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New Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge Video Garners Two Prestigious Film Awards

DVD cover of the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge — Home of the Great Kodiak Bear. Credit: USFWS
DVD cover of the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge — Home of the Great Kodiak Bear. Credit: USFWS

August 27, 2008
Produced by the Service's National Conservation Training Center and the staff at Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge, this beautifully photographed video follows the bears as they travel through the seasons. The video, Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge—Home of the Great Kodiak Bearrecently received an Award of Excellence at the 14th Annual Communicators Award and a Silver at the 29th Annual Telly Awards.The video is available for purchase through a cooperative agreement with Alaska Geographic.

West Virginia Northern Flying Squirrel has Recovered, Glides Off Endangered Species List

West Virgina Northern flying squirrel. Credit: US Army Corps of Enginers
West Virgina Northern flying squirrel. Credit: US Army Corps of Enginers

August 25, 2008
Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne announced today that the West Virginia northern flying squirrel has recovered from the brink of extinction and will be removed from Endangered Species Act protection. The species' rebound can be attributed to a combination of conservation efforts and regeneration of the flying squirrel's forest habitat.

Endangered Species Chief and Oregon Rancher Walk a Mile in Each Other’s Boots

Ranch Manager Stacy Davies (L) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Assistant Director of Endangered Species, Bryan Arroyo on Roaring Springs Ranch in Frenchglen, Oregon. Credit: (c) Roberta Guarino
Ranch Manager Stacy Davies (L) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Assistant Director of Endangered Species, Bryan Arroyo on Roaring Springs Ranch in Frenchglen, Oregon. Credit: (c) Roberta Guarino

August 21, 2008
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Assistant Director for Endangered Species, Bryan Arroyo and Stacy Davies, manager of the Roaring Springs Ranch in Frenchglen, Oregon, recently traded jobs for a week as part of the “Walk a Mile in My Boots” exchange program. This innovative program was established in 2003 between the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the National Cattlemen’s Foundation to give Service employees and ranchers a better understanding of and mutual appreciation for each other's roles and responsibilities.

Service Grants Aid Imperiled International Wildlife

Participants in a workshop on the importance of Caribbean wetlands learn to identify birds on the island of Carriacou. Credit: Lisa Sorrenson - Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds
Participants in a workshop on the importance of Caribbean wetlands learn to identify birds on the island of Carriacou. Credit: Lisa Sorrenson - Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds

August 19, 2008
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is awarding more than $337,681 in international conservation grants under the Marine Turtle Conservation Fund to aid recovery of endangered sea turtles in six countries and provide training for natural resource managers in Latin America and the Caribbean.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Seeks Comment on Eagle Permit Assessment

Golden Eagle. Credit: Tom Smylie/USFWS
Golden Eagle. Credit: Tom Smylie/USFWS

August 14, 2008
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today published a draft environmental assessment of a proposed permit program designed to allow issuance of permits under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. The permits would authorize otherwise prohibited effects of activities that may disturb eagles, require nest removal, or otherwise result in the death of or injury to a bird. A future permit structure would enable the Service to reduce the risk to eagles since it would allow biologists to work with permit applicants to reduce potential threats.

Florida Orchid Dealer Pleads Guilty in Smuggling Operation

Orchids are protected under international treaty and Phillippine law. Credit: Eric Guinther under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Orchids are protected under international treaty and Phillippine law. Credit: Eric Guinther under the GNU Free Documentation License.

August 13, 2008
A Fort Lauderdale orchid dealer has pleaded guilty to illegally importing over 1,400 orchid plants from the Phillippines. A joint investigation conducted by the Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement showed that the plants were falsely identified as artificially propagated, when in fact they had been unlawfully collected from the wild.

Liberal Season on Tap for Upcoming Late Waterfowl Season

Pair of wood ducks. Credit Dave Menke
Pair of wood ducks. Credit Dave Menke

August 1, 2008
In three flyways, the Service Regulations Committee recommends closing the canvasback season due to low populations and restricting scaup harvest due to long-term population declines. Given increasing wood duck populations, the Atlantic and Mississippi Flyways would get an extra wood duck in the daily bag limit.

Waterfowl Population Status Report for 2008 Now Available

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Video Transcript

August 1, 2008
The 2008 Waterfowl Population Status Report is now available. This report incorporates information first presented in the previously released preliminary report “Trends in Duck Breeding Populations, 1955-2008.” In addition, the Waterfowl Population Status Report includes information received subsequent to the release of the Trend Report, including reports on summer habitat conditions and goose and swan population status.

Waterfowl Population Status, 2008 PDF

Because of concern expressed over the large change in the canvasback population estimate from 2007 to 2008, the Service has recently evaluated survey data and analytical procedures for canvasbacks. This review has led the Service to conclude that the 2008 canvasback estimate is as reliable as past years’ estimates. A summary of this assessment is available: Summary: Evaluation of canvasback population estimates. PDF

 

New Report Shows 2007 – 2008 Waterfowl Harvest

Waterfowl hunting at Horicon National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: USFWS
Waterfowl hunting at Horicon National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: USFWS

July 31, 2008
More than 14.5 million ducks were harvested in the United States during the 2007-2008 waterfowl hunting season, according to preliminary estimates by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This is up from 13.8 million ducks harvested the previous season. Hunters harvested almost 3.7 million geese, similar to the 2006-7 estimate. These figures come from a report called Migratory bird hunting activity and harvest during the 2007 and 2008 hunting seasons.

Service Announces New Tool for Endangered Species Conservation

Golden-cheeked warbler. Credit: Steve Maslowski/USFWS

July 31, 2008
The Service has developed the final guidance for an innovative new tool designed to help federal agencies conserve imperiled species on non-federal lands. The Recovery Crediting System will give federal agencies greater flexibility to offset impacts to threatened and endangered species caused by their actions by undertaking conservation efforts on non-federal lands, with the requirement that there is a net benefit to recovery of the species impacted.

Our home page archived features page is temporarily offline due to maintenance upgrading. If you wish to inquire on previous stories, contact malcomb_barsella@fws.gov.
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Principles and Priorities

breakCover of the Eddies: Reflections on Fisheries Conservation Summer 2008
Eddies: Reflections on Fisheries Conservation Summer 2008break
Cover of Endangered Species 2008 Summer Bulletin.

Cover of Endangered Species 2008 Summer Bulletin.
breakGreg Neudecker, Senator Baucus (MT), and Lance Keuster (R6 PFW coordinator) at the awards ceremony. Credit: Margot Conrad, Partnership for Public Service
USFWS biologist Greg Neudecker wins 2008 Service to America Science and Environment Medal.
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Polar Bear Information break2008-2009
Federal Duck Stamp
2008-2009 Federal Duck Stamp
The 2008 Federal Duck Stamp Art Contest will take place Oct. 17 and 18 in Bloomington, Minn..
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Bats with white-nose syndrome. Credit: USFWS
White-nose syndrome
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Cover of Fish and Wildlife News (With Active Web Links.) Credit: Robert Buchanan, Polar Bears International
Cover of Fish and Wildlife News
Winter 2008 Edition.
(With Active Web Links). Credit: USFWS
Take A Tour of America's National Wildlife Refuges America's Wildest Places DVD collage - Volumes 1-3 Volumes 1, 2 and 3 of the “America’s Wildest Places” DVD collection can be ordered for $6 apiece, or in sets of three for $18 (Cost covers replication and handling).
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An overview of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
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Last updated: August 27, 2008
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