Journal of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies

The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) Outdoor Education Program offers several species-specific youth educational hunting workshops designed to offer youth continuing skill sets needed to successfully go afield and engage in successful hunting endeavors. In 2004, the Outdoor Education Program designed a template for these youth hunting workshops enabling staff and volunteers a simple plan to follow for planning and managing youth hunting workshops. DGIF youth educational hunting workshops promote: youth the opportunity to develop and hone skills related to hunting; ethics relating to the principles of fair chase, and stewardship; habitat, ecology, and game biology education; marksmanship and range safety; and game laws review and an opportunity to meet and question a Virginia game warden.

Safari Club International Foundation (SCIF) offers a Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Workshop at four sites around the country during the summers. School teachers and other interested adult educators seeking outdoor education skills and techniques can attend one of six eight-day workshops at the American Wilderness Leadership School (AWLS) at the West site near Jackson, Wyoming. Additional sites are also used on an annual basis for five- and eight-day workshops at the Maine Conservation School, Bryant Pond, Maine; Springbrook Conservation Center, Guthrie Center, Iowa; and Laurentian Environmental Center, Britt, Minnesota. Graduate credit is available as an option at all AWLS sites. This presentation focused on the Jackson, Wyoming, location. A course outline, tentative summer 2007 schedule, and program brochure were available to all participants in this session. Sample curriculum resources will also be available for review.

Virginia was the 29th state to offer the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) to students in elementary, middle, and high schools. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries conducted its first training of Level I and Level II trainers in August 2005. Embracing NASP and conducting the educational training of the program provided an opportunity for trainers and school educators to be certified to instruct archery programs to youth in the schools. NASP provides training for educators in Olympic-style archery and promotes safety with standardized curriculum that is congruent with Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs). NASP promotes: youth the opportunity to develop archery skills; an opportunity to develop archery skills; learning of lifelong leisure skills in a structured setting; an avenue for youth to increase skills individually as opposed to team sports; and an opportunity for after-school programs.

Antler restrictions, intended to protect younger, male white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) from harvest and increase harvest of older bucks, are prevalent throughout the Southeast. Mississippi's statewide regulation, initiated in 1995, protects bucks with less than four antler points. We quantified the regulation's effects on age composition, harvest rate, and antler size by analyzing harvest data collected prior to (1991-1994) and after (1997-2001) the regulation was initiated on 22 public areas encompassing 240,000 ha. Relative composition of harvest shifted (P<0.001) from 59% 1.5-year males prior to the regulation to 83% 2.5- and ≥ 3.5-year males 3-8 years later, primarily due to a reduction in harvest of 1.5-year males. Harvest rate of 2.5-year males did not change and there was only a small increase (P<0.05) in harvest of ≥3.5-year males. Total harvest decreased (P< 0.01) from 3.1 to 1.8 males per 405 ha.

Loss of pine-grassland communities has contributed to declines in populations of northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus; hereafter, bobwhite) and red-cockaded woodpeckers (Picoides borealis; RCW). However, evolving land management priorities on publicly-owned lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) increasingly emphasize restoration of historic cover conditions and habitat for endangered species such as the RCW. These land use changes should benefit pine-grassland species, including bobwhite, but effects are not well understood. Therefore, we monitored abundance and distribution of breeding bobwhites on the Homochitto National Forest of southwestern Mississippi during 1994-1999. We quantified abundance of breeding bobwhites using call counts in three landscapes that differed in extent of land under management for RCWs (low = 7.5%, intermediate = 46.7%, and high = 66.2%). Bobwhite abundance was closely tied to intensity of management.

Changes in land use that reduce habitat availability and quality for northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) are primarily responsible for a significant bobwhite population decline in the Southeast. Establishment of densely stocked pine plantations (Pinus spp.) on agricultural lands, encouraged by federal assistance programs of the 1980s, likely adversely affected northern bobwhite. To understand how bobwhite habitat my be improved on such land, we examined habitat selection by northern bobwhite (N = 61) during 1997-2000 in the Upper Coastal Plain of Georgia in a forest- and agriculture-dominated landscape. Selection of habitats (l = 0.35, P ≤ 0.001) indicated northern bobwhite preferred early-successional habitats within the study area. Northern bobwhite preferred open canopy planted pine and fallow field habitats over closed canopy planted pine and agricultural areas.

