Live bald eagle, peregrine falcon to be featured
Live birds of prey -- including a bald eagle, peregrine falcon, and red-tailed hawk -- activities for children, and door prizes highlight an open house hosted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the National Wildlife Refuge System. The open house takes place at the agencys Bloomington Indiana Field Office, 620 South Walker Street, on Saturday, March 1, 2003, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
A highlight of the Bloomington open house is "C-52," a live bald eagle from the Department of Natural Resources Patoka Lake Visitor Center. Patoka Lake Naturalist Maria Abel-Crecelius will provide information on the eagle and the species status in Indiana at 2:30 during the open house.
Also on hand will be biologists, law enforcement, and refuge staff providing a wide variety of information on Service programs in Indiana, including national wildlife refuges, endangered species, habitat restoration on private lands, and native fishes.
Other topics include information on the impacts to endangered species of the recently approved I-69 extension and effects of PCBs in the Bloomington area on native fish and wildlife.
Open house visitors will also get an up-close look at a red-tailed hawk and peregrine falcon provided by Indiana falconer Brian Kiefer. Kiefer will provide information and answer questions about these majestic birds of prey.
Door prizes, a Kids Corner for children, and a wealth of information about Indianas national wildlife refuge and the National Wildlife Refuge System Centennial round out the activities at the open house.
Begun by Theodore Roosevelt in 1903 with the dedication of Floridas Pelican as a refuge for migratory birds, the National Wildlife Refuge System now encompasses more than 540 refuges, in all 50 states, and covers more than 95 million acres. There are three national wildlife refuges in Indiana: Muscatatuck, Big Oaks, and Patoka River, all located in the southern portion of the state.
For more information on the open house, contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Bloomington Field Office at 812-334-4261.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
For further information about programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, visit our website at http://midwest.fws.gov
