The Outdoor Scene

Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.  ~Chinese Proverb

As much as I embrace learning, rest assured I won’t be studying at the Humane Society University.
According to a U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance press release, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) plans to educate the next generation of anti-hunting, animal rights activists now that it has received “a license as a higher education degree-granting institution by the District of Columbia Education Licensure Commission.”

The Humane Society University plans to offer on-site and Internet courses including those devoted to advocacy.  A potential activist can become a “Certified Advocacy Management Specialist” by completing five courses that focus on research and planning, influencing corporate behavior, message development, becoming a citizen lobbyist and building a grassroots movement.

While I know there are educational opportunities for those entering wildlife and fisheries professions, will there be advocacy training for our nation’s hunters, anglers, trappers and target shooters?

I learned something else last week. While I didn’t expect to hear back about how peregrine falcon restoration was funded, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) took me up on my request for information and responded back to me two days after my blog was posted. Getting the answers took a fair amount of digging, according to the agency’s media relations senior editor.

First, FWC’s 2009 Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration dollars (from excise taxes on firearms and ammunition) combined with 2008/2009 hunting license and permit revenue totals $14.7 million or 4.5 percent of the total agency budget. While that doesn’t sound like a lot, if someone suggested the agency cut their budget by that amount, it would likely cause concern.

However, it’s not perfectly clear whether or not Wildlife Restoration money was part of the mix when it came to peregrine restoration. Nongame Wildlife Trust Funds, which come from fees for previously owned vehicles titled in Florida for the first time and a portion of speeding fines, also might have been used. The agency can confirm peregrine restoration dollars came mainly from Section. 6 funds, which are federal tax dollars appropriated through the endangered species act. Bradley J. Gruver, Ph.D., of the FWC’s Species Conservation Planning Section has this to say:

“It really is not as simple as a particular source being the primary source of funds for the recovery.  The peregrine was added to the federal endangered species list in 1970 (under the Endangered Species Conservation Act, the predecessor to the 1973 Endangered Species Act [ESA]) and removed from the ESA in 1999.  Over those 29 years, many things funded from many sources contributed to the peregrine’s recovery.  Probably the single most important thing in the peregrine’s recovery was the banning of DDT by the federal Environmental Protection Agency in 1972 under authority granted by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act.  I don’t believe it would be possible to credit any one particular source for such an act.

“Other contributors to the peregrine’s recovery were protection and enhancement of habitat, minimizing disturbance and mortality, monitoring contaminants (DDT), and reintroducing captive-bred birds to the wild.  Many states use Section 6 funds and Pittman-Robertson (PR) funds to protect and/or enhance habitats for a wide variety of species, including listed and unlisted species.  It is very likely that Section 6 and PR projects helped peregrines, but I cannot specifically identify either funding source as the source for peregrine recovery.

“It is very likely that Section 6 funds were used for projects that minimized or investigated peregrine disturbance, mortality, and contaminant monitoring because during the ‘70s and ‘80s, for many states, Section 6 funds were a major source, probably the most important source, of funding for work on listed species, including the peregrine.

“Reintroducing captive-reared peregrines was primarily an effort of the USFWS, some states, and private or private-public partners, including The Peregrine Fund, Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group, and the Midwestern Peregrine Restoration Project.  It is likely that some Section 6 funds were used for this, but it is also possible that some PR was used as well.  It is likely that the majority of the funding came from the private partners and their memberships.”

So while Brian Millsap of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said “I don’t think this is one where the sportsmen can claim much credit, outside of the falconers who donated their birds to start up the captive propagation programs,” it does look like taxpayers should get a pat on the back. And I still contend we take every opportunity to shine the line on what sportsmen and women have contributed, when and where it’s appropriate.

On a completely different note, women can look forward to a new online resource from the National Wild Turkey Federation. In addition to a 16-page section devoted to women’s interests in each issue of the bi-monthly publication, “Turkey Country,” NWTF announced on its Web site they are in the early stages of ramping up their Women in the Outdoors Web site. NWTF invites you to provide your opinions of what you want from www.womenintheoutdoors.org. 

Also announced at the site, more resources for event coordinators and outreach volunteers are on the way in 2010. Plus, soon NWTF will no longer require a membership as part of the registration fee for participants who are already NWTF/Women in the Outdoors members.

I invite you to follow my updates on Facebook at facebook.com/tammy.sapp2 and Twitter @TammyDianeSapp.

Last Thursday, I received a news release from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) celebrating the fact the peregrine falcon was delisted as an endangered species in that state. As a hunter and wildlife enthusiast, I was pleased to hear the news and settled in to read the particulars.

However, after reading the article, I was dismayed to find when it came to the thanking part, only “wildlife managers and individuals” were recognized for their efforts. No specific mention of the role hunters, and target shooters for that matter, have played to help fund conservation efforts through hunting license sales and the excise taxes they pay on firearms and ammunition.

Known as the Pittman-Robertson Act when it was enacted in 1938, it was designed to fund wildlife conservation at a time this country’s wildlife populations were in danger of disappearing forever. In was an excise tax sportsmen and women not only tolerated, they requested it. Today called the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, it is considered a user-pay, user-benefit program. However, the notion of user benefit is a misnomer because everyone, whether you’re a hiker, paddler or wildlife watcher, benefits from the funding provided by sportsmen and women on behalf of wildlife.

In the conservation community, the rallying cry has been we’ve got to tell our fellow Americans that it’s hunters who helped restore America’s wildlife, and they continue those conservation efforts today. So, I was concerned when I saw a news release touting a restoration success story but not mentioning how hunters and target shooters contributed. So I immediately emailed Patricia Behnke, who sent me the press release, to ask her why this was so. After all, it was a great opportunity to preach beyond the choir because news such as this was likely to get picked up by the mainstream media.

A couple hours later she responded:

“I received your question about the individuals who helped with the conservation of the peregrine. The key players were conservation organizations and especially falconers who assisted in the rearing and release of captive bred peregrines.  I hope that helps clarify.”

Well, it helped a little. If falconers were involved, then sportsmen did assist with the effort as falconers are after all, hunters and as such, must purchase a permit. But it still didn’t answer my question. So, I wrote her back to inquire whether or not the agency, which is partially funded by hunters, had any role in the peregrine’s recovery other than issuing the press release. I also left a voicemail after becoming curious about what percentage of the agency is supported by hunting license and Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration dollars and how the FWC’s peregrine falcon management plan leader is funded.

After not hearing back Thursday or Friday, I called the agency’s media relations senior editor on Monday who explained a three-day commission meeting had preoccupied the media staff. Fair enough. I understand the challenges of a big meeting like that. So I resubmitted my question. As of Tuesday at 5 p.m., I still had not received any additional information.

While I don’t think the agency omitted the role of sportsmen and women on purpose, the end result is the same - a possible missed opportunity to tell those who don’t hunt about how we have footed the bill to restore populations of white-tailed deer, elk, antelope, wood ducks, wild turkeys and even “non game” critters such as bald eagles and peregrine falcons.

In all fairness, I am sure the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is not the only agency to have neglected to recognize hunters and target shooters in their press releases. And there may be more to it than that. It could be peregrine restoration is handled from an earmarked source of funds unrelated to license or Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration monies. If that’s the case, I hope to receive more information. However, when possible, I hope agencies, conservation organizations and outdoor communicators take every opportunity to make it known how sportsmen and women helped save wildlife.

To read the release yourself, visit:

http://myfwc.com/NEWSROOM/09/statewide/News_09_X_PeregrineFinal.htm