Marc Puckett, chair of the National Bobwhite Technical Committee and Virginia's quail coordinator, updated the committee on Virginia's quail initiative at the organization's annual meeting in Roanoke, VA in July 2013. The video of his presentation can be seen on our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksrrtcRzdwA&feature=share&list=UUwsptd3Yi61PGE2TXNiFnYQ
5. This is our second quail plan…
Which should tell you something about the momentum
of the first
We did learn some lessons – number 1 is, if you do not
have the support of your Board for the long haul, you are
sunk.
Every effort has to be made to let those who want to see
a quail plan know there are no quick fixes.
Initial momentum may be about charisma, excitement,
etc. – but long term success is more about guts and
perseverance.
5
6. Baking a layer cake…
1) The base, or foundation for long term success – 5
jointly funded positions – focus on quail full time
2) Increased and targeted cost-share – BMPs and
WHIP / EQIP in 6 target counties – some statewide
3) QMAP – something for everyone, Quail Quilts
and Quail Recovery Teams
7. What the QRI is NOT…
Will not restore quail statewide
Not a cash cow for landowners
Does not mean DGIF staff show up on your
farm, trap predators, create habitat, etc.
Not a quick fix…none exist
It will not invoke a miracle…will take sustained
effort
8. What the QRI is…
Restore quail across 6 focus areas (15 counties)
Increases technical assistance and cost-share
program delivery
An effort to target cost-share funds and habitat
Demonstrate county scale population effects
Builds interest, networking, importance
Is a flywheel that will require a lot of inertia in the
beginning…in hopes a breakthrough is achieved at
some point 8 to 10 years down the road
9. 9
5 Private Lands Wildlife Biologists
Has been a very good partnership between DGIF,
NRCS and CMI
Greatly reduces administrative burden for DGIF and
landowners
These 5 biologists are the “heart and soul” of the
entire QRI…their attention is solely focused on
habitat development
Dramatically increases liaison between partners
10.
11. 5 Private Lands Wildlife Biologists
Major accomplishments
Fiscal year Site visits New
contacts
Managem
ent plans
Outreach
sessions
Managed
acres
Total farm
acres
2010 251 235 104 47 1,168 21,080
2011 540 406 270 160 5,354 81,972
2012 429 397 295 276 5,145 32,955
2013 412 164 300 257 ? 41,160
Total 1632 1202 969 770 11,667 (?) 177,167
11
12. VDGIF funded Wildlife BMPs
2010 – 566 acres and $128,962.00
2011 – 782 acres and $219,139.00
2012 – 270 acres and $54,793.00
Approximately 1600 acres and $402,894.00
And there are $88,773.00 worth of projects
carried over to 2013 for a grand total of
$491,667.00 plus all new sign-up to come this
spring.
12
13. Cooperative Conservation
Partnership Initiative
Special grant through NRCS and the WHIP program
Allowed targeting of the special WHIP funds specific to
the 6 initial quail focus counties
Has brought in $256,000.00 in NRCS funds to support the
quail plan
Funded 23 projects for an average of $11,130.00 per
project, or an average cost of $73.00 per acre
Has funded a total of 3572 acres
Combined CCPI and VDGIF BMPs approximately
$820,000.00 in habitat acres on the ground
13
14. 14
Layer 3 – The Quail Management
Assistance Program - QMAP
QMAP serves landowners statewide regardless of
participation in government cost-share
278 landowners enrolled (67,732 acres 16% managed)
Each year we have added more new applicants than
during the previous year, this year we topped 100 new
applicants
They all get a certificate of appreciation, a management
packet and enrollment on our list serve
Big part of QMAP is our list serve (maintained by CMI for
free)
16. 16
Outreach, outreach and more outreach
Virginia Quail Council listserv – 100 contacts
QMAP – listserv – all enrolled landowners on it
Website updated
Articles in Virginia Wildlife, QU Magazine and Covey Rise
Articles in Richmond Times Dispatch, Federicksburg Star,
Roanoke Times and others
Mass mailing on cost-share to 20,000 landowners in 15
target counties – have done 4 separate mailings
Have been on Virginia public TV and radio, and on RFD-
TV nationally
17. 17
Large Scale DVD outreach.
