Delta Waterfowl Foundation

HUNTING PLAYS A CRITICAL ROLE IN CONSERVATION, AND DELTA WATERFOWL BELIEVES THAT FUTURE WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONALS WHO EXPERIENCE WATERFOWL HUNTING FIRSTHAND ARE MORE LIKELY TO MAINTAIN A STRONG FOOTING AMONG THE WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT COMMUNITY AT NATIONAL, STATE/PROVINCE, AND LOCAL LEVELS. THE UNIVERSITY HUNTING PROGRAM, LAUNCHED IN 2017, PROVIDES THESE STUDENTS WITH A FIRSTHAND HUNTING EXPERIENCE AND EQUIPS THEM WITH A MORE HOLISTIC VIEW OF HUNTING AND CONSERVATION. THROUGH UHP, DELTA AIMS TO PROVIDE STUDENTS WHO DO NOT HAVE A HUNTING BACKGROUND (I.E., NONHUNTING WILDLIFE DEGREE MAJORS) WITH HANDS-ON PARTICIPATION IN THE NORTH AMERICAN MODEL OF WILDLIFE CONSERVATION-THE WORLD'S MOST SUCCESSFUL SYSTEM OF POLICIES AND LAWS TO RESTORE AND SAFEGUARD FISH AND WILDLIFE AND THEIR HABITATS THROUGH SOUND SCIENCE AND ACTIVE MANAGEMENT. WHILE UHP IS A POWERFUL EDUCATIONAL TOOL, IT IS EQUALLY EFFECTIVE AS A HUNTER RECRUITMENT TOOL, WITH THE VAST MAJORITY OF PARTICIPANTS CONTINUING TO HUNT AFTER PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM. FUNDING PROVIDED BY THE MULTI-STATE CONSERVATION GRANT WILL HELP US EXPAND THE PROGRAM BY FUNDING 36 UNIVERSITIES BRINGING US TO A TOTAL OF 50 UNIVERSITIES. THIS WILL ALLOW US TO ACHIEVE OUR DUAL GOAL OF RECRUITING AND EDUCATING 500 WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT STUDENTS OF THE CRITICAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HUNTING AND CONSERVATION.

IMPLEMENTATION OF UNIQUE AND CRITICAL ELEMENTS OF THE 2017 PPJV IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

ASSESSING FARMERS AND RANCHERS ATTITUDES TOWARDS CRP AND OTHER CONSERVATION PROGRAMMING

DIFFERENT METHODS HAVE BEEN USED AS PROXIES E G , NEST SUCCESS TO ASSESS PRODUCTIVITY DUCKLING PRODUCTION ACROSS A SUITE OF HYPOTHESES RANGING FROM NEST PREDATOR CONTROL BUXTON 2010, CHODACHEK AND CHAMBERLAIN 2006, GARRETTSON AND ROHWER 2001, PIERON AND ROHWER 2010, STEPHENS ET AL 2005 TO RENEWABLE ENERGY DEVELOPMENT HECKETT ET AL 2013 ULTIMATELY, MANY FIELD STUDIES ARE INTERESTED IN ASSESSMENT OF PRODUCTION OF DUCKLINGS IN THE PAST, DIRECT BROOD COUNTS WERE USED, BUT HAVE BEEN ABANDONED DUE TO ISSUES WITH DETECTABILITY ALTERNATIVELY, THE MONITORING OF NEST SUCCESS HAS BEEN USED EXTENSIVELY TO MEASURE VARIATION IN ONE COMPONENT OF PRODUCTION HOWEVER, THE ULTIMATE MEASURE OF PRODUCTION IS THE PRODUCT OF SEVERAL VITAL RATES, OF WHICH NEST SUCCESS IS ONLY ONE FROM THIS LIST AMUNDSON ET AL 2013, HOEKMAN ET AL 2002, JOHNSON ET AL 1992 ADDITIONALLY, MONITORING NEST SUCCESS IN TRADITIONAL WAYS DOES HAVE IMPACTS SUCH AS HIGHER NEST ABANDONMENT RATES BUSHAW ET AL 2021, GARRETTSON ET AL 2010, OLSON 2011 THERE IS A NEED TO DEVELOP NEW, FASTER, AND LESS INVASIVE TECHNIQUES TO DETERMINE THE ULTIMATE MEASURE OF PRODUCTION, WHICH IS THE NUMBER OF DUCKLINGS PRODUCED TO THE AGE OF FLEDGING, RATHER THAN A SINGLE COMPONENT OF PRODUCTION LASTLY, THE USE OF DRONES TO ACCOMPLISH DATA COLLECTION OF PRODUCTION WOULD YIELD RAPID RESULTS COMPARED TO TRADITIONAL METHODS OF MONITORING DUCK PRODUCTION THIS RAPID ASSESSMENT WOULD ALLOW FOR BROADER ASSESSMENTS OF DUCKLING PRODUCTION AND POTENTIAL SOURCES OF VARIATION ACROSS TIME AND THE LANDSCAPE

PROVIDE FUNDS TO THE FOUNDATION TO INITIATE A 3 YEAR STUDY TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF WOODY VEGETAT

STUDY TO DETERMINE EFFECTS OF WOODY VEGETATION ON WATERFOWL NEST SUCCESS