The declining bobwhite populations evident throughout the Southeast are cause for concern. Whereas habitat loss and/or intensified agriculture have been implicated as two potential causal mechanisms for these declines, few studies have directly compared bobwhite demographics between agricultural and managed bobwhite plantation landscapes. Therefore, we monitored northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus; hereafter, bobwhite) via radiotransmitters (N = 472) on a center-pivot irrigated agricul-tural landscape (N = 154) and an adjacent, intensively-managed bobwhite plantation (N = 318) to evaluate differences in home range, habitat use, survival, and nest survival between these two landscapes. Winter covey home ranges were larger during fall-winter 1998-99 on the agriculture site (P < 0.001). Coveys on the agricultural landscape used young planted pines (Pinus spp.) greater than expected (P < 0.05) during both years.

Conservation buffer practices implemented under U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Bill programs offer opportunities for enhancing breeding season habitat for farmland birds. Recently, CP33 (Habitat Buffers for Upland Birds) was added as a new continuous Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) practice designed to address habitat goals for northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) under the Northern Bobwhite Conservation Initiative. However, it is presumed that this practice will also benefit other birds. To evaluate potential benefits of CP33 field borders for farmland birds, we established a total of 89.0 km of experimental field borders (6.1-m wide) along agriculture field edges on three 405-ha farms in Clay and Lowndes counties, Mississippi. We used 200-m x 20-m strip transects to measure abundance and diversity of birds inhabiting bordered and non-bordered field edges.

Morning covey call counts are popular for estimating fall abundance of northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus). However, veracity of the technique's abundance estimates are questionable with numerous assumptions inherent to the technique. Therefore, we used captive bobwhites to test ability of three groups of observers to plot calling bobwhite locations on an aerial photo. We found no difference (P < 0.05) between observer groups when plotting calling bobwhites from within a grid cell. Accuracy was generally poor (x¯ = 75.0 m, SE = 10.9) regardless of where in the grid cell the calling bird was located. We also compared accuracy in plotting captive birds and recorded calls and found that recorded calls can be used as a substitute for captive bobwhites when testing observer groups. However, there are potential sources of error including time of day and possibility of observer group accuracy changing as number of attempts to plot coveys increases during the day.

In the southeastern United States, food plots are often used to compensate for annual fluctuations in forage quantity and quality. We evaluated forage production, seasonal use by white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and seasonal crude protein levels of MaxQ fescue (Festuca arundinacea), Regal ladino white clover (Trifolium repens), and Durana white clover (T. repens) planted alone or in combination. We planted two 1-ha food plots in the Coastal Plain, Piedmont, and Blue Ridge physiographic regions of Georgia in November 2002. We measured forage production (kg/ha) and use every 30 (±3) days over one year. MaxQ fescue had greatest amount of standing crop across regions throughout most of the study period. Forage production and standing crops of Durana and Regal were similar throughout the study except during the second spring in the Coastal Plain, when Durana had greater standing crops than Regal.

Although chronic wasting disease (CWD) has not been documented in any samples (N = 2,447) collected in North Carolina, the potential biological, economical, and sociological implications associated with this disease are significant. Discovery of CWD in Wisconsin prompted the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) to implement a preventative disease management strategy in May 2002. Revisions to administrative rules pertaining to captive cervids were implemented, including testing, tagging, and inspection requirements. A short-term buyout program was established to compensate individuals voluntarily relinquishing their cervid herd and captivity license to NCWRC. Minimizing occurrence of illegally-held cervids was also a goal. Monitoring and surveillance of CWD were expanded for free-ranging whitetailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), including a statewide, systematic sampling of hunter- and road-killed deer and free-ranging deer located around captive cervid facilities.

