Private lands access for hunting

Photo from the Library of Congress collection from the FSA, which documented agricultural life
during the depression of the1930s.  This is a pubic photo.   The archive indicated the photo's title
was "Western Hospitality."  The location was somewhere near Atkinson, Nebraska.

My home state of Nebraska is 98% privately owned.   For those of my fellow hunters who live in urban areas, there is an annual process to find land on which to hunt.  Nebraska has a great CRP-MAP program, which allows access to specific private lands under CRP contract.  But, if you want to have some acres to yourself, you've got to find a landowner who wants to allow hunters on their land.

The irony is: many landowners complain about too many deer, but they are slow to give access to hunters.  Maybe it is too many bad experiences?  Maybe.

But, it wasn't always this way.

I have been digging around in the Library of Congress photo archives in Washington, DC.  Today, I found this photo, which shows a completely different view of private lands access.  Come fish and hunt all you want to, and then--come on down for dinner!

I thought some of my friends would enjoy this...after their bitter experience of knocking on doors for weeks.  By the way...I am looking for a place to take a 15-year old boy deer hunting this fall!

CRP: net loss of 90,000 acres in Nebraska

A CRP field.  Photo available on-line: Nebraskaland magazine.

Today, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission posted the following note on their Facebook page. It demonstrates the current crisis in conservation, related to Conservation Reserve Program acres under contract. Bottom line: the landscape is changing in big chunks.

Although NGPC led with the positive (almost 1300 contracts in Nebraska were submitted as applications), the net gain is negative. Watch for effects of landscape change in the near future.

"Outdoorsmen and women rely heavily on Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands to provide habitat for game species, as well as places to hunt. A better than expected general CRP sign-up will help keep most of those places intact. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will accept 104,298 acres in Nebraska offered under the 43rd CRP general sign-up.

"The USDA received 1,385 offers in Nebraska, of which 1,249 were accepted. There were 113,911 acres offered. In Nebraska, 201,190 CRP acres will expire Sept. 30, representing a net loss of 96,892 acres.

"Nationally, 3.9 million acres will be accepted.

"Without CRP, many game and nongame species would have been displaced or lost. CRP has benefited the nation for more than 25 years in the form of wildlife habitat, hunting and outdoor recreation opportunities and reduced soil erosion off these sensitive acres.

"There are many programs within CRP, both old and new, targeting wildlife habitat, wetland conservation and soil/water quality for landowners who are interested in enrolling. Producers should contact their local Farm Service Agency office for more information."

Civil war and the cattle industry

I am digging around in the Library of Congress collections this week, and found this line drawing. It was published in Harper's Weekly in 1864. Interested in how this relates to wildlife? Read on.

Before the Civil War, most Americans did not eat beef. The carcass was too large to eat, without refrigeration, and most folks thought it tasted odd. Game animals and hogs were the staple of most farms. But, the Civil War required massive amounts of food for large armies. The beef industry was born, and this document clearly shows the magnitude of the herds that were driven with the army.

As the Civil War ended, the Homestead Act had been established. The move west was on, and cattle soon replaced bison on the Plains. There were many reasons for the downfall of bison, but competition with domestic cattle was certainly one driver, albeit a minor one perhaps, in the push to clear the Plains of bison.

The notes below this drawing are also intriguing. They describe the chore of bringing along the beef:

"Confederate cattle raid Sept. 16th 1864. Genl. Wade Hampden [sic] suddenly appeared at Coggins point in the rear of the army, on the James river, and carried off the entire beef supply, about 2500 head of cattle. The rebel soldiers were much inclined to joke with the pickets on the loss of their meat rations; the Union men, on the other hand, thanked them heartily for removing the tough remnants of herds that had been driven behind the army all summer and which were at once replaced by a fresh stock much fitter for the table."

This is why I am addicted to archives...

Private investment in conservation: it works

I'm currently on a kick to convince at least a couple other people that conservation of habitats and wildlife can occur with private investment--not just government subsidies (e.g., Farm Bill).  So, it is fun to find examples of where this seems to work.

This past weekend (Memorial Day), our family decided to take a little trip to rural Nebraska.  We wanted to do some fishing, canoeing, and see the Ashfall Fossil Beds.  So, we chose a little lake in northeast Nebraska: Grove Lake Wildlife Management Area, which is managed by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.  Of course, the minimal campsites in the WMA were completely filled when we arrived, but we got lucky when we found a tent spot on a private campgrounds, adjacent to the WMA.

The Grove Lake Bait Shop and Campground is a place you should check out.  The owners, Randy and Mary Erb, are great hosts.  Randy told me that he'd been running the bait shop for 32 years.  Grove Lake is in the middle of nowhere, and a bait shop makes a lot of sense.

"I started the campground two years ago," he told me.  "I don't know why I didn't do it 30 years ago!"

The benefit of this private campground is to support a state-managed conservation area, so that tax payers don't have to support better/more facilities at the WMA.  And, a Nebraska family makes some money on the deal. 

A pond at the Grove Lake Bait Shop and Campground
gives us a chance for a few practice casts before we head for Grove Lake
(photo by Kelly Powell).

I would guess there are plenty of other places in Nebraska where the same model could be used by an investor.  The cabins are always filled at Mahoney State Park?  Well, build some across the road, make them nicer, and rent them for cheaper. 

All of this, philosophically, is fun to think about--private investment in conservation.  But, sometimes a photo says it all--the best part of our visit to the campground was some time away and time together.

World population growth: "we're at peak babies"

In my last blog, I mentioned that wildlife biologists (among others!) should be concerned about world population growth.  The main reason: feeding people is always going to be the highest priority for land use.  If we have more people, land will be used 'harder' or more land will be used for growing food.  Less land for wildlife.

Let's be clear: I like to eat, and I like to know that other people can eat.  But, I do think there should be spots on the globe that do not have to be used for agriculture.  Wild areas.

In the spirit of learning more about population growth predictions, I'm including a video from the TEDx series of talks: in this talk, Hans Rosling gives a powerful demonstration that quickly debunks the myth that certain religions have more babies than others.  And, he presents data to suggest that we are "at peak babies": the number of babies produced per woman is predicted to be level. 

What if we lower birth rates, rather than being satisfied with 'level' birth rates?  He doesn't address that, and I think it would be a good goal.  He does provide the key to how birth rate declines have happened in many countries. 

Give it a view.  I promise it is worth the 13 minutes it takes to watch it--just for the graphics, it's worth it!