U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awards Southeast conservation partners for contributions during FY 2005
Jack Elrod, author/illustrator of the conservation-minded Mark Trail comic strip, was among 17 partners that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service honored today in Atlanta. They were awarded for their outstanding contributions to wildlife and natural resource conservation.
“The people, businesses, government agencies, and conservation organizations we are recognizing here today have each achieved lasting accomplishments that will benefit our natural resources for years to come,” said Sam D. Hamilton, the Service’s Southeast Regional Director, who presented the awards. “We celebrate their efforts and thank them for their continuing support.”
Southeast Regional Director’s Conservation and Humanitarian Awards for Fiscal Year 2005 by state:
Alabama:
Lieutenant Mike Bloxom of Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries in Montgomery participated in a joint federal and state undercover investigation, Operation Snapper, to penetrate the illegal trade in wild freshwater turtles. As part of his duties, he made undercover contacts with turtle fishermen in Alabama, Tennessee, and Florida. Bloxom made purchases of more than 50,000 turtles protected by both state and federal law and he established a rapport with the turtle dealers through the internet and at turtle farms in Louisiana and Florida. His efforts provided evidence against businesses located throughout the Southeast.
M.N. “Corky” Pugh, Director, Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources in Montgomery has been a leader in establishing the East Gulf Coastal Plain Joint Venture on landscape-level migratory bird conservation. He has supported National Wildlife Refuges in Alabama by way of a North Alabama Birding Trail through Wheeler Refuge; invasive species control at Choctaw Refuge; law enforcement assistance at Fern Cave, Sauta Cave, and Key Cave Refuges; biological
assessments, comprehensive conservation planning, non-game wildlife surveys, and coordination of public hunting programs at Wheeler, Mountain Longleaf, Cahaba River, Sauta Cave, Key Cave, and other national wildlife refuges. Pugh has overseen the continuing restoration of bald eagles, black bears, and other species, and he has partnered with the Service in a Statewide “Safe Harbor” agreement for conservation and recovery of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker.
Arkansas:
Gary and Sherri Brandon of Conway donated lands to conserve the threatened Ozark cavefish and endangered gray bat. Through their fee title donation of more than 32 acres to the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, the Brandons are helping to protect the largest population of threatened Ozark cavefish, a maternity population of endangered gray bats, and several other cave-adapted species of concern. In addition, the Brandons agreed to implement the Community Growth Best management Practices for the Cave Springs Cave recharge zone on their subdivision.
Florida:
The Arthur R. Marshall Foundation in Boynton Beach has supported the Arthur
R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge in Boynton Beach through
education, scholarship programs, community awareness, and volunteer
activities. The Foundation has helped restore cypress habitat on the
refuge by organizing several volunteer days and planting more than 10,000
cypress tree seedlings on 10 acres on the refuge. They have also organized
annual cypress seed harvests, using volunteers of all ages to collect
cypress cones from refuge cypresses to ensure native stocks of cypress are
restored. The Foundation also provided $10,000 to fund the Arthur R.
Marshall Hiking Trail near the refuge’s Visitor Center. They planted
native trees and plants along the Trail and constructed an interpretive
kiosk and observation platform.
Dennis Duke, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville, is responsible for
the South Florida environmental restoration program. He is the Program
Manager for Ecosystem Restoration for the Corps. Duke has worked on
restoration projects, such as the Kissimee River, Modified Water Deliveries
to Everglades National Park, and the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration
Plan.
Ding Darling Wildlife Society, Sanibel, received a Regional Director’s
Humanitarian Award for its support of the Southeast Region by collecting
donations from Fish and Wildlife Service employees around the country who
wanted to help colleagues impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. More
than 300 individuals donated a total of more than $30,000. To initiate the
effort, the Ding Darling Wildlife Society donated the first $3,000. Forty
Service employees and their families benefited from the generosity of so
many individuals.