Eastern wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) are an important recreational resource throughout their range. Previous research has shown that intensively managed pine forests can sustain huntable populations of eastern wild turkeys. However, little research has examined patterns of spatial use of turkeys within these systems. An expected increase in acreage of intensively managed pine forests over the next half century requires a basic understanding of wild turkey ecology in these systems. Therefore, we used a long-term (1986-1993) data set to estimate annual and seasonal home range size of female eastern wild turkeys from a landscape dominated by intensively managed pine forests in east-central Mississippi. Mean seasonal home range size was 406 ha ± 20 ha (mean ± SE; N = 268). Home ranges were larger during fall-winter (524 ± 43.5 ha) than preincubation (326 ± 23.2 ha) and summer (392 ± 32.5 ha).

Importance of invertebrates to growth and development of eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) poults has been well documented. However, few studies have investigated direct invertebrate use by poults, specifically in relation to alternative forest management regimes. Therefore, we measured invertebrate selection by turkey poults in thinned, mid-rotation loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) plantations, treated with factorial combinations of prescribed burning and a selective herbicide, in east-central Mississippi in 2000 and 2001. Using suction sampling and humanimprinted turkey poults, we quantified invertebrate use by poults relative to availability. Turkey poults exhibited heterogeneous use of invertebrate Orders among broods across all treatments and years of study (P < 0.001). Additionally, poults did not select invertebrates relative to availability across all treatments and years of study (P < 0.001).

Significant losses to bottomland hardwood forests have occurred throughout the southeastern United States, and considerable efforts are ongoing to restore bottomlands. Understanding ecology of wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) in these systems will become increasingly important as distribution and availability of these forests continues to change through time. Although considerable research has examined space and habitat use of wild turkeys in upland forests, information is lacking for bottomland hardwood systems. We captured and radiomarked 32 female wild turkeys in a bottomland hardwood forest in south-central Louisiana. We used radiotelemetry to estimate patterns of space use and habitat selection during 2002-2004. Space use was greatest during preincubation when females typically search for suitable nest sites and was least during brood-rearing.

Survival of female wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) influences turkey productivity. Although patterns of survival and productivity have been extensively researched in most forested landscapes, little information is available for female turkeys in bottomland hardwood systems, although importance of these systems is widely recognized. Therefore, we captured and radiomarked 39 female wild turkeys in a bottomland hardwood forest in south-central Louisiana during 2001-2004. Mean annual survival was 0.67. Survival was greatest during preincubation (1.00) potentially because of increased habitat sampling and movement during this period. Fall-winter survival was high (0.93), likely attributable to stable foraging resources and a lack of illegal and legal harvest during this period. Lowest survival occurred during incubation (0.75) and brood-rearing (0.83), primarily as a result of increased risks of predation associated with nesting and brood rearing.

We studied ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) drumming behavior in the southern Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. We conducted drumming counts from late March through mid-April 2002-2004. Concurrent with drumming counts, radio-tagged males (N = 30) were monitored to determine proportion of males drumming. Drumming activity increased from late March (20% of males drumming) to a peak in mid-April (56%-69% of males drumming). Consistent drumming coincided with mean nest initiation date by females (12 April, N = 44). Drumming count results were related to fall trapping success on the study area. Drumming counts appear to be an effective tool to monitor grouse population trends in the southern Appalachians. In our area, we recommend planning drumming counts during the peak drumming period of 9-16 April. Key words: Appalachians, Bonasa umbellus, drumming, North Carolina, population index, ruffed grouse.

Populations of giant Canada geese (Branta canadensis maxima) have been established in most of the lower 48 United States. However, establishment and spread of these populations has led to an increasing number of human-goose conflicts. Knowing the pattern of dispersal of these populations may be useful to wildlife managers interested in minimizing nuisance problems. Consequently, we analyzed band recovery data from six Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs) of four midwestern states to determine if there was a common pattern of dispersal among these populations. We used negative binomial regression to test a series of models that included age at recovery, gender, number of years after initial population established, recovery year, and banding location (BCR) to explain dispersal distance. Mean dispersal distances were <100 km for all BCRs. We did not detect a consistent pattern of dispersal followed by giant Canada geese from different BCRs.

