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Kansas Wildlife Federation Meeting Agenda

Kansas Wildlife Federation, 62nd Annual Meeting

February 22 and 23, 2013

Best Western, 3021 W. Highway 50, Emporia

Friday, February 22nd

6:30 pm Registration

7:00 pm 2013 Legislation Presentation

Chris Tymeson, KDWPT

2013 Resolution Review

Saturday, February 23rd

8:00 am Registration

9:00 Opening of KWF Annual Meeting

Pledge

Presentation of Minutes of 2012 Annual Meeting

9:30 Committee Reports

Treasurer

Issues and Action

Education

Membership

10:00 Affiliate Reports

10:15 Break

10:30 Resolution Adoption

11:00 NWF Report

11:15 Election of KWF Officers

12:00 Lunch (included in cost of registration)

About the Outdoors …… Ongoing Efforts

Ed Augustine, Geary County Fish & Game Association

1:30 pm What’s the Matter with Kansas?

Rex Buchanan, Interim Director, KS Geologic Survey

2:30 pm Break

2:45 pm Heartland Inventory and Monitoring Network at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve

Kristen Hase, Biologist and Chief of Natural Resources

3:45 pm Break

4:00 pm Water in Kansas

Susan Metzger, Chief of Planning & Policy, Kansas Water Office

2012 Conservation Achievement Program Awards Banquet

5:30 KWF Social Hour and Silent Auction

7:00 KWF Annual CAP Banquet and Awards Program

Speaker: Bob Gress, former Director Great Plains Nature Center, Wichita

“Traveling Abroad Teaches Me About Home:

Tales of a wildlife photographer and exotic wildlife”

PLAN TO ATTEND THE KANSAS WILDLIFE FEDERATION ANNUAL MEETING IN EMPORIA. KS, Feb 23rd, 2013.

TheKansas Wildlife Federation invites everyone interested in wildlife, conservation and environmental education to attend their annual meeting at the Best Western Hospitality House and Conference Center, 3021 W. Highway 50 in Emporia. Afternoon presentations are FREE to attend.

Afternoon presentations are as follows:

1:30 pm: “What’s the Matter with Kansas?” by Rex Buchanan,

Interim Director of the KS Geologic Survey.

2:30 pm Break.

2:45 pm “Heartland Inventory and Monitoring Network at the Tallgrass

Prairie National Preserve” by Kristen Hase.

3:45 pm Break.

4:00 pm “Water Issues in Kansas” by a speaker from the

Kansas Water Office.

The highlight of the meeting is the 2012 Conservation Achievement Program Awards Banquet acknowledging Kansans for their significant contributions to creating an awareness of wildlife and our environment. The CAP Award Banquet will be preceded by a social hour at 5:30 pm and Silent Auction. Proceeds from the auction will benefit important projects like KWF Conservation and Youth Education programs. Some of the auction items can be previewed on the KWF Photo Gallery by clicking on the link below and scrolling down to “Auction Items” http://www.kswildlife.org/photos.php.

The banquet will feature speaker Bob Gress, noted photographer and former Director of the Great Plains Nature Center. You may register using the form below. Just cut & paste it into a word document, fill it out, print it & mail it. Download the Form in PDF

Kansas Wildlife Federation 2013 Annual Meeting Registration Form

Yes – I am registering for the KWF Annual Meeting to be held February 22 & 23 at the Best Western at 3021 W. Highway 50 in Emporia.

Name _________________________________________________

Address _______________________________________________

City __________________________ State ____ Zip ___________

Telephone _____________________ E-mail __________________

Meeting Registration (includes Lunch): ______ @ $15 (before 2-15-13)

______ @ $20 (after 2-15-13)

Conservation Achievement Banquet: ______ @ $25 (before 2-15-13)

______ @ $35 (after 2-15-13)

Total Sent: ______

I will bring an item to be auctioned for KWF’s education programs.
Yes ___ No ___

Please make checks payable to Kansas Wildlife Federation

MAIL TO: KWF Annual Meeting

Kansas Wildlife Federation

P. O. Box 771282

Wichita, KS 67277-1282

Demand for NSSF Safety Education Materials Skyrockets

The National Shooting Sports Foundation released the following statement (February 7, 2013) regarding firearms safety.

NEWTOWN, Conn. — Since the beginning of the New Year, demand for the National Shooting Sports Foundation’s (NSSF) safety and education materials has increased substantially.

Orders for NSSF’s popular educational brochure “Firearms Safety Depends on You” were up 110 percent in January compared to the same period last year. There were 217,486 copies of the brochure ordered during the month, up from 103,431 last January. Orders for NSSF’s firearm safety DVD compilation jumped 1,700 percent, with the majority of the 2,250 copies being ordered by educators and childcare professionals.

