Recovery Champions are U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service staff and their partners whose work is advancing the recovery of endangered and threatened species of plants and animals in the United States.
Region 1
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
The Willamette Valley Prairie Restoration Team
Steve Smith
Jarod Jebousek
Chris Seal
Jock Beall
Nate Richardson
Mikki Collins
Kate Norman
Jeff Dillon
Cat Brown
Rollie White
Collaborating on landscape-level conservation, this group has engaged partners in restoring the Willamette Valley, a biologically rich ecosystem where development pressures continue and the majority of property is privately owned. After using GIS technology to design the plan and identify critical areas to connect wetlands, upland prairies, and oak savannas, the team has protected core populations of the listed species and returned thousands of acres of habitat to their original condition. Along with cultivating native forbs and expanding seed collections to ensure genetic diversity, the team has doubled the Fender's blue butterfly population, discovered new populations of the species, and documented the fact that the golden painbrush bloomed in the valley for the first time in years. These achievements reflect the participation of stakeholders, including private landowners.
Region 2
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Dr. John Morgart (In Memoriam)
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
A leader in conserving endangered species in the Southwest, Dr. John Morgart served as the recovery coordinator for the Sonoran pronghorn and the Mexican wolf. He took on the mission to save the pronghorn when its population in the United States was on the brink of extinction—declining to 19 animals following a drought of 2001 and 2002. With partners, he created a captive-breeding program that led to 40 pronghorn releases to the wild. Dr. Morgart earned the lasting support of the Arizona Game and Fish Department, the United States Air Force, the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, and the Bureau of Land Management. Following a five-year review of the Mexican wolf, Dr. Morgart established a research team to strengthen the scientific integrity associated with the project. Leading the team, he engaged six federal, state, and tribal partners, and he worked with ranchers on the wolf reintroduction project.
Partner(s)
Audubon Texas
Renown for its stewardship, for decades Audubon Texas has managed a system of rookery islands along the Gulf Coast for waterbirds, including the brown pelican. A leader in documenting the decline of the species along the Texas coast, the organization has played the major role in its recovery there. Audubon's Coastal Sanctuary Program enhanced the breeding success of pelicans by patrolling islands, controlling red imported fire ants, planting woody shrubs and trees, and installing signs to alert people to protect the birds. As a result, the pelicans are now nesting in 11 more islands, and their population is 4000 birds, approaching the number in the state before 1920—a major achievement from 10 nesting pairs in 1976. Audubon Texas's partnerships include one that evolved into a $3.2 million project to address erosion at North Deer Island.
Region 3
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Kraig McPeek
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Working with landowners and public and private organizations, Kraig McPeek created a partnership that has restored 40 oxbows in Iowa streams that are critical habitat of this endangered species—encouraging in terms of its progress toward recovery. Thanks to the coalition Kraig created – with members from the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Natural Resources Conservation Service, The Nature Conservancy, and area conservation groups – the Topeka shiner is now spawning in the clean, cool water on which it depends. Kraig's scientific approach in surveying for the species has inspired Iowa State University to develop a complementary study, building on the momentum. A legacy of his work is the increasing interest in participating in the Landowner Incentive Program, the EQUIP program, and programs using Recovery Act funds to restore oxbows filled with sediments—extending the reach of the initiative to the watershed and expanding its benefits to a range of species.
Partner(s)
Dr. Richard King
Northern Illinois University
The specialist regarding the Lake Erie watersnake, Dr. Richard King has devoted 30 years to studying its behavior, ecology, genetic composition, and population . His early finding of the decline of the watersnake as a result of an extermination campaign was a key factor in generating federal and state listings. Dr. King helped develop the recovery plan including goals to preserve populations, reduce human-caused mortality, and protect habitat, using tools such as conservation easements by private landowners—with guidelines that benefit the watersnake and allow landowners to maintain their shorelines. Partnerships with Ohio Department of Natural Resources, National Park Service, Toledo Zoo, Columbus Zoo, Ohio State University, area residents, and the Great Lakes Fishery Commission have shown that scientific methods and public involvement in a shared mission can make recovery a reality.
