Page 1 - SDWF Out of Doors

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JAN
FEB
MARCH
APRIL
Affiliated with the National Wildlife Federation VOLUME 63, NUMBER 1
Inside this issue: FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AWARDS
Page 2
President Column $23 MILLION FOR PRAIRIE POTHOLE REGION
Page 3 Announcement is welcome news for South Dakota duck hunters
ExEcutivE DirEctor column BY: JOSHUA HAIAR - MARCH 21, 2023 3:59 PM
WElcomE to mEgan HoWEll
The federal government plans to spend $23 million to restore
2023 lEgislaturE rEcap and conserve grasslands and wetlands in the Prairie Pothole
Page 4 Region, which is known as the “duck factory” of North America

2022 consErvationist of tHE and is home to migratory birds, fish and other wildlife.
YEar aWarD The money is part of the Department of the Interior’s $120
Page 5 million in funding from the Inflation Reduction Act to restore

Black Hills forEst aDDs ecosystems nationwide.
“These projects will increase the resiliency of habitats and
239 acrEs
infrastructure to withstand severe and unanticipated weather
lEgislator of tHE YEar aWarD events, furthering our work to restore America’s natural
Page 6 infrastructure through nature-based solutions,” Interior

cHris HEsla mEmorial Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement.
DonatEs to tHE YoutH The Prairie Pothole Region is an area of wetlands that extends
consErvation camp across parts of South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota,
sDWf annual convEntion Iowa, Nebraska and Montana, as well as Canada. A South Dakota duck hunter walks through the tall grass along a
savE tHE DatE The region was covered by a thick sheet of ice over 10,000 wetland with his dog. (Josh Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)
Page 7 years ago. As the ice receded, it left behind depressions in who manages conservation programs for Ducks Unlimited’s
the land that filled with water, forming numerous “pothole” South Dakota chapter. “It’s going to impact all of North America’s
sDWf communication aWarD wetlands. waterfowl.”
YoutH consErvation camp The money will help with a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service effort Toay said the widespread draining of small wetlands is
Page 8 to restore and conserve native grasslands and wetlands on especially harmful to waterfowl populations, because many
over 350,000 acres of existing Waterfowl Production Areas. ducks are territorial breeders.
rEcovEring amErica’s Those are protected wetlands or grasslands managed by
WilDlifE act the Fish and Wildlife Service to support waterfowl and other “Ten 1-acre wetlands will create three times as many ducks as
sDWf calls for a pausE on one 10-acre wetland,” Toay said. And while farmers may see an
WatErfoWl proposal WHilE wildlife species – ideally located in breeding or nesting areas, opportunity to increase yields by draining a temporary wetland,
gfp collEcts Data from or migratory stopover sites for waterfowl. The areas are “Those temporary, seasonal basins are the most productive
rEsiDEnt HuntErs open to the public for hunting, wildlife observation, and other during the breeding season.”
outdoor recreation, but they are managed with an emphasis
on wildlife conservation. Toay said people who are not interested in ducks should still
“The projects will build upon critically important breeding areas want to see their habitats conserved. Wetlands also provide
cleaner water, carbon sequestration to fight climate change,
for waterfowl, grassland birds, pollinators, and threatened and flood control and greater biodiversity.
endangered species,” said Deborah Kornblut, a spokesperson
with the Fish and Wildlife Service, in an emailed statement. Rocco Murano, a senior waterfowl biologist for the South Dakota
Officials involved are “still identifying project specifics and Department of Game, Fish and Parks, recently briefed the
Game, Fish and Parks Commission on the state’s waterfowl. He
project leads,” Kornblut added. Some of the existing ways the said the number of resident duck hunters has fallen from about
Fish and Wildlife Service works to restore the Prairie Pothole 25,000 to 11,000
Region is through planting native grasses, wildflowers and since the late 1990s.
wetland vegetation, as well as conducting controlled burns The department
and restoring natural water flows.
Barcoded Flats Waterfowl and water quality That decline impacts
is unsure what is
driving the trend.
The announcement is welcome news for many duck hunters.
for
funding
the
According to Ducks Unlimited, a waterfowl conservation
conservation efforts
group, the Prairie Pothole Region is the most important and
threatened waterfowl habitat on the continent. The group
license fees and the
says many of the potholes in the region have been drained in the state, because
to plant more crops, dried out from drought or degraded by taxes on hunting,
pollutants. fishing and shooting
“If we lose those wetlands and grasslands, it’s not just going gear go back into
wildlife conservation
to impact South Dakota and North Dakota,” said Bruce Toay,
efforts.
(Courtesy of Ducks Unlimited)