The Florida Wildlife Rehabilitators Association, Melbourne, worked
throughout the Southeast to coordinate assistance to wildlife
rehabilitators and wildlife resources impacted by the 2005 hurricanes. The
Association established a crisis-response hurricane hotline to assist
licensed Florida rehabilitators before and after each storm, and
facilitated the distribution of donated rehabilitation supplies and caging
materials to facilities in need. Association members drove thousands of
miles and donated hundreds of volunteer hours to ensure the safe transfer
of wildlife and to provide emergency care. For example, the Association’s
hotline team mobilized to a pelican rookery south of Tallahassee, rescuing
and transporting some 200 nestling pelicans for emergency care at various
wildlife rehabilitation facilities. In addition, 17 fledgling Mississippi
kites that were displaced and orphaned by hurricane winds were transferred
to a facility specializing in birds of prey. These migratory birds were
later released back to the wild through the teamwork of the wildlife
rehabilitators and State wildlife agencies
Roy T. McBride, biologist and houndsman, Ochopee, Roy and his two sons have
captured more than 142 panthers for the Florida Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Commission and the National Park Service, allowing these
agencies to gather more than 72,000 telemetry points. The invaluable data
from these captured animals has been used to map the boundaries of the
cats’ occupied range and to provide a clearer understanding of panther
demographics, social structure, reproduction, and home range size. The
data was also used in designing the placement of wildlife crossings on U.S.
Interstate 75, eliminating panther road mortality where the crossings were
placed. Information from the captured panthers was used to design a
genetic management plan, the implementation of which has led to a tripling
of panther numbers in the past 10 years.
Thomas Watts-Fitzgerald, Assistant United States Attorney’s Office Southern
District of Florida, Miami As Chief of the Environmental Crimes Section,
Watts-Fitzgerald has been supportive of Fish and Wildlife Service’s effort
to combat wildlife crime, and actually increases its attorney staff
periodically to meet the demand for natural resource protection. In 2005,
he prosecuted and convicted a smuggler for the illegal importation of
undeclared wildlife (39 birds) as well as violations of the Lacey Act and
the False Statements statute. Watts-Fitzgerald also worked with the
Department of Justice, Environmental Crimes Section, in the successful
prosecution of the smuggling and sale of 2,568 kilograms of illegal caviar
worth $7 million. The investigation was the culmination of years of his
work supporting the Service’s efforts to combat the illegal trade in
caviar. He also prosecuted the Service’s investigation “Operation
Bunting,” involving the capture and sale of wild-caught indigo buntings,
painted buntings, blue grosbeaks, and Northern cardinals as well as
smuggling finches from Cuba. To date, there have been nine convictions,
more than $18,300 in fines, $13,000 in restitution, and 114 months of
probation, with more prosecutions to come.
Georgia:
Brookwood Baptist Church, Cumming: Brookwood Baptist Church received a
Regional Director’s Humanitarian Award for their outstanding support in the
Hurricane Katrina and Rita relief efforts launched through the Service’s
Regional Office in Atlanta. Brookwood Baptist Church was one of the first
to respond to the Service’s request for help and consistently continued to
produce care packages, along with monetary donations of personal checks and
gift cards. The care that was taken in preparing these packages made for a
smooth operation when it came to shipping them directly to the areas of
need in Southeast and Southwest Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
The Folkston, Georgia City Council helped establish the Okefenokee
Education and Research Center at the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.
The Center will showcase the entire Okefenokee ecosystem and provide a
25,300-square-foot education and research facility for visitors, students,
and scientists conducting research in southeastern Georgia and northeastern
Florida. The 1994 DuPont Corporation announcement to establish a titanium
strip adjacent to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge prompted advocacy
against the proposed mine. DuPont agreed to support a “No Mine” resolution
for the entire 16,000-acre Trail Ridge tract. A part of this resolution
was an agreement to work with the City of Folkston to establish an
institution to further scientific knowledge of the fragile Okefenokee
ecosystem. The Folkston City Council committed funds and staff to
coordinate the operations of the Center and helped establish it as a
non-profit organization managed by a volunteer board of directors.
Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, opened in November 2005, with more than 100,000
specimens representing 500 species from around the globe. Some exhibits
focus on the species and ecosystems native to Georgia and their stories.
