Photo Courtesy of Besley Rodgers
Major Funding for Habitat Conservation
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge houses a diversity of critically important species, from the formerly endangered Delmarva Peninsula fox squirrel to the American bald eagle. That is why on June 19, 2019 the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission awarded the refuge $5,980,000 to conserve migratory bird habitat. The funds were supplied by the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund via the sale of Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamps, or “Duck Stamps.” Blackwater was one of five National Wildlife Refuges to receive funding.
The money will be used to conserve over 2,500 acres of priority habitat for migrating species such as the American black duck, Canada goose, and greater snow goose as well as wetland-associated migratory birds like the black rail and salt-marsh sparrow. The land will also be used in the refuge’s public hunt program, expanding public opportunity for white-tail deer, sika deer, turkey, and waterfowl hunting.
Land Conservation Partners
Land Conservation Funders
$5,980,000 – Migratory Bird Conservation Fund