U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service May/June 2015 | Vol 12, No 3 RefugeUpdate National Wildlife Refuge System www.fws.gov/refuges INSIDE: Youngsters enjoy themselves during a Junior Refuge Ranger program habitat walk at California’s Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. To learn more about the program Service, Partners and other ways refuges are reaching out to welcome visitors, see the Focus section, which is titled “Be Our Guest” and begins on page 6. (Courtesy of Shuck family) Seek to Save Monarch Butterfly Cooperative Recovery Initiative he U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service To Aid Woodpecker, Other Species has launched a campaign aimed T at saving the declining monarch By Susan Morse butterfly. ed-cockaded woodpeckers flout usual woodpecker rules. They feed and nest in The campaign includes three primary live trees, not dead ones. They hang out in groups rather than flying solo. elements: R But these traits haven’t kept their numbers from shrinking as their old-pine • A cooperative agreement habitat has dwindled. This loss of habitat and changes in forest management practices between the Service and the have led to the species’ decline throughout its range. Now, with the help of the U.S. National Wildlife Federation. Fish and Wildlife Service, the birds have a new opportunity for recovery. • A new funding initiative A plan to reintroduce the endangered birds at Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife between the Service and Refuge in Virginia, where they have not been seen since 1974, aims to boost the the National Fish and Wildlife nationwide population. Great Dismal Swamp would be the state’s second population Foundation. and the only one on public land. It would also be the northernmost outpost of the • $2 million in immediate eastern birds, now concentrated largely in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. Service funding for priority The Great Dismal Swamp Refuge project is one of 14 nationwide being funded monarch conservation through the Service’s Cooperative Recovery Initiative (CRI) to help recover projects. threatened or endangered species at or near national wildlife refuges. In addition Monarch butterflies are found across the to the woodpecker, species meant to benefit from this year’s funding of $5.8 million United States. As recently as 1996, there include a Midwest dragonfly, a tiger beetle and a Southeast pitcher plant. Since 2013, continued on pg 19 continued on pg 18 FOCUS: Be Our Guest, pages 6-15 From the Director Building Community Through a Refuge RefugeUpdate n March, Albuquerque Business swoop down on a river and grab a fish Sally Jewell Address editorial First named 30 women from a highly with its talons. Secretary inquiries to: Department of Refuge Update competitive pool of 435 nominees the Interior I But visitor services folks are working U.S. Fish and as this year’s Women of Influence in the tirelessly to find programs that do Dan Ashe Wildlife Service state of New Mexico. The publication was allow young people to connect with Director Mail stop: NWRS looking for women nature, even in the heart of a city like U.S. Fish and 5275 Leesburg Pike who are leaders, Wildlife Service Falls Church, VA Albuquerque. As Owen-White says, “I 22041-3803 innovators, Cynthia Martinez can find nature all around me; you just Phone: 703-358-1858 mentors and role Acting Chief have to know where to look. One of my Fax: 703-358-2517 models. It comes National Wildlife favorite things about my job is helping E-mail: as no surprise that Refuge System others find the great stories in the nature [email protected] Jennifer Owen- Martha Nudel that is all around us.” White, manager Editor in Chief This newsletter is published on recycled of Valle de Oro At Valle de Oro Refuge, one project uses Bill O’Brian paper using soy-based National Wildlife community gardens to help youth really Managing Editor ink. Refuge, was an get their hands dirty. Sometimes, geo- Dan Ashe honoree. caching or other adventures that use C Owen-White the latest technology get people out into is pouring her heart and soul into nature. Valle de Oro, the first urban refuge It’s springtime, so I know many refuges in the Southwest Region. And she is are holding fishing derbies for new building the refuge with the people of anglers or wildflower walks or even Albuquerque. Valle de Oro is “a refuge “spring cleaning” events. That’s on top of established, designed and built by the the normal events that happen at refuges: community for the community, and that is teaching people about so exciting,” she says. the amazing critters Inside That it is! and beautiful places “I often tell people that we share the Video-Editing Tips The people of world with. that it is not my job as Albuquerque are Shooting video at a national wildlife the refuge manager Since I took this job, refuge is one skill; editing video is to build this