Rice seeds escaping collection by combines during harvest (hereafter, waste rice) provide quality forage for migrating and wintering waterfowl in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV) and other rice growing regions in the United States. Recent sample surveys across the MAV have revealed abundance of waste rice in fields declined an average of 71% between harvest and late autumn. Thus, we evaluated the ability of common post-harvest, field-management practices to conserve waste rice for waterfowl until early winter via controlled experiments in Mississippi rice test plots in 2001 and 2003 and analyses of data from MAV-wide surveys of waste rice in rice production fields in 2000-2002. Our experiments indicated test plots with burned rice stubble that were not flooded during autumn contained more waste rice than other treatments in 2001 (P≤0.10). Waste-rice abundance in test plots did not differ among postharvest treatments in 2003 (P = 0.97).

License revenues are a substantial component of budgets for state natural resource agencies. Therefore it is important to retain license-paying residents and attract non-residents to maintain a revenue base. We addressed the problem of adjusting hunting and fishing licenses administered by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP). MDWFP provided data revealing total agency revenues generated approximately 40% of its annual budget. In 2004, license revenues alone generated U.S. $14.7 million, 22% of the $68 million annual budget. MDWFP intends to maintain or improve upon this despite stagnating funding from federal and state sources. We recommended increasing certain resident licenses by amounts of $2 to $20 to achieve this goal. If our recommendations are followed and average sales continue, hunting and fishing license revenues are projected to be approximately $16.3 million in fiscal year 2006, accounting for 26% of the projected $64 million budget.

Hardwood bottomland restoration is an expanding conservation practice in the southeastern United States. Understanding relative flood tolerance of bottomland seedlings is important to restoration success. Thus, we related height and diameter of Quercus phellos, Q. nuttallii, and Q. lyrata to elevation gradient in a 6-ha west Tennessee bottomland. We planted 3,771 seedlings from January-March 2004 in a randomized design such that all species had spatial representation across elevation gradients. Seedling height and root-collar diameter were measured in October and November 2004, and related to bottomland elevation using linear regression. Heights of Q. phellos and Q. nuttallii seedlings were positively related with elevation; no linear relationship was apparent for Q. lyrata. Root-collar diameter also positively correlated with elevation for Q. nuttallii. Our results suggest that Q. lyrata seedlings may be most flood tolerant among these species. Managers may consider planting Q.

Working toward fulfilling regional habitat objectives for migratory shorebirds, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) constructed moist soil units on three Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) to specifically be managed for stopover habitat. Units either were converted from agriculture land and fitted with water pumps or constructed at the base of a hill to collect rainwater. The most commonly observed shorebirds using these sites and other available habitat on the WMAs were killdeer (), pectoral sandpiper (Calidris melanotos), and lesser yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes). Managing for shallow water habitat on public lands, particularly during fall migration and/or drought years, is key to ensuring that priority shorebirds arrive on the wintering or breeding grounds in good condition. Recommendations include considerations of spatial placement and topography of shorebird units, control of vegetation, and monitoring protocols.

Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) provides unsuitable vegetative structure for northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus) by out-competing native vegetation, impeding foraging and movement of bobwhite chicks, and increasing heat loads. During 2000-2002, we examined the efficacy of four herbicides (three grass-selective translocated herbicides [GSH]; Clethodim, Fluazifop/Fenoxaprop, and Quizalofop; and one non-selective translocated herbicide: Imazapyr) for bermudagrass control in burned and unburned experiments in a field on River Bend Wildlife Management Area, Laurens County, Georgia. Herbicide treatments reduced bermudagrass cover 30 day, 60 day, and one year post-application (P < 0.05). Imazapyr resulted in complete necrosis of bermudagrass at 30 and 60 days post-application in both burned and unburned experimental plots. The GSH were not as effective, reducing bermudagrass coverage by only 50%-51% and 29%-42% on all plots 30 days and 60 days post-application, respectively.

Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) is a popular recreational sport fish in estuarine environments like the Mobile-Tensaw Delta. However, catch rates of large largemouth bass are often low in these coastal systems. Larger largemouth bass (≥2,268 g) are sometimes thought to move upstream to less saline locations when salinity increases. We combined three approaches to explore movement of adult largemouth bass in relation to salinity and angler displacement: external tagging, acoustic telemetry, and fish releases at tournaments. Movement patterns were more varied at downstream sites than upstream sites. Behaviors of downstream fish included remaining in protected channels near the release location, moving upstream as salinity increased (<2ppt), or moving into the main river channel. Fish upstream generally remained near the release site.

Evaluations were made of management objectives across Tennessee for 25 largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) populations and 7 smallmouth bass (M. dolomieu) populations. Two models were used; one that calculated mortality caps based on target mean lengths and one based on minimum acceptable PSD or RSD. Mortality caps were calculated over a range of target mean lengths and PSD/RSD objectives and results from each model discussed. Both models suggested that current harvest restrictions for most populations were sufficient to protect fish up to at least 25.4 mm beyond current length limits and to maintain size structure balance within desired PSD ranges. Reservoir populations without size limits or low minimum length limits had mortality caps closest to observed total mortality, warranting additional sampling and possibly more stringent harvest restrictions.

The movement and habitat selection of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) was determined in a north-central Florida lake from 18 April 2002 to 1 May 2003 via radio telemetry. The study site was a steep-sided, 7-ha flooded limerock quarry, composed of six conjoined sub-basins. Twelve largemouth bass were internally implanted with radio transmitters (of no more than 18% of the total length of the fish). Limnetic areas were selected over littoral areas during the summer (May through October) and fall/winter (November through January) periods. Only one fish used littoral areas more than limnetic areas during this time. In the spring (February through April), habitat use switched. Sunken trees were the only structural habitat significantly used by largemouth bass (P < 0.05). Other structural habitats (aerators, feeders, fish attractors, and humps and boulders) had neutral preference values. Areas within 5 m of the shoreline were strongly avoided (P < 0.05).

Juvenile largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides; approximately 50 mm total length) were stocked into four ponds (0.9 to 5.3 ha) at a rate of 248 fish ha⁻¹ in late May 2003. Ponds were sampled the following spring to determine population characteristics. Largemouth bass survival ranged from 39% to 57% and appeared to be inversely related to pond size. Growth was rapid, with mean weight increasing from 1.8 g to 200-273 g in 300 days. Faster growing largemouth bass expressed greater relative weights. Catch rates of small (75 to 130 mm) bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) were highly correlated to pond size and bluegill may have reduced largemouth bass survival. Catch rates of large (130 to 150 mm total length) bluegills varied much less among ponds, but ponds with bluegill catch rates ≥100 fish/hour electrofishing were characterized by greater largemouth bass relative weights.

The species largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides is comprised of two subspecies: northern largemouth bass M.s. salmoides and Florida largemouth bass M.s. floridanus. It is uncertain whether largemouth bass is native to the Atlantic slope and New drainages of Virginia. There exists a widely-held perception that Florida largemouth bass or F1 northern x Florida hybrids provide more trophy catches than northern largemouth bass, which has led to widespread stocking of Florida largemouth bass into native northern and intergrade largemouth bass populations. Twenty-four Virginia populations of largemouth bass were screened for the frequencies of allozyme markers diagnostic for the two subspecies. The relative contributions of the Florida subspecies to the respective populations ranged from 0.32 in Occoquan Reservoir to 0.68 in Lake Robertson. No geographic pattern in genetic variation was seen.