One exhibit presents the robust redhorse sucker and the partnership that
formed to save a species once thought to be on the very brink of
extinction. In the education wing, the Aquarium and the Fish and Wildlife
Service have collaborated to develop two exhibits to tell the Service’s
story. Students learn about the Service’s role in global conservation
through law enforcement and the Conference on the International Trade in
Endangered Species permit process. Another exhibit lets them explore the
habitats of Georgia and the Service’s efforts to protect and conserve many
rare and unusual animals found here, such as mussels, darters and
shorebirds. Throughout the Aquarium are habitat-based exhibits that give
visitors the chance to glimpse natural behaviors of their inhabitants, such
as the territoriality of coral reef fish or the feeding habits of sea
otters.
Jack Elrod has promoted environmental education through his weekly and
Sunday Mark Trail comic strip. The Atlanta resident’s comic strip
publishes weekly and on Sundays in newspapers across the country. He has
also publicized Fish and Wildlife Service programs and field stations such
as the “Take Pride in America” Program; the Federal Duck Stamp Contest,
which he assisted with twice as a judge; the Junior Duck Stamp Contest; the
National Wildlife Refuge System and its centennial; and the Pelican Island
National Wildlife Refuge in Sebastian, Florida.
Sona Chambers, Assistant Director of Development for the National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation, Atlanta, led an effort to raise $700,000 toward
construction of a new $4 million Puerto Rican parrot aviary which is
critical to the recovery of the endangered Puerto Rican parrot. Without
her work and the support of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation,
success would have been more difficult. Chambers continues to raise
additional funds for this critical recovery action and other conservation
projects for this species.
South Carolina:
Huntington Beach State Park, Murrells Inlet, is an oceanfront park along
the north coast. The Park and its associated volunteer organization,
“Friends of Huntington Beach State Park,” have made many contributions to
natural resources management, conservation, and education, because of the
extraordinary efforts by Park staff and volunteers. Here are just a few of
the projects the Park has accomplished. With the South Carolina United
Turtle Enthusiasts, beaches in Georgetown and Horry Counties are patrolled.
With the Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Murrells Inlet
dredging is maintained as a safe haven for numerous rare bird species.
With the Service, the Park has successfully reintroduced the seabeach
amaranth plants from seeds gathered from plants at the Park and cultivated
in greenhouses for transplanting into their native sand dune habitat. With
the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, through the South
Carolina Oyster Restoration and Enhancement program, oyster reef habitat is
being reestablished by replacing recycled oyster shells in the salt marsh
to provide new attachment sites for oyster larvae.
Kenneth Williams, Ducks Unlimited, Incorporated, Charleston, is an expert
in coastal wetland management and restoration in the Southeast. Williams
works with Ducks Unlimited’s Conservation Programs as a regional biologist
based in their South Atlantic Field Office. He has played a major role in
the success of Ducks Unlimited’s Low-country Initiative, a conservation
easement program protecting more than 67,000 acres of important coastal
habitats in South Carolina. Prior to Ducks Unlimited, Williams managed
Kinloch Plantation, a historic rice plantation located in the heart of the
Santee River Delta near Georgetown, South Carolina. At Kinloch Plantation,
he was responsible for the management of almost 6,000 acres of coastal
habitat that included more than 3,000 acres of the most productive and
well-managed brackish tidal wetlands in the United States.
Texas:
The Shell Oil Company’s Shell Marine Habitat Program, Houston, has
obligated approximately $6 million to support 122 projects along the coast
of the Gulf of Mexico. The Program has supported a variety of conservation
efforts which benefit the Fish and Wildlife Service. It has helped recovery
efforts for the endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle on Padre Island, Texas,
home to a majority of the nesting turtles in the United States. In 1996,
only six nests were found; in 2005, a record 51 nests were found, bringing
one of the most endangered species back from the brink of extinction. In
addition, Marine Habitat Program projects have supported habitat
restoration and acquisition; and have educated more than 99,000 people.
More than 160,000 acres of habitat have been restored, and 45,000 acres
have been acquired.