“Firearms Safety Depends on You” reviews the ten rules of firearms safety every shooter must know and obey to ensure safe and responsible use of firearms. The brochure is popular with manufacturers, who include it within the packaging of their products. It is also popular with state agencies, retailers, hunter education and firearms safety programs and other groups or individuals involved in the shooting sports, hunting and firearms industry.

The firearm safety videos help teach students how to react when encountering a firearm in an unsupervised situation. The DVD offers these four videos — “McGruff the Crime Dog on Gun Safety” for students in kindergarten through grade 6; “It’s Your Call: Playing It Safe Around Guns^SM” for students in grades 6 through 9; “Firearms Safety Depends on You^SM,” which covers the ten commandments of gun safety and is for audiences of all ages; and “Introduction to Range Safety and Etiquette.” The first two titles help teach students how to respond if should they encounter a firearm in an unsupervised situation at school, at home or at a friend’s home.

Learn more at nssf.org/safety.

Birds are Counting on You!

Discover and help the birds in your community

The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is for everyone, from beginner birdwatchers to experts, and for the first time ever, anyone can participate from anywhere in the world. Counting birds provides scientists and researchers with a real-time snapshot of winter bird populations.

Each checklist submitted during the GBBC helps the National Audubon Society, Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada learn more about how birds are doing, and how to protect them and the environment we share. For information on how to participate, go tohttp://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/howto.html.

Please join us for the GBBC, Friday, February 15th through Monday, February 18th, and together we can make our local birds count!

Whooping Cranes Sited at Quivira NWR

A reliable report of 6 adult Whooping Cranes on February 8 between 9:30 and 10:00 am, about 4 miles west of Big Salt Marsh in Quivira National Wildlife Refuge in Stafford County. They were near the corner of

NE 160th Street

and

NE 60th Avenue

. This is about 2 miles west of the Stafford/Ellinwood blacktop. The birds were with a large flock of Sandhill Cranes and possibly roosted overnight at Quivira.

It is uncertain whether these birds are still present in the area as of mid-afternoon, but there has been regular use of Big Salt Marsh by Sandhill Cranes over the past week. Some cranes are undoubtedly feeding in the vicinity and returning nightly to roost at Quivira.

There is only one previous February record of Whooping Cranes in the Quivira area. These birds were sited on February 19, about ten years ago. In 2012 numerous Whooping Cranes were observed in the Quivira area though out January. It was hard to tell if these birds were stragglers and never made the entire migration south to Aransas NWR in Texas or they were early migrants headed north.

If you are interested in birding information at Quivira NWR, go to their website at:http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Quivira/.

Steve Harper Scholarship renewed, to help Kansas students

The Outdoors Writers of Kansas and Kansas Wildscape are renewing the Scholarship.

A scholarship for Kansas students is named after Steve Harper, a longtime photo editor and outdoors writer/photographer for the Wichita Eagle, who died in 2000 from cancer at the age of 55. A scholarship in his name was suggested by Gov. Bill Graves and others. The $1,000 scholarship program was funded by donations. Funds expired after about 10 years. The Outdoors Writers of Kansas and Kansas Wildscape are joining to renew the Scholarship.

Applications may be made by students graduating from a Kansas high school planning on attending a Kansas four-year college, with a nature/wildlife-based major. The student must also have career goals of staying in Kansas. College students with a similar major and goals may also apply.

The program will issue one $1,000 scholarship annually, directly to the student’s college.

Harper was known for his deep love of Kansas and published hundreds of articles and photos about enjoying his native state. He also rated Kansans as some of the finest people in America, especially those that possessed great deals of commitment and motivation.

Scholarship applicants will be judged by members of the Outdoor Writers of Kansas and Kansas Wildscape. Selection criteria will include past and current involvement in nature/wildlife-related projects, scholastic achievement and projected potential.

The deadline to apply is late March. For information on applying, contact Debbie Brandt at Kansas Wildscape at 785-843-9453 or [email protected].

NWRA and Friends of Alaska Refuges Hail Decision to Kill the "Road to Nowhere" at Izembek NWR

Victory for Wildlife, Wilderness & the American Taxpayer

The National Wildlife Refuge Association and the Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges hailed a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) decision February 5^th to oppose a land transfer that would have allowed for construction of a 30-mile, $30-million gravel road through the heart of the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). The decision comes 15 years after a similar rejection resulted in a $37.5-million taxpayer-funded payout to King Cove, a community of 800 that has nevertheless continued to support the road’s construction.

“This “road to nowhere” is a bad deal for wildlife and taxpayers,” said NWRA Vice-President of Government Affairs Desiree Sorenson-Groves. “Building and maintaining a road through this biologically sensitive area would have set a dangerous precedent for the other wild lands in National Wildlife Refuges, National Parks and National Forests designated to be part of

America

’s Wilderness Preservation System – the world’s highest level of conservation protection.”