We examined relations among creel statistics and stocking rates of channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) in small impoundments. Angling effort directed toward catfish varied from 2 to 790 hours ha⁻¹ and made up between 1% and 62% of the total angling effort. Anglers harvested nearly all of the channel catfish they caught in most impoundments. Harvest of channel catfish varied from 0.4 to 126 fish ha⁻¹ and 0.3 to 74 kg ha⁻¹ and was more closely associated with catfish angling effort than with stocking rate. Harvest rate declined asymptotically with increasing catfish angling effort. Catfish angling effort slightly increased and mean size of harvested channel catfish slightly decreased with increasing stocking rate. Stocking rate had a small influence on creel statistics compared to angling effort. Key words: channel catfish, creel, angler use, stocking

A mail survey was conducted in 2004 to solicit the opinions and attitudes of active resident anglers on the subject of handfishing for catfish in Missouri. Almost 90% of survey respondents had heard of handfishing prior to receiving our survey. However, only about 10% had ever participated in the activity. Anglers were essentially split in their opinions with roughly 33% of anglers in support of, 33% in opposition to, and 34% not having an opinion about allowing handfishing in Missouri. Less than 15% of those surveyed indicated that they would participate in handfishing if legalized in Missouri. However, over 70% of those surveyed that had previously participated in handfishing supported legalizing it in Missouri. Results of this survey indicated that there was not a clear majority for support or opposition to legalizing handfishing in Missouri, and handfishing is an activity that would likely have limited participation if legalized.

Demopolis Reservoir is a short-retention (three-day) mainstream impoundment where sedimentation over the past 50 years has caused separation of some backwater areas and sloughs that were historically connected to the reservoir during normal water level periods. We collected fish with direct-current electrofishing from closed-access backwater (separated from the reservoir unless flood events occur), open-access backwater, and mainstream riverine habitats four times a year over a year and a half to document species richness, diversity, evenness, and relative abundance of all fish and major sport fish. Species richness, represented by more than one individual, was the lowest in closed-access backwater habitats and highest in the open-access habitats. Fish communities were similar, but closed access habitats were more dissimilar from riverine habitats.

Banks Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a 1,640-ha refuge consisting of 405 ha open water (Banks Lake) and 1,235 ha of cypress swamp, marsh, and uplands located in southern Georgia. Fishes from Banks Lake, a system with problematic densities of both indigenous and nonindigenous aquatic vegetation, were collected during eight sampling periods in open water habitats from 1992 through 2003 to evaluate assemblage and sportfish dynamics. Stability and persistence analyses indicated that the fish assemblage was stable and persistent over time, though catch per unit effort of assemblage members was low in most years sampled. The bluegill population appeared stunted and was characterized by low relative weights (Wr) and proportional stock densities (PSD), while the largemouth bass population had low Wr and medium to high PSDs throughout the sample period. Length, weight, and structural indices for these fishes were characteristic of populations in a system with excessive vegetation.

Fisheries managers and anglers are concerned about the effects that increasing over-wintering populations of piscivorous double-crested cormorants Phalacrocorax auritus have on sport fishes across North America. We estimated the mortality of the largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides population due to predation by cormorants on a 2024-ha oxbow lake in southeastern Arkansas. Cormorants consumed an estimated 0.05%-6.20% of the largemouth bass population in 2001. Consumption ranged widely because of the variability associated with our estimates of the number of days per year that cormorants spent on the lake and the instantaneous estimate of number of cormorants feeding on the lake. Potential for competition between cormorants and largemouth bass was examined by determining diet overlap for fall, winter, spring, and all seasons combined. Diet overlap was greater than 60% only in the fall, but cormorant and largemouth bass diets were never significantly correlated.

Juvenile stages of striped bass (Morone saxatilis) depend on estuarine productivity for rapid growth and estuarine habitat diversity for predator protection. The distribution of juvenile striped bass within estuaries may be influenced by salinity. The potential influence of salinity on the suitability of estuaries as nursery areas was investigated in laboratory experiments using four age groups 67- and 91-d post hatch (25 C) and 112- and 133-d (28 C) post hatch of juvenile striped bass reared for 14 days at three different salinities (0, 5, and 10 ppt) representing conditions encountered in different estuarine zones of the Southeastern United States. We examined salinity effects on survival, growth rate, and nutritional condition. Nutritional condition was determined using the liver somatic index (IL), percent carcass lipid, hepatocyte cell size, and liver glycogen content. Survival exceeded 98% in all treatments.