The 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 includes 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 Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of
dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and
wildlife agencies. Visit the Service’s website at
htttp://www.fws.gov/southeast/.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awards Southeast conservation partners for contributions during FY 2005
Jack Elrod, author/illustrator of the conservation-minded Mark Trail comic strip, was among 17 partners that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service honored today in Atlanta. They were awarded for their outstanding contributions to wildlife and natural resource conservation.
“The people, businesses, government agencies, and conservation organizations we are recognizing here today have each achieved lasting accomplishments that will benefit our natural resources for years to come,” said Sam D. Hamilton, the Service’s Southeast Regional Director, who presented the awards. “We celebrate their efforts and thank them for their continuing support.”
Southeast Regional Director’s Conservation and Humanitarian Awards for Fiscal Year 2005 by state:
Alabama:
Lieutenant Mike Bloxom of Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries in Montgomery participated in a joint federal and state undercover investigation, Operation Snapper, to penetrate the illegal trade in wild freshwater turtles. As part of his duties, he made undercover contacts with turtle fishermen in Alabama, Tennessee, and Florida. Bloxom made purchases of more than 50,000 turtles protected by both state and federal law and he established a rapport with the turtle dealers through the internet and at turtle farms in Louisiana and Florida. His efforts provided evidence against businesses located throughout the Southeast.
M.N. “Corky” Pugh, Director, Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources in Montgomery has been a leader in establishing the East Gulf Coastal Plain Joint Venture on landscape-level migratory bird conservation. He has supported National Wildlife Refuges in Alabama by way of a North Alabama Birding Trail through Wheeler Refuge; invasive species control at Choctaw Refuge; law enforcement assistance at Fern Cave, Sauta Cave, and Key Cave Refuges; biological
assessments, comprehensive conservation planning, non-game wildlife surveys, and coordination of public hunting programs at Wheeler, Mountain Longleaf, Cahaba River, Sauta Cave, Key Cave, and other national wildlife refuges. Pugh has overseen the continuing restoration of bald eagles, black bears, and other species, and he has partnered with the Service in a Statewide “Safe Harbor” agreement for conservation and recovery of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker.
Arkansas:
Gary and Sherri Brandon of Conway donated lands to conserve the threatened Ozark cavefish and endangered gray bat. Through their fee title donation of more than 32 acres to the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, the Brandons are helping to protect the largest population of threatened Ozark cavefish, a maternity population of endangered gray bats, and several other cave-adapted species of concern. In addition, the Brandons agreed to implement the Community Growth Best management Practices for the Cave Springs Cave recharge zone on their subdivision.
Florida:
The Arthur R. Marshall Foundation in Boynton Beach has supported the Arthur
R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge in Boynton Beach through
education, scholarship programs, community awareness, and volunteer
activities. The Foundation has helped restore cypress habitat on the
refuge by organizing several volunteer days and planting more than 10,000
cypress tree seedlings on 10 acres on the refuge. They have also organized
annual cypress seed harvests, using volunteers of all ages to collect
cypress cones from refuge cypresses to ensure native stocks of cypress are
restored. The Foundation also provided $10,000 to fund the Arthur R.
Marshall Hiking Trail near the refuge’s Visitor Center. They planted
native trees and plants along the Trail and constructed an interpretive
kiosk and observation platform.
Dennis Duke, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville, is responsible for
the South Florida environmental restoration program. He is the Program
Manager for Ecosystem Restoration for the Corps. Duke has worked on
restoration projects, such as the Kissimee River, Modified Water Deliveries
to Everglades National Park, and the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration
Plan.
Ding Darling Wildlife Society, Sanibel, received a Regional Director’s
Humanitarian Award for its support of the Southeast Region by collecting
donations from Fish and Wildlife Service employees around the country who
wanted to help colleagues impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. More
than 300 individuals donated a total of more than $30,000. To initiate the
effort, the Ding Darling Wildlife Society donated the first $3,000. Forty
Service employees and their families benefited from the generosity of so
many individuals.
