s of the area, and the Ruffed Grouse Society (RGS). In 2010, the Dunbar Sportsmen’s Club presented a proposal to expand the Pike River area to the west, as the area had additional habitat management potential
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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) and the Avian Power Line Interaction Committee (APLIC) today released their updated state-of-the-art guidance document Reducing Avian Collisions with Power Lines: State of the Art in 2012. This manual, originally published in 1994, identifies best practices and provides specific guidance to help electric utilities and cooperatives, federal power administrations, wildlife agencies and other stakeholders reduce bird collisions with power lines. The Service worked with APLIC, a voluntary partnership among the utility industry, wildlife resource agencies, conservation groups, and manufacturers of avian protection products, to revise the guidance using the most current published science
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Landowners, business partners and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) conservationists were recently honored for their wildlife habitat restoration efforts by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “Each year, we recognize individuals and groups in each of the five wildlife regions based on their habitat management work, community outreach, and recreational opportunities,” said Wildlife Division Director Karen Waldrop. “We would also like to acknowledge three of our partners from the NRCS, who work to ensure that Kentucky’s private lands are managed responsibly for each of us to enjoy,” she continued. “NRCS has proven to be a valuable asset in
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In just four years, America’s top conservationists have enrolled 50 million acres in USDA’s Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), a program that helps farmers, ranchers and forest landowners take conservation to the next level. CSP is aimed at producers who are already established conservation stewards, helping them to deliver multiple conservation benefits on working lands, including improved water and soil quality and enhanced wildlife habitat. “Farmers and ranchers throughout the country are making USDA’s voluntary Conservation Stewardship Program a major force for conservation,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said. “The protection of natural resources through conservation programs such as CSP create outdoor and wildlife
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The American Bird Conservancy has been working to reduce the incidence of bird mortality from window collisions at the Powdermill Avian Research Center. Dr. Christine Sheppard has been at the forefront of this initivatie. Recently the Discovery Channel has taken interest in the project and produced a five-minute video on the work of ABC and the Carneige Museum of Natural History. Take a look at the video here. The collisions story starts at about the 6:45 mark and ends at the 12 minute mark. You can learn more about this innovative project at the Powdermill Avian Research Center website.
The woods around Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina have, since 1986, featured an ever increasing rat-a-tat-tat sound that has nothing to do with weapons qualification training. The sound marks the 28-year recovery of the red cockaded woodpecker, said by some to be the spotted owl of the southeast because of its status on the endangered species list. Critical to the birds’ comeback has been Jeff Walters, the Harold Bailey Professor of Biological Sciences in Virginia Tech’s College of Science. A life-long bird lover, Walters has been working with, among others, the Marines and the U.S. Air Force
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