Food habits of redbreast sunfish (Lepomis auritus), smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu), and white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) populations in the Shenandoah River Basin, Virginia, were assessed during 2002 to identify dietary pathways and patterns potentially affecting mercury uptake. Aquatic insects (71% to 83%) were the principal food item of redbreast sunfish, while smallmouth bass mainly consumed aquatic insects (32% to 48%), crayfish (19% to 31%), and fish (22% to 29%). Principal food items of white sucker included aquatic insects (20% to 26%) and detritus (66% to 70%). Dipterans, ephemeropterans, and trichopterans were the main taxa of aquatic insects consumed by all species. As redbreast sunfish and smallmouth bass increased in size, redbreast sunfish diversified their diet, while smallmouth bass shifted from a diet mainly composed of aquatic insects to one primarily composed of crayfish and fish.

Developing and recommending protective flows for stream fishes requires precise information on how fishes use their habitat. Collections to establish fish-habitat relations are typically conducted during daylight hours, but because of diel habitat shifts exhibited by many warmwater stream fishes, we were concerned that determining protective flows only from day collections would result in recommended flows that were not protective. We tested for diel differences in habitat selection by stream fishes and evaluated the effects of these differences on simulated usable habitat area as flows varied. Logistic regression modeling and habitat-selection analyses for five fish species showed substantial differences between day and night habitat relations.

Since the late 1980s, range-wide bird conservation plans have been developed for a wide range of species and habitats. These plans provide a basis for setting population and habitat objectives, as well as identify assumptions that require further research and monitoring. Generally, bird conservation plans share four common components: a vision to sustain a high relative abundance, the development of specific population estimates and objectives, the development of habitat objectives within ecoregions, known as Bird Conservation Regions, and the acknowledgement of partnerships for conservation delivery at local and regional scales. The North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) was formed in 2000 to provide a forum for discussion and action among wildlife administrators charged with implementing bird conservation plans. Currently, high priority actions for the U.S.

The State Wildlife Grant program resulted from efforts to adequately fund wildlife diversity conservation by State and Territorial Wildlife Agencies through the Conservation and Reinvestment Act. From 2001 to 2005, State Wildlife Grants provided funding for programs for a broad array of wildlife species that were not eligible under other funding initiatives. It has also created a strong partnership between state, federal, and non-governmental agencies working toward conservation goals by requiring the development of Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategies in the States and Territories. State Wildlife Grants are one of the mechanisms that can contribute to conservation of birds and other wildlife species in the Southeast. Key words: conservation, funding, strategy, wildlife, grants, birds

We present a framework for using Landtype Associations (LTAs), or subdivisions of ecological subsections, to develop integrated conservation strategies for priority bird and other taxa of conservation concern in the Central Hardwoods Bird Conservation Region, using the Missouri Ozarks as a prototype. We profile LTAs amenable to the conservation of species in grassland, shrub-savanna, woodland-forest and wetland landscapes, provide examples of priority species associated with each, suggest conservation strategies at biologically appropriate spatial scales, and evaluate conservation opportunities and limits based upon current land use characteristics and socioeconomic factors. Key words: Landtype associations, ecological hierarchy, bird conservation, comprehensive wildlife conservation strategies

All-bird conservation, although relatively simple in concept, is extremely challenging at nearly every level when trying to implement. State wildlife agencies are often faced with budget constraints, staffing limitations, or logistical challenges (e.g., access to private lands). The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources has been successful in overcoming many of these challenges through innovative partnerships that have co-funded positions with the Department, provided matching funds for grants, and facilitated large-scale research and habitat management projects for priority species. In addition, the Department's Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy planning effort is helping to prioritize conservation efforts to ensure complete coverage of various bird conservation plans.

