If Part 2 of a five-state effort led by Georgia DNR hits its mark, about 52,000 acres of prime sandhills habitat will be restored from Florida to Mississippi by 2014. That means thousands of acres rejuvenated through prescribed fire. Thousands of longleaf pines planted and invasive hardwoods and “off-site” pines removed. Dozens of species such as gopher tortoises and Bachman’s sparrows helped.
   It's a tall order, even though this habitat, also called dry or upland longleaf, rates as a conservation priority across the Southeast.
   But the Multistate Sandhills/Upland Longleaf Ecological Restoration Project has in its favor a recent award of $981,000 from the State Wildlife Grants Competitive Program, plus the addition of Mississippi and Louisiana to an already strong lineup of Georgia, Alabama, Florida and supporting organizations.
   The project also has a record of success.  Two years into phase one, partners are ahead of schedule, particularly in prescribed burning, which is critical to restoring ecosystems that require regular sweeps of fire.
   “Alabama, Georgia and Florida have passed their three-year goals in two years,” said Matt Elliott, project coordinator and a program manager with DNR’s Nongame Conservation Section.
   Second-phase work will vary from more controlled burns on public and private lands to planting groundcover and longleaf pine, expanded monitoring of gopher tortoises, and continued teamwork with groups such as The Nature Conservancy and Georgia Power.
   Objectives for restoration sites include increasing vegetation beneficial to tortoises and breeding birds characteristic of higher-quality sandhills. Gopher tortoises will benefit, but population changes for this slow-reproducing species will take years.
   Georgia DNR’s focus will include prescribed fire and longleaf restoration at Townsend and other wildlife management areas, as well as on many new private sites. Elliott said interest from private landowners in using prescribed fire on their property has been a pleasant surprise. “There’s a lot more people … than we have the capacity to (work with).”
   Reaching across land and state lines is vital to boosting sandhills quality, quantity and connectivity.

Since 2000 ...
The State Wildlife Grants program has been the main funding source to help keep common species common and protect others before they become critically imperiled and more costly to recover from the brink of extinction. Administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, these grants enable DNR and its conservation partners to protect wildlife and wild places to maintain the state’s natural heritage.

Phase 2 team
Partners in the second phase of the sandhills restoration project include the Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi state wildlife agencies, The Nature Conservancy, The Orianne Society, Georgia Power, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Gopher Tortoise Council, Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center at Ichauway, Fort Gordon and many private landowners.

Next month: Another snapshot of State Wildlife Grants at work in Georgia.

Loggerheads on a roll
   With half of loggerhead nesting season in the books, it’s clear the state’s primary sea turtle is having a banner year.  The latest count from the extra-busy Georgia Sea Turtle Cooperative neared 1,100 nests, raising hopes that the federally threatened species will bust the record high of 1,761 set last year.
   Ossabaw Island leads all beaches with more than 240 nests. Nesting updates.

Wood stork nesting dips
   Drought in South Georgia and a warmer winter in southern Florida likely undercut wood stork nesting this year in Georgia. Still, DNR biologist Tim Keyes stressed that the 2011 estimate of 2,136 nests is the state’s third-highest total on record and does not reverse a general trend of nesting increases for wood storks, a federally threatened species.
   “Over 2,000 is still a strong nesting year in Georgia,” Keyes said. Read more.




Dolphin rescued (and videoed)
   Dolphin 7126’s number isn’t up yet, thanks to an alert boater and DNR.
   The boater called the Georgia Marine Mammal Stranding Network after spotting the adult bottlenose dolphin tangled in a crab pot buoy line June 19 near Sapelo Island.
   Nongame Conservation Section’s Clay George, Mark Dodd and Kate Sparks found the line twisted around the dolphin’s peduncle. With the crab trap weighing it down, the animal could barely lift the tip of its head out of the water to breathe.  Rising tide waters would likely have drowned the dolphin within hours.
   DNR staff snagged and cut the line, a rescue captured on video. The dolphin, which apparently was not seriously injured, swam slowly away and joined other dolphins foraging in New Teakettle Creek.
   Dorsal fin photographs identified the dolphin as No. 7126 in NOAA’s database. The animal is likely a local: It was seen in the area 12 times from February 2008 to October 2009. Bottlenose dolphins are Georgia’s only year-round resident marine mammal and a priority species in the State Wildlife Action Plan.
   Why or how this one became entangled is a mystery. Some believe dolphins are accidentally snagged while stealing bait from crab traps, “playing” with buoy lines or simply swimming too close. The Georgia Marine Mammal Stranding Network has dealt with 12 dolphin/blue crab pot entanglements since 1998. Ten of the dolphins were alive when found, and nine disentangled ... including 7126.