DVD – “Answering the Call: Virginia’s Quail Recovery
Initiative”
Designed to appeal to landowners who are “on the
fence” in deciding to participate
Highlights successes of real landowners
Uses an emotional appeal “quail don’t need help 10
years from now, they need it now, and here is YOUR
chance to be involved in conservation.”
2500 made, over 2000 distributed so far
18. 18
Co-Coordinator hired…research and
monitoring (Jay Howell)
Monitoring / tracking is critical to detecting and
reporting success (Model Focus Areas)
Maintain long term surveys, too.
Research is key to identifying new opportunities
Liaison to the songbird community...new survey
protocols help monitor species in addition to quail
Non-game partnerships will be critical to landscape level
success
Other research ongoing / planned
19. National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative
By having a strong national presence, it helps states
maintain momentum
NBCI serves a key role which I think is to unite 25 state
agencies, key NGOs, other partners under one umbrella
It is only really 3 years old with staffing
Building momentum, but finding stable funding is a huge
key
NBCI is a state initiative – your directors told us to do this
and they comprise the NBCI Management Board – so
ultimately NBCI’s success depends on their leadership
19
20. Quail Quilts
Within target counties, places where clusters of projects
start to develop
Key in on those, and further target outreach
Looking for 1500 acres of habitat within a 6000 acres
area (about 10 square miles) (called Model Focus Areas
by NBCI)
This is 25% useable habitat within that context
Then plan intense monitoring to document successes
Only 2 or 3 developing so far
Need a public lands focus and help!!
20
24. 24
Recognizing and promoting success
Landowner signage has been developed
Success articles in VW and other newsletters
Success stories on National Bobwhite Technical
Committee webpage
Field tours of farms where success has occurred
Wildlife conservation awards through SWCDs (some
already occurring and have for years)
Statewide recognition of wildlife conservationists is
needed badly
25. So why is maintaining momentum so
challenging???
Personal / individual “leader” momentum
Core team momentum
Within agency momentum
Public / landowner momentum
Partner momentum
National momentum
25
26. Why are so many quail biologists
bald and gray?
26
27. Short term funding to fix long term
problems
“Fits and starts” as Steve Capel aptly described it
High turn over among short term funded staff
Time demands for hiring and training new staff can be
draining
Please read the paper I made a copy for all of you (“The
Gassett Doctrine”) I will call it – from Quail 7
Why don’t upland game and non game birds (wildlife)
have the equivalent of what has been done for
waterfowl?
Until we fix the funding problem…
27
28. Over abundance versus under
abundance
Back in the good old days – everyone was focused on
under abundance – everyone was focused on making
more critters and habitat
In this era – ½ to 2/3 of many agencies’ biologist staff are
focused on addressing over abundance
And many focused on under abundance focus on T&E
species
So not only have agencies suffered losses in total
staffing, they have taken on new missions that demand a
high portion of remaining staff
28
30. Lines in the sand - polarization
You say either “some use of Pen-raised quail is OK” – or
“NOT AT ALL” “NEVER!”
You say to landowners “well – sorry you don’t have 1500
to 2000 acres so there is nothing you can do for quail.”
You say “use of translocated quail that may not be
genetically the same as local populations is
unacceptable.”
You take the approach that habitat management is the
only real solution, that there is no place for predator
control, supplemental feeding, and use of parent-reared
chicks (I term TTRS Birds).
30
31. Most important – never give up,
what we do is important
Dr. Ralph Stanley – in his mid 80s – still touring
Won a Grammy in 2002 – in his mid 70s “for best
male vocalist”
Awarded honorary Doctorate of Music from Lincoln
Memorial University, in Tennessee
Awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2006
Wrote book “Man of Constant Sorrow” with guest
writer Eddie dean
31