Kristin Stanford
Northern Illinois University
The on-site contact for watersnake recovery, Kristin Stanford has lived in the Lake Erie islands community for a decade, promoting understanding and generating partnerships that have resulted in permanently protecting more than 11 miles of shoreline and 300 acres of adjacent habitat. Her enthusiasm for discussing the biology of the watersnake has dispelled myths and engaged residents in stewardship. She has conducted field trips and nature camps for "hands-on" interactions, created a Web site with information including landowner guidelines for management activities, and even participated in the Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs" program. Kristin Stanford worked with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to conserve the watersnake during construction of the Middle Bass Island State Park Marina project through creating hybernaria and implementing a tagging and relocating initiative. Recognizing the watersnake's recovery, the Fish and Wildlife Service is proceeding with a delisting proposal.
Region 4
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
John Fridell
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Mussels, fish, and snails in southeastern aquatic ecosystems are among the most endangered wildlife in the country, as a result of threats including rapid development. Working with the North Carolina Wildlife Resouces Commission and North Carolina State University, John Fridell began a project to breed mussels in captivity and – with the U.S. Forest Service, State biologists and foresters, Quail Unlimited, and the Wild Turkey Federation – created a partnership to ensure that habitat on a landscape level will be available for their release. During a recent drought John acted to address immediate needs and develop a long-term strategy. He rescued mussels from drying streams, espanded holding facilities, and shifted conservatioin priorities to streams that can serve as wild refugia. John's leadership and collaboration created a framework for developing a regional drought response plan. Along with listed species, he is focusing on candidates, working with partners including the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians to help the sicklefin redhorse and green ramshorn snail.
Partner(s)
Plant Ecology Lab
Archbold Biological Station
The Plant Ecology Lab is a Recovery Champion for decades of accomplishments resulting from research to benefit a sand dune ecosystem formed millions of years ago. Establishing a recovery team for the Florida ziziphus, the Lab has coordinated a partnership to create a network of preserves, a challenging goal, given development pressures. Among these partners are the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Division of Forestry, The Nature Conservancy, and Bok Tower Garden. Studying fire ecology and the reproductive biology and genetics of 18 listed Lake Wales Ridge species, the Lab has also monitored their demographics, developed population viability analysis models, analyzed soil preferences, published peer-reviewed papers, prepared five-year status reviews, and provided land managers with science-based recommendations. Applying this scholarship, the Lab has engaged private property owners in protecting the last populations of the Florida ziziphus, implemented a scrub restoration project on 160 acres to remove invasive bahia grass, and reintroduced two other endangered species—Crotalaria avonensis and Diceranda christmanii.
Dr. George Archibald (and staff)
International Crane Foundation
From the time that Dr. George Archibald and Ron Sauey established the Foundation dedicated to the study and preservation of cranes, they generated global partnerships to restore the birds and their ecosystems. The Foundation has played a key role in halting the decline of a species on the brink of extinction and setting it firmly on the road to reccovery. Marking a captive-breeding accomplishment when "Tex" produced a chick, the Foundation followed with the "isolation rearing" method used to release captive cranes into the wild in an introduced flock, including young birds that migrate from Wisconsin to Florida. Now, more than 100 whooping cranes belong to the flock, a tribute to the devotion of all who safeguard the captive flock, train birds for release, monitor nests in the wild, ensure that young cranes avoid predators and roost safely in Florida, work with landowners to conserve the released birds, and provide educational activities. The whooping crane has become a symbol of what vision and innovation can achieve.
Region 5
Jeremy Coleman, Ph.D.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
In the face of massive die-offs of bats hibernating in mines and caves in New York and New England, Dr. Jeremy Coleman became the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's primary contact in a comprehensive approach to finding solutions to an unprecedented series of events that have created national concern. As National White-Nose Syndrome Coordinator, Dr. Coleman helped lead the way in determining the scope of the disease, developing protocols to minimize its spread by people, and facilitating research to identify the causes of mortality and transmission. Along with shaping an overall investigation strategy, he drafted a national response plan, worked with the media to provide updates and information about containment measures, briefed Service and Interior Department managers, and prepared Congressional testimony. Dr. Coleman quickly mastered a range of issues to safeguard our wildlife heritage.
Noelle Rayman
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Arriving at the Cortland Office from the Lower Great Lakes Fisheries Office just after the massive die-off of bats hibernating in mines and caves in New York and New England, Noelle Rayman provided immediate help to address a national concern. Along with tracking all aspects of the investigation, Noelle developed cooperative agreements and contracts, conducted outreach activities, and organized materials for Congressional hearings. She had the lead role in arranging a meeting of the White Nose Syndrome Team of more than 100 participants—taking on responsibilities from locating a site and negotiating terms and arrangements to providing reports of the workgroups. She is organizing another conference.
