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CONSERVATION CORNER
(For the week of October 1, 2007)
October 7 - 13 is National Wildlife Refuge Week
by James L. Cummins

This year, National Wildlife Refuge Week will be celebrated from October 7 through 13. During this week, wildlife enthusiasts throughout Mississippi will join with millions of others across America in celebrating National Wildlife Refuge Week. This is the perfect opportunity to be proud of the contributions Mississippians have made toward protecting fish and wildlife habitat and access to it.

Refuges in Mississippi include DaHomey, Tallahatchie, St. Catherine's Creek, Noxubee, Coldwater, Holt Collier, Theodore Roosevelt, Sand Hill Crane, Tallahatchie, Yazoo, Hillside, Panther Swamp, Morgan Brake and Matthew's Brake.

One Mississippian that has had a tremendous impact on our National Wildlife Refuge System is Tim Wilkins, the recently retired manager of the Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex. Tim was responsible for most of the refuges listed above. He was a refuge manager that earned the respect of many people in the area where he served. He lives in, and is part of, the community where the Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge is located. This is critical for a manager to be successful. And successful he was. He had few conflicts that he didn't resolve himself and grew some of the largest white-tail deer in the Southeast, all while meeting the needs of migratory birds and other federal trust species.

Waterfowl populations are some of the highest they have been in over a decade and Mississippi's deer population is over 1.7 million. That's more deer per acre than any other state. Access is also increasing. There have been many boat ramps constructed and thousands of acres in public lands added to our wildlife management areas and national wildlife refuges in the last 10 years.

Our wildlife populations would not be so good and we would not have the opportunity to enjoy them on our public lands if it were not for our congressional delegation, the Mississippi Legislature and members of Mississippi's conservation organizations, such as Wildlife Mississippi, Ducks Unlimited, The Conservation Fund, the Trust For Public Land, the American Land Conservancy, The Nature Conservancy, the Mississippi Wildlife Federation, the Mississippi Legislative Sportsman's Caucus and the Mississippi Land Trust. They provided the vigilance and leadership to make sure our national wildlife refuges are maintained under sound conservation practices to benefit both wildlife and wildlife enthusiasts. But not to be forgotten are our superb biologists and law enforcement personnel.

If you visit a national wildlife refuge during National Wildlife Refuge Week, you can enjoy birding tours, fishing and hunting events, hiking and educational activities for kids. These refuges also offer opportunities all year long.

For more information about national wildlife refuges call 1-800-344-WILD or contact them at www.fws.gov. Enjoy our national wildlife refuges and remember the work it took to make them happen.