refuge; defining the shape of I have emphasized another skill altogether. Page 4 it is my job to help Valle de Oro Refuge. that priorities are the community build making the U.S. Fish A Woman in Science its national wildlife and Wildlife Service Jean Richter, a biologist at Roanoke refuge,” she says. relevant in people’s River National Wildlife Refuge, Throughout the National Wildlife Refuge lives and ensuring that all Americans NC, is featured in “Outnumbered: System, our visitor services folks are really see that what we do matters in Portraits of Women in Science.” engaging nearby communities and their lives. We can’t afford to allow Page 5 helping them build their connections to millions of kids to continue growing up nature by answering their concerns and with little understanding of the personal Focus: Be Our Guest meeting their needs. stake they have in healthy wildlife and ecosystems. A world without a In a multitude of ways, national Unless we act, many of today’s children conservation ethic is not a world friendly wildlife refuges are saying will have few opportunities to experience to humanity. “welcome” to traditional visitors and nature. We have become a more diverse, new audiences alike. Pages 6-15 more urban nation, and many kids don’t Fortunately for us, we have a standout get a chance, like I did, to wander fields visitor services crew and people like Around the Refuge System breathing in pristine air, to turn over Jennifer Owen-White, a true Woman of Influence. Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, rocks in creeks and find out what was OH, is offering the Refuge System’s hiding out there, to watch a bird of prey first publicly accessible electric vehicle charging station. Page 16 2 • Refuge Update Kerr Named Refuge Manager of the Year he National Wildlife Refuge Refuge in New Mexico. Association has honored a He was cited for going T Midwestern refuge manager, “above and beyond the a Texas volunteer, and a biologist and call of duty to not only Friends group from the same New ensure the conservation Mexico refuge with 2015 National of sensitive species, but Wildlife Refuge System awards. also to involve the public in conservation efforts.” Tom Kerr received the Paul Kroegel Refuge Manager of the Year Award. In nine years at the refuge, Vradenburg Kerr, manager at St. Croix Wetland has helped improve Management District and Whittlesey the soil quality and the Creek National Wildlife Refuge in water drawdown system Wisconsin, was recognized for his ability both to increase native to connect with the local community. vegetation and control Kerr, who has been with the U.S. Fish invasive species. He was and Wildlife Service since 1989, has honored for his foresight Tom Kerr, manager at St. Croix Wetland Management District and worked closely with the Friends of the in devising a management Whittlesey Creek National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin, received the 2015 Paul Kroegel Refuge Manager of the Year Award. (USFWS) St. Croix Wetland Management District plan for the New Mexico since the group was established in 2010. meadow jumping In addition, he has spearheaded many mouse before it was listed in 2014 as He serves as the volunteer coordinator, other partnerships that encourage endangered, thus positioning the refuge organizes the annual Friends meeting collaboration between the public and the to aid in its recovery. and refuge volunteer awards ceremony, wetland management district and among works with other volunteers to make Vradenburg is also considered a leader the refuge, the Wisconsin Department of sure teachers are able to schedule in the community, continually providing Natural Resources, the U.S. Geological environmental education programs, opportunities for area youth to learn Survey and the University of Wisconsin. collects public use data and always at the 57,331-acre refuge along the Rio Kerr also publishes a biweekly finds ways to accomplish repair jobs Grande in central New Mexico. newspaper column about activities and cost-effectively. He has been elected president of the Friends of Balcones projects at the refuge. He routinely Wiley “Dub” Lyon received the twice and has been on the Board of gives presentations to the community to Volunteer of the Year Award. continue to raise awareness about the Directors for six years. Lyon was honored for “his unwavering refuge, which is on the south shore of Friends of the Bosque Del Apache support for the Balcones Canyonlands Lake Superior in northern Wisconsin. National Wildlife Refuge received the National Wildlife Refuge in Texas.” John Vradenburg received the Molly Krival Friends Group of the Year Employee of the Year Award. Lyon, a retired American Airlines Award. The award was recently renamed landing, takeoff and maintenance to honor the late Molly Krival, a pioneer Vradenburg is a supervisory biologist supervisor, has been a volunteer at the of the Friends movement.