In its Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) examining the consequences of the land transfer and resulting road, the FWS selected a “no action” alternative. The decision followed a lengthy public process mandated by 2009 legislation directing the FWS to conduct a study on the land exchange and proposed road and thus provide the background the Secretary of the Department of the Interior would need to determine whether the road was in the public interest.

“Sound science wins the day, as it always should,” said Wendy Loya, President of the Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges. “The final decision reconfirms our long-held position that the proposed road pretends to solve a problem already solved 15 years ago at a cost of millions of taxpayer dollars.”

In 1998 Congress provided $37.5 million to King Cove, including funds used to purchase of a state-of-the-art hovercraft to connect their community to the village of Cold Bay (pop. 75) and address transportation and safety issues.

Izembek NWR is located on a remote and sparsely populated stretch of Alaska’s Aleutian Peninsula. Ninety-eight percent of the world’s Pacific black brant population depends on this one location as a critical stopover and nesting site. After gorging on the eelgrass beds of Izembek Lagoon, these medium-size geese fly non-stop between Izembek and their wintering grounds in Mexico. Road construction could jeopardize their feeding, their migration – and their survival. In addition, the road’s route would disrupt an important isthmus corridor and foraging area for caribou and Alaska brown bear.

NWRA and the Friends of Alaska Refuges have long fought to protect Izembek’s pristine wilderness and urged the FWS to use sound science as their guide and to adopt a “no action” alternative.

The final EIS triggers a 30-day review period, which will be followed by a Record of Decision from the FWS and a Public Interest Determination from the Secretary of the Department of the Interior.

For more information about the Izembek NWR “Road to Nowhere” visit:www.refugeassociation.org/advocacy/refuge-issues/izembek/

Kansas Wildlife Federation Annual Meeting

The Annual Meeting of the Kansas Wildlife Federation will be February 23^rd at the Best Western in Emporia, Kansas. (3021 W. Highway 50). The highlight of the meeting is the 2012 Conservation Achievement Program Awards Banquet. It will be preceded by a social hour at 5:30 pm and Silent Auction. The banquet will feature speaker Bob Gress, former Director of the Great Plains Nature Center. The detailed meeting agenda will be posted soon. Look forward to seeing you there.

Trappers Reach Season Quota on Otters

Second modern otter trapping season similar to first

Kansas furharvesters have taken the season quota on river otters before the official end of the otter trapping season. The quota for 2012-2013 was met on Jan. 25. Trappers were allowed a grace period for notification that the quota was met, so all otters taken on or before Jan. 28 may be kept by furharvesters.

The 2012-2013 season was set for Nov. 14, 2012-March 31, 2013, or until 100 otters were taken. Trappers are limited to two otters per season and are required to report otters taken to KDWPT within 24 hours through a toll-free number. The pelt and skinned carcasses must be brought to KDWPT for tagging within four days of harvest. Skinned carcasses, including skulls, are retained by KDWPT so that age, reproductive output and other biological information can be determined.

Otters, once common along Kansas waterways, were extirpated by the turn of the century due to unregulated trapping and development. A modest reintroduction program relocated wild otters into Kansas in the early 1980s, and the population began recovering slowly. In recent years, Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) biologists have monitored a healthy and growing population, so much so that a limited-quota trapping season was implemented in 2011-2012.

During the first otter trapping season in modern history, which ran Nov. 16, 2011-March 31, 2012, trappers were limited to two otters each, or until the statewide trapping quota of 100 otters was met. Last season, that quota was met on February 2.

Otters accidentally taken while trapping for other species after Jan. 28 must be reported to KDPWT prior to removal from the trap site. They may be reported to the toll free hotline at (855) 778-6887 (RPT-OTTR) or to a local KDWPT natural resource officer or biologist. Inadvertent capture of otters shall not be deemed illegal if the capture is reported or if the animal is released unharmed. For more information, phone Matt Peek at 620-342-0658.

Wolf Found in Kansas

Animal killed by coyote hunters verified as wolf

In December, coyote hunters in southwest Kansas killed an animal they thought was too big to be a coyote. The large male canine weighed more than 80 pounds, more than twice as much as a large coyote. The hunters called the local Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) game warden, who contacted U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) agents. The USFWS confirmed through tissue testing that the animal was a full-blooded Great Lakes gray wolf.

Because wolves are still on the Threatened Species list for Kansas, the matter was turned over to the USFWS. Agents then took tissue samples for testing. While uncommon, there are wolf-dog hybrids available through the pet trade, and many of those hybrids are indistinguishable from full-blooded wolves by appearance.

This is the first documented wolf in Kansas since 1905. There have been several wolves killed inMissouri, most recently this past November when a deer hunter shot what he thought was a coyote. That animal, which tested as a full-blooded wolf, weighed 81 pounds.

Officials would still like to know how this wolf ended up in Kansas. However, questions about its origin may be difficult to answer.