The South Atlantic Migratory Bird Initiative (SAMBI) has integrated planning efforts among several major continental bird conservation plans in the United States, seeking common goals and objectives for habitat conservation to sustain, maintain, and increase populations of migratory birds and resident birds which utilize the Atlantic Flyway. One objective common to all these bird conservation plans is the need for surveys and monitoring of bird populations. Inherent to all surveys and monitoring protocols is the requirement of data storage and management. An attempt to address this need resulted in the development of a web-based data storage and management website called the SAMBI Waterfowl and Shorebird Bird Data Page. The website provides remote data entry and region-wide display of waterfowl and shorebird survey data. Currently, waterfowl and shorebird surveys are underway on a network of wildlife management areas and National Wildlife Refuges from Virginia to Florida.

A working group of the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies' Science and Research Committee reviewed the rationale, design, and coordination of bird monitoring during 2004 to focus on the need for integration of information about bird status with budget, policy, and management decisions. “Rationale” promotes understanding of the role of monitoring in effective bird conservation and management, “design” of monitoring focuses on the effective and efficient use of monitoring resources, and “coordination” emphasizes the necessary infrastructure and resources for coordinated monitoring. Science-based management requires explicit objectives, management strategies and corresponding management actions, assessment, and periodic adjustment of management strategies. Distinctions between monitoring for status and trends versus monitoring to evaluate management have, however, become a source of debate among those responsible for bird monitoring.

The first continental bird conservation initiative for North America started under the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) during the mid-1980s. About five years later Partners in Flight (PIF; focused on landbird species) came into being followed by the U.S. and Canada Shorebird Conservation Plans (USSCP and CSCP), the North American Waterbird Conservation Plan (NAWCP), and the Northern Bobwhite Conservation Initiative (NBCI). Soon after the establishment of NAWMP,priority areas for waterfowl conservation were identified for delivering conservation programs, now referred to as Joint Ventures. Soon after PIF was initiated, all of the United States and Canada was divided into Physiographic Areas, loosely based on areas defined by the Breeding Bird Survey. USSCP and NAWCP identified larger planning regions, which were essentially aggregations of previously identified planning units established under PIF.

In 1999, the Management Board of the Atlantic Coast Joint Venture (ACJV) embraced the vision and framework of the then newly emerging North American Bird Conservation Initiative. As a result, the ACJV expanded its objective of conserving waterfowl and wetlands habitat to all native birds and their associated habitats throughout the Atlantic Flyway. To meet this objective, the ACJV launched the South Atlantic Migratory Bird Initiative (SAMBI) in the Southeastern Coastal Plain Bird Conservation Region.

The Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (Strategy) is one component of Florida's Wildlife Legacy Initiative (Initiative), which is a program designed to create a strategic vision for conserving all of Florida's wildlife. The other two main components of the Initiative are partnership development and Florida's State Wildlife Grants Program. The state of Florida has an unprecedented opportunity to shape the future of fish and wildlife conservation efforts. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (Commission) is developing a long-range strategy for managing all wildlife in Florida, including birds, with the aim of averting future declines and keeping common species common. The Strategy will build a foundation for future wildlife conservation that will be solidified by opportunities for funding.

Contemporary wetland managers assigned to modified landscapes are faced with increasing complexity to maintain wetland functions and values and to meet the needs of many taxons. Historically, wetland management was driven by the drought of the 1930s when waterfowl populations were in serious decline. These conditions set the stage for a management dogma rooted in the storage rather than the manipulation of water and a focus on waterfowl. Although the first National Wildlife Refuge was for the protection of waterbirds in Florida, there was a strong focus on protecting and managing waterfowl habitats on breeding areas following the drought. Not only was the emphasis on the breeding grounds and waterfowl, but the focus was often on a single species, a selected life cycle event, or a specified time period. Thus, management often had the goal of maintaining high waterfowl populations continuously.

No paper was submitted with this abstract. Abstract was too long so please refer to pdf. Keywords: Wildlife agency partnerships, public support, funding