The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission hopes more money is on its way to bolster the agency's quail initiative.
Game and Fish has already received money from the Natural Resources Conservation Service to bring aboard a biologist devoted to habitat restoration for the northern bobwhite. A request was submitted in April for money from the conservation service to fund six additional biologist positions.
If approved, Game and Fish would match the money. The new biologists would work under the auspices of Quail Forever, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of quail, pheasants and other wildlife through habitat improvement, public awareness, education and land management policies and programs.
"What we want to do is add six more, because you look at how many private lands biologists we have, we only have nine for the state, or about one for every 8.5 counties,"said Chris Colclasure, Game and Fish assistant deputy director.
If the agency is able to enroll more landowners into financially assisted habitat improvement programs, such as Working Lands for Wildlife or Acres for Wildlife, its private lands biologists would be overwhelmed, Colclasure said.
The funding would pay for three years of work, said Marcus Asher, a biologist who is leading the bobwhite initiative for Game and Fish. The new biologists would focus on only quail. The nine Game and Fish private lands biologists are involved with deer projects, prescribed burning and other duties.
Commissioners of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission gave the go-ahead in May for the agency to hire the approved and funded position, Asher said.
Quail Forever is the supervising authority for the new position, as well as the ones proposed by Game and Fish. The agency has an alternative plan if the conservation service is not able to provide more money.
"If we don't get funded, one thing we talked about was funding 100 percent of three positions," Colclasure said.
Sports on 06/27/2017