Noelle's work with a State partner to prepare and post messages for the white-nose syndrome Web site about the need for decontamination at openings of caves and mines has resulted in alerts at 994 sites! She is continuing outreach to update decontamination methods for researchers and cavers.
Partner(s)
Philadelphia District Commander
U. S. Army Corps of Engineers
The Philadelphia District of the Corps of Engineers has proved what section 7 of the Endangered Species Act can accomplish. The District has shown leadership in using its authorities under (a)(1) of the Endangered Species Act to carry out programs to conserve listed species along almost 100 miles of the New Jersey coast while providing storm protection—that is, "nourishing" beaches with sand. Through a programmatic consultation, the Corps is implementing innovative measures. These include requiring towns that receive Federal funds or obtain permits to develop site-specific beach management plans for endangered and threatened species and addressing the indirect effects of beach nourishment – public use – by ensuring that piping plover stewards abate the impacts.
Corps staff members now approach their Fish and Wildlife Service counterparts with comments such as "I have a great idea for a restoration project for piping plovers!" A shining example of a result is the Cape May Meadows project area—the number of plovers has tripled.
Region 6
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Lee Bender
David Paddock
Jason Palmer
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Thanks to a program to breed the Wyoming toad in captivity and reintroduce it into its historic range, one of the most endangered amphibians in the country is on the road to recovery. In this initiative Lee Bender, David Paddock, and Jason Palmer have worked with partners in a captive propagation project and released 100,000 Wyoming toadlets since 1994 at three sites in Albany County—Mortenson Lake National Wildlife Refuge and two Safe Harbor Agreement properties. Partners include the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Wyoming Species Survival Program, the Wyoming Toad Recovery Team, and private landowners. This partnership has engaged zookeepers, biologists, and veterinarians in refining husbandry and hibernation techniques to improve health and breeding success of the toad and to design bioscience environments for holding, displaying, and propagation purposes. The Saratoga National Fish Hatchery became the first hatchery to breed endangered amphibians.
Partner(s)
Dr. JoGayle Howard
Smithsonian Institution
National Zoological Park
Thanks to success in pioneering captive-propagation techniques, Dr. JoGayle Howard has produced 160 black-footed ferret kits released into their historic range in Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Kansas, New Mexico, and Mexico, offering real hope for this endangered species. Dr. Howard and her colleagues at the National Zoo have played a leading role in developing protocols for breeding rare carnivores such as the clouded leopard, cheetah, and black-footed ferret, using cryopreservation to demonstrate how genome research banks can contribute to conservation. In 2009, the importance of this technique was illustrated when Dr. Howard produced black-footed ferret young using frozen semen collected in the 1980s, further minimizing the loss of genetic diversity of the captive population.
Dr. Howard initiated a multi-disciplinary program to conduct a biomedical survey of black-footed ferrets in the wild, assessing health, disease, reproduction, immunology, and genetics of the reintroduced population in the North American grasslands ecosystem.
Region 7
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Douglas Burn
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Thanks to success in pioneering captive-propagation techniques, Dr. JoGayle Howard has produced 160 black-footed ferret kits released into their historic As the Sea Otter Program Lead in the Fish and Wildlife Service's Region 7 Marine Mammals Management Office, Douglas Burn plays a key role in recovering this species. Doug wrote the proposed and final rules to list the southwest Alaska distinct population segment of the northern sea otter and designate critical habitat. The Fish and Wildlife Service liaison for the sea otter recovery team, he worked with team members to develop the draft recovery plan. Doug's initiatives in coordinating and conducting research, including aerial and boat-driven population surveys, habitat evaluation studies, and projects investigating disease prevalence and prey availability, have enhanced our understanding of the species. Working with the Fish and Wildlife Field Office to ensure that sea otter recovery needs are incorporated into section 7 consultations for proposed projects, he also coordinates closely with stakeholders, including Federal and State agencies, Native Alaskan organizations, local communities, and non-governmental organizations in conserving the species.