The Florida Wildlife Rehabilitators Association, Melbourne, worked
throughout the Southeast to coordinate assistance to wildlife
rehabilitators and wildlife resources impacted by the 2005 hurricanes. The
Association established a crisis-response hurricane hotline to assist
licensed Florida rehabilitators before and after each storm, and
facilitated the distribution of donated rehabilitation supplies and caging
materials to facilities in need. Association members drove thousands of
miles and donated hundreds of volunteer hours to ensure the safe transfer
of wildlife and to provide emergency care. For example, the Association’s
hotline team mobilized to a pelican rookery south of Tallahassee, rescuing
and transporting some 200 nestling pelicans for emergency care at various
wildlife rehabilitation facilities. In addition, 17 fledgling Mississippi
kites that were displaced and orphaned by hurricane winds were transferred
to a facility specializing in birds of prey. These migratory birds were
later released back to the wild through the teamwork of the wildlife
rehabilitators and State wildlife agencies
Roy T. McBride, biologist and houndsman, Ochopee, Roy and his two sons have
captured more than 142 panthers for the Florida Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Commission and the National Park Service, allowing these
agencies to gather more than 72,000 telemetry points. The invaluable data
from these captured animals has been used to map the boundaries of the
cats’ occupied range and to provide a clearer understanding of panther
demographics, social structure, reproduction, and home range size. The
data was also used in designing the placement of wildlife crossings on U.S.
Interstate 75, eliminating panther road mortality where the crossings were
placed. Information from the captured panthers was used to design a
genetic management plan, the implementation of which has led to a tripling
of panther numbers in the past 10 years.
Thomas Watts-Fitzgerald, Assistant United States Attorney’s Office Southern
District of Florida, Miami As Chief of the Environmental Crimes Section,
Watts-Fitzgerald has been supportive of Fish and Wildlife Service’s effort
to combat wildlife crime, and actually increases its attorney staff
periodically to meet the demand for natural resource protection. In 2005,
he prosecuted and convicted a smuggler for the illegal importation of
undeclared wildlife (39 birds) as well as violations of the Lacey Act and
the False Statements statute. Watts-Fitzgerald also worked with the
Department of Justice, Environmental Crimes Section, in the successful
prosecution of the smuggling and sale of 2,568 kilograms of illegal caviar
worth $7 million. The investigation was the culmination of years of his
work supporting the Service’s efforts to combat the illegal trade in
caviar. He also prosecuted the Service’s investigation “Operation
Bunting,” involving the capture and sale of wild-caught indigo buntings,
painted buntings, blue grosbeaks, and Northern cardinals as well as
smuggling finches from Cuba. To date, there have been nine convictions,
more than $18,300 in fines, $13,000 in restitution, and 114 months of
probation, with more prosecutions to come.
Georgia:
Brookwood Baptist Church, Cumming: Brookwood Baptist Church received a
Regional Director’s Humanitarian Award for their outstanding support in the
Hurricane Katrina and Rita relief efforts launched through the Service’s
Regional Office in Atlanta. Brookwood Baptist Church was one of the first
to respond to the Service’s request for help and consistently continued to
produce care packages, along with monetary donations of personal checks and
gift cards. The care that was taken in preparing these packages made for a
smooth operation when it came to shipping them directly to the areas of
need in Southeast and Southwest Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
The Folkston, Georgia City Council helped establish the Okefenokee
Education and Research Center at the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.
The Center will showcase the entire Okefenokee ecosystem and provide a
25,300-square-foot education and research facility for visitors, students,
and scientists conducting research in southeastern Georgia and northeastern
Florida. The 1994 DuPont Corporation announcement to establish a titanium
strip adjacent to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge prompted advocacy
against the proposed mine. DuPont agreed to support a “No Mine” resolution
for the entire 16,000-acre Trail Ridge tract. A part of this resolution
was an agreement to work with the City of Folkston to establish an
institution to further scientific knowledge of the fragile Okefenokee
ecosystem. The Folkston City Council committed funds and staff to
coordinate the operations of the Center and helped establish it as a
non-profit organization managed by a volunteer board of directors.
Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, opened in November 2005, with more than 100,000
specimens representing 500 species from around the globe. Some exhibits
focus on the species and ecosystems native to Georgia and their stories.