Georgia boaters should report sightings of dead or injured dolphins, whales, manatees and sea turtles immediately. Call 1-800-2-SAVE-ME (800-272-8363).


Out my backdoor



Nurturing a natural wonder

By Terry W. Johnson
   With school out, kids have lots of free time until classes resume in August. Summer break provides a golden opportunity for parents and grandparents to nurture in children what author and environmentalist Rachel Carson called a sense of wonder – a deep, abiding appreciation of the plants and animals with which we share the world.
   When I was growing up, I spent most of summer outdoors: fishing, swimming, playing baseball and roaming around the neighborhood and nearby countryside with my brother and friends just seeing what we could find. Looking back, I realize my friends and I learned more about plants, insects, birds, reptiles and amphibians during summer than at any other time of the year.
    The world I grew up in was far different than today. Now, many parents are afraid to let their children outdoors without supervision. Most children grow up in homes with postage stamp-sized yards and spend little time outdoors. Too few feel a kinship with nature. Many are more able to identify a Burger King sign than a white oak tree. Most are growing up with Nature-Deficit Disorder.
   Educators, conservationists and others are working on the problem. While initiatives such as Project WILD have made strides in helping, it is clear to me that much more is needed.
   If you are concerned that your children and grandchildren are growing up disconnected from nature, there is no better time to do something about it than this summer.
   Begin with short but regular walks in the yard – at all times of day. Treat each walk as an adventure. During them, share your enthusiasm for nature. Teach youngsters to use their senses when exploring the outdoors. Visit different habitats. Encourage the children to find different plants and animals.
   Once you look closely, you and your child will discover an array of life in your yard. In addition to dozens of different kinds of birds, it would not be uncommon to find scores of butterflies, more than 100 species of moths and hundreds of other insects.
   Gardens are great places for wildlife. Watch a small flower garden for a few minutes and you will be amazed at the number of insects that come and go. You can observe hunters and the hunted, and the tiny jewel-like eggs of butterflies and moths. You will discover beautiful insects and others so bizarre they would be at home in a horror movie.
   The best backyards are larger, mainly free of herbicides and pesticides, and rich in wildlife food, water and cover. However, even the smallest yard can be used to introduce youngsters to the natural world. If food, water or cover are lacking or in short supply, involve children in projects to add them. Kids enjoy putting up and maintaining nest boxes, bird feeders and birdbaths.
   Even consider sowing seeds of easy-to-grow flowers that benefit wildlife, such as zinnias and cosmos. Look for cocoons and chrysalises. Compare the shapes of leaves. When night falls, catch fireflies or see how many different kinds of moths and other insects your home’s outside lights attract.
   The opportunities are limitless.
   Don’t let these adventures end when the school bell rings this August. Make them one of the regular ways you spend time with your children and grandchildren.
   Parents are constantly striving to provide their children with the tools to live productive, enjoyable lives. From my way of thinking, one of the tools they will also need is a sense of wonder for the natural world.

Terry Johnson is a former Nongame program manager with Wildlife Resources and executive director of TERN, the Nongame Conservation Section’s friends group. (Want to reprint Terry’s column? Email rick.lavender@dnr.state.ga.us.)

Read Terry's full column, complete with equipment tips and insight on why enthusiasm trumps knowledge.


Parting shot


A brown pelican rehabilitated from last year’s oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico watches over chicks on Georgia’s Little Egg Island Bar, a state-managed natural area in Glynn County. Tim Keyes of the Nongame Conservation Section is monitoring eight nests involving rescued pelicans released last summer in the state. The birds originally from Louisiana are marked by colored leg bands, as shown above. Associated Press coverage.