Partner(s)
Debbie Nigro
U.S. Bureau of Land Management
An active member of the Eider Recovery Team, Debbie Nigro has provided tremendous support for recovery of the spectacled eider and Steller's eider on Alaska's North Slope. Debbie has leveraged BLM funds for high priority eider recovery actions when few Service operational funds were available, accounting for hundreds of thousands of dollars through the years. The outreach and education program in North Slope villages could not have prospered without her dedication, increasing knowledge of listed eider species in area communities. The Barrow Triangle aerial survey for Steller's eiders, providing important information about the distribution of birds in remote areas during the breeding season, also continues only because of her work. Debbie has also been generous with her time, expertise and assistance during field studies, never hesitating to help Fish and Wildlife Service biologists and other researchers in conserving eider populations.
Region 8
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Chris Nagano
David Kelly
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Acting to address a steeply declining population of the Lange's metalmark butterfly in the last ten years, Chris Nagano and David Kelly assembled a team to breed the species in captivity, reintroduce it into its historic range, and restore its habitat—starting at Antioch Dunes National Wildlife Refuge. Engaging the Urban Wildlands Institute as a specialist in captive propagation, Chris and David and the Refuge staff implemented a program to prevent fires, control grazing, release the butterfly, and conduct surveys to monitor its status. Reaching out to Pacific Gas and Electric Company, they helped develop a Safe Harbor Agreement connecting Refuge lands with private-sector properties.
The first year showed results: the population of Lange's metalmark butterflies increased from 158 in 2006 to 207 in 2007. Surveys in 2008 were even better, with a total population of 367! Although the species still faces uncertainties, including variations in climate, progress is clear—and the partnership that Chris and David established remains dedicated.
Partner(s)
Dr. Richard Zembal
Orange County Water District
The "heart and soul" of initiatives to save this endangered species in its coastal wetlands, Dr. Richard Zembal has brought together a range of partners including the U. S. Navy, California Department of Fish and Game, and the Unified Port of San Diego. Founder of the Light-footed Clapper Rail Study and Management Team, Dr. Zembal has engaged two major zoological institutions – the San Diego Zoo and SeaWorld Adventure Park – to help maintain the health, demographic variability, and genetic endowment of the species.
Along with breeding more than 250 of the birds in captivity and releasing them into the wild, Dr. Zembal's team has conducted wetland-by-wetland monitoring that has guided habitat restoration, predator management, and population enhancement by managers who implement conservation actions based on the high-quality data that his team has developed. The number of light-footed clapper rails has steaily increased from 163 pairs range wide in 1989 to a record of 443 pairs in 2007, a tribute to his leadership.
Headquarters
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Rox Rogers
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The partnerships that Rox Rogers has created to conserve the bull trout have achieved results in an international watershed, now a stronghold for the threatened species in northwest Montana. Rox developed a comprehensive restoration plan to meet the needs of the bull trout and the economic objectives of individual landowners. She brought together Federal and State agencies and organizations such as the Friends of Grave Creek, a landowner-based watershed group, and the Kootenai River network, a non-profit group working across boundaries with Idaho and British Columbia to recover native fish.
Along with restoring areas for the fish to spawn and rear its young, partners have removed barriers to reconnect 50 miles of habitat, screened irrigation ditches to prevent entrainment, and restored more than five miles of areas. Private landowners are practicing grazing management to benefit the species. Bull trout have responded—improving their numbers throughout the watershed and exceeding the population goal in Grave Creek.
Partner(s)
Sandy Parker
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
Oren Dorris
The Houston Zoo
Terry Rossignol
Dr. Mike Morrow
Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge
Hannah Bailey (Not pictured)
The Houston Zoo
Joe Dow (Not pictured)
Dow Pipe and Fence Supply Company
On a quiet piece of Texas coastal prairie, one of the most endangered species in North America, is taking meaningful steps away from the brink of extinction, thanks to a public-private partnership to breed the Attwater's prairie-chicken in captivity and reintroduce it into its historic range. In 2005, with funding and material provided by Joe Dow, owner of Dow Fence and Pipe Company, and labor provided by NASA and Houston Zoo volunteers, the Houston Zoo's breeding facility at Johnson Space Center became a reality. In 2009, the facility hatched 112 eggs and, as a result, 57 Attwater's prairie-chickens found homes at three sites—two Safe Harbor properties and the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge. In December 2009, reaffirming their dedication, partners broke ground to double the size of the building and increase the number of birds in the wild, now estimated at 90!
