US Army Corps of Engineers BUILDING STRONG ® Bird Conservation and Mission Support: How Do Natural Resources Managers Support the Training and Testing Mission? Richard A. Fischer, Ph.D. U.S. Army Engineer R&D Center, Vicksburg, MS

BUILDING STRONG ® Activities Support the Training and Testing Mission DoD Natural Resources Mgrs Support the military mission by ensuring sustained access to land, air and sea resources while: Protecting important natural and cultural resources Meeting all legal requirements Promoting compatible multiple uses

BUILDING STRONG ® Should We (can we??) Quantify Benefits of Our Activities and Actions? of Our Activities and Actions? While our activities consistently provide mission support, there is little tangible and quantifiable information that directly shows this support: Actions save DoD money? Actions that provide more mission days? By quantifying tangible benefits to the mission, we increase awareness of our monitoring and management programs and provide further justification of the need for a focus conservation activities.

BUILDING STRONG ® Why Does DoD Monitor Birds?  Support the training and testing mission  Compliance with legislation  Obtain basic inventory data  Identify problems and their causes  Help design management programs  Evaluate successes and failures of management

BUILDING STRONG ® Migratory Bird Treaty Act (1918) Endangered Species Act Executive Order  “Responsibilities of Federal Agencies to Protect Migratory Birds” Sikes Act  Recognizes the importance of military lands for their natural resources and provides mechanism for their conservation while still meeting the military mission. Migratory Bird Rule Why Does DoD Monitor Birds? Compliance with Legislation

BUILDING STRONG ® Monitoring for Conservation Why Does DoD Monitor Birds? Shorebirds Waterfowl Secretive Marsh Birds Raptor and Upland Game Birds Landbirds

US Army Corps of Engineers BUILDING STRONG ® Donnelly TA, Alaska Alaska Sharp-tailed Grouse Tympanuchus phasianellus caurus Willow ptarmigan

BUILDING STRONG ® Monitoring Activities That Support the Mission

US Army Corps of Engineers BUILDING STRONG ® Red = 1 nautical mile radius (1994 to 2014) - less than 40 occupied breeding areas in AZ Green = 2,000 feet radius (2014-present) - over 50 occupied breeding areas in AZ Airspace no-fly buffers around a hypothetical Bald Eagle nest in Arizona Barry M. Goldwater Range, East John Arnett

BUILDING STRONG ® Patuxent River Naval Air Station Kyle Rambo

BUILDING STRONG ® NASO Dam Neck Annex, VA Michael Wright

BUILDING STRONG ® Management Actions That Support the Mission

BUILDING STRONG ® Fort Wainwright, AK John Haddix

BUILDING STRONG ®

Reducing Conflicts When Training Ranges are Habitat

BUILDING STRONG ® Naval Base Coronado, CA Tiffany Shepherd

BUILDING STRONG ® Naval Base Coronado, CA Tiffany Shepherd

BUILDING STRONG ® Naval Base Coronado, CA Tiffany Shepherd

BUILDING STRONG ® Reducing Conflicts When Ranges are Habitat

BUILDING STRONG ® Reducing Conflicts When Ranges are Habitat

BUILDING STRONG ® Habitat Management and Mission Support

BUILDING STRONG ® Fort Lee, VA Dana Bradshaw

BUILDING STRONG ® Fort Riley, KS Jeff Keating

BUILDING STRONG ® Fort Belvoir, VA Greg Fleming

BUILDING STRONG ®

Should We Quantify Benefits? Many examples of where our activities support the mission, but we could do better job putting info together We need to do a better job of articulating the benefits of our work (quantitatively and qualitatively) Document where monitoring and management actions are providing cost savings or increasing training capabilities Please provide input through your DoD PIF Representative ( -- or --- “The tighter we can link what we do to mission readiness, the more we can illustrate how integral bird conservation is a Commander's mission and the more support and acceptance we will garner.” (Joe Hautzenroder, U.S. Navy)

BUILDING STRONG ® QUESTIONS?

BUILDING STRONG ® DoD Partners in Flight

BUILDING STRONG ®

Fort Knox, Kentucky