Grants for Habitat and Wildlife Management

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and local water conservation districts work together to provide technical assistance to provide Texas landowners to help conserve, improve, and develop their soil, water, plant, wildlife and related resources. There are several financial assistance programs available through the NRCS that can help you develop a wetland and offer wetland management incentives.

The Texas Prairie Wetlands Program is administered and funded by the USDA-NRSC, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, US Fish and Wildlife Service, and Ducks Unlimited. Cost-share assistance (75 to 100%) is available to restore, improve, and create wetlands on private lands for waterfowl management. A 10 to 15 year wetland management plan and written agreement is developed jointly and is carried out by the landowner. NRCS and Ducks Unlimited write the management plan, survey, and design any need water control or earthen structures. The landowner agrees to follow the management plan (Wetland Development Agreement) for the life of the contract. Continue reading Grants for Habitat and Wildlife Management

Federal Grants for Wildlife Management

Texas will take part in a nationwide celebration of the 10th anniversary of the State and Wildlife Grants (SWG) program during the week of September 4 through 12. Over the past 10 years, the federal funding source has provided more than $30 million in Texas for a wide array of efforts to help fish and wildlife habitat management, including non-game species.

Throughout the nation the grant program has provided stable federal funding totaling more than $573 million since 2000 to state agencies such as Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, which has received about $3 million a year for Texas conservation, which has been put to work on various fish and wildlife management projects across the state. Continue reading Federal Grants for Wildlife Management

Mourning Dove Diseases: Trichomoniasis

Trichonomiasis is a Mourning Dove Disease

There are many diseases that can plague both mourning and white-winged doves in the United States. And some of these mourning dove diseases and white-winged dove illnesses can cause problems for local and migrating dove populations. Avian trichomoniasis, a naturally-occurring parasite, is the likely cause of minor dove die-offs observed recently in the Central Flyway.

“It’s a fairly common occurrence, but folks should be aware of it,” said Corey Mason, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) dove program leader. Trichomonas gallinae is a single cell protozoan common in nature that circulates within bird populations, impacting many different bird species including mourning and white-winged doves. In fact, trichomoniasis is considered by many avian disease specialists to be the most important disease of doves in North America. Outbreaks at bird feeding stations and similar locations reported to the National Wildlife Health Center have occurred from coast-to-coast within the USA. Continue reading Mourning Dove Diseases: Trichomoniasis