One exhibit presents the robust redhorse sucker and the partnership that
formed to save a species once thought to be on the very brink of
extinction. In the education wing, the Aquarium and the Fish and Wildlife
Service have collaborated to develop two exhibits to tell the Service’s
story. Students learn about the Service’s role in global conservation
through law enforcement and the Conference on the International Trade in
Endangered Species permit process. Another exhibit lets them explore the
habitats of Georgia and the Service’s efforts to protect and conserve many
rare and unusual animals found here, such as mussels, darters and
shorebirds. Throughout the Aquarium are habitat-based exhibits that give
visitors the chance to glimpse natural behaviors of their inhabitants, such
as the territoriality of coral reef fish or the feeding habits of sea
otters.
Jack Elrod has promoted environmental education through his weekly and
Sunday Mark Trail comic strip. The Atlanta resident’s comic strip
publishes weekly and on Sundays in newspapers across the country. He has
also publicized Fish and Wildlife Service programs and field stations such
as the “Take Pride in America” Program; the Federal Duck Stamp Contest,
which he assisted with twice as a judge; the Junior Duck Stamp Contest; the
National Wildlife Refuge System and its centennial; and the Pelican Island
National Wildlife Refuge in Sebastian, Florida.
Sona Chambers, Assistant Director of Development for the National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation, Atlanta, led an effort to raise $700,000 toward
construction of a new $4 million Puerto Rican parrot aviary which is
critical to the recovery of the endangered Puerto Rican parrot. Without
her work and the support of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation,
success would have been more difficult. Chambers continues to raise
additional funds for this critical recovery action and other conservation
projects for this species.
South Carolina:
Huntington Beach State Park, Murrells Inlet, is an oceanfront park along
the north coast. The Park and its associated volunteer organization,
“Friends of Huntington Beach State Park,” have made many contributions to
natural resources management, conservation, and education, because of the
extraordinary efforts by Park staff and volunteers. Here are just a few of
the projects the Park has accomplished. With the South Carolina United
Turtle Enthusiasts, beaches in Georgetown and Horry Counties are patrolled.
With the Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Murrells Inlet
dredging is maintained as a safe haven for numerous rare bird species.
With the Service, the Park has successfully reintroduced the seabeach
amaranth plants from seeds gathered from plants at the Park and cultivated
in greenhouses for transplanting into their native sand dune habitat. With
the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, through the South
Carolina Oyster Restoration and Enhancement program, oyster reef habitat is
being reestablished by replacing recycled oyster shells in the salt marsh
to provide new attachment sites for oyster larvae.
Kenneth Williams, Ducks Unlimited, Incorporated, Charleston, is an expert
in coastal wetland management and restoration in the Southeast. Williams
works with Ducks Unlimited’s Conservation Programs as a regional biologist
based in their South Atlantic Field Office. He has played a major role in
the success of Ducks Unlimited’s Low-country Initiative, a conservation
easement program protecting more than 67,000 acres of important coastal
habitats in South Carolina. Prior to Ducks Unlimited, Williams managed
Kinloch Plantation, a historic rice plantation located in the heart of the
Santee River Delta near Georgetown, South Carolina. At Kinloch Plantation,
he was responsible for the management of almost 6,000 acres of coastal
habitat that included more than 3,000 acres of the most productive and
well-managed brackish tidal wetlands in the United States.
Texas:
The Shell Oil Company’s Shell Marine Habitat Program, Houston, has
obligated approximately $6 million to support 122 projects along the coast
of the Gulf of Mexico. The Program has supported a variety of conservation
efforts which benefit the Fish and Wildlife Service. It has helped recovery
efforts for the endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle on Padre Island, Texas,
home to a majority of the nesting turtles in the United States. In 1996,
only six nests were found; in 2005, a record 51 nests were found, bringing
one of the most endangered species back from the brink of extinction. In
addition, Marine Habitat Program projects have supported habitat
restoration and acquisition; and have educated more than 99,000 people.
More than 160,000 acres of habitat have been restored, and 45,000 acres
have been acquired.
The 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 includes 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 Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of
dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and
wildlife agencies. Visit the Service’s website at
htttp://www.fws.gov/southeast/.