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WPAs: America’s Duck Factories

10,000 Birds

Birders are familiar with the National Wildlife Refuge System, which consists of more than 550 units distributed through all fifty states. National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs), which are managed by the U.S. The region has justifiably been referred to as the “Duck Factory of North America.” Ding” Darling NWR in Florida.

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Duck Numbers And Duck Stamp Sales No Longer Correlate

10,000 Birds

This has resulted in a reduction of the number of duck stamps sold. Sales of duck stamps have funded the preservation of wetlands and other wildlife habitat, which in turn has supported an increase in waterfowl populations. This has benefited both the waterfowl hunters and everyone else who likes ducks and their kin.

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A Bird’s Eye View of the Rainwater Basin

10,000 Birds

A while back, I wrote about an under-appreciated part of the National Wildlife Refuge System : Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs). Although little-known, WPAs provide critical breeding, resting, and nesting habitat for millions of ducks, geese, and swans, as well as shorebirds and grassland species.

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A Bird’s Eye View of the Rainwater Basin

10,000 Birds

A while back, I wrote about an under-appreciated part of the National Wildlife Refuge System : Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs). Although little-known, WPAs provide critical breeding, resting, and nesting habitat for millions of ducks, geese, and swans, as well as shorebirds and grassland species.

Nebraska 113
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eBirding National Wildlife Refuges

10,000 Birds

I am something of an aficionado of National Wildlife Refuges. The new features are called “ Explore a National Wildlife Refuge ,” and they can be found in the “explore” tab under the “explore a region” sub-tab. For example, some hotspots within the boundaries of a National Wildlife Refuge are not consistently identified as such.

Wildlife 101
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My eBird 10th Anniversary

10,000 Birds

For me, there was the Limpkin in Loxahatchee NWR in Florida, the Atlantic Puffin at Petit Manan NWR in Maine, the Falcated Duck at Colusa NWR in California. My profile page identifies the states that I have not eBirded, including Nebraska, North Dakota, Michigan, Mississippi, and Vermont.

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The Economic Impact of Birding on National Wildlife Refuges: Creating Local Jobs

10,000 Birds

Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) attempts to calculate the economic contribution of National Wildlife Refuge visitation to local communities. Rather, birding and other wildlife observation ( e.g., photography) are lumped together as “non-consumptive” uses of a refuge. Every few years, the U.S. billion for local communities.

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