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[Urban Wildlife Program] [Species Management & Conservation] [Surveys & Data Management] [Recovery Activities] [Teaming With Wildlife] [Endangered Species - Species of Concern] The field of wildlife management continues to evolve. One recent change within the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife was the renaming of our 25-year-old Nongame Program. We now work under the banner, “Wildlife Diversity Division.” Our team of managers and biologists works across the state to fulfill the division’s role statement, which reflects broadening horizons. We are committed to maintaining a diverse wildlife community now and in the future. We focus most of our collective energies on those species that without diligent attention could, like the Oregon silverspot butterfly, disappear from our state. However, our responsibility extends to common species, which we hope to keep common through cooperative partnerships and habitat protection. Ultimately, we wish to provide Washington citizens with rich and varied wildlife experiences. The hundreds of vertebrate species and thousands of invertebrates that make their homes in this state fascinate us. We hope to share this fascination with present and future generations.
In response to such intense interest, the Wildlife Diversity Division now houses a Watchable Wildlife program. Through the program, we will increase opportunities for viewing wildlife throughout the state, while ensuring that wildlife viewing does not adversely impact wildlife species or habitats. In addition, we will work to link wildlife and habitat conservation with economic development and to broaden the constituency supporting wildlife conservation and management. Washington has hundreds of wonderful sites where the public can enjoy wildlife. To help people find some of them, the Department recently supported publication of the Washington Wildlife Viewing Guide. The guide features ninety sites throughout the state that offer some of the best wildlife viewing. Recently, the Wildlife Diversity Division and the Department of Transportation, with assistance from other agencies, installed brown and white "binocular" road signs for sites detailed in the Washington Wildlife Viewing Guide. Users of the popular viewing guide now have a consistent system of directional signs to help them find and enjoy our unique fish and wildlife resources.
PSEOW has received two National Forest awards for its partnerships and success at protecting wildlife habitat.
Participants in the program receive pamphlets that describe how to make their yards attractive to wildlife. In return, they provide Department biologists with information about the wildlife species that visit their Backyard Wildlife Sanctuaries. Urban biologists work with developers to restore wildlife habitat in large project tracts. A book on landscaping for wildlife is nearly complete. Species Management and Conservation Each year, the Wildlife Diversity Division consults or comments on hundreds of Forest Practice Applications. Biologists search the Department's species-occurrence data base to determine whether species of concern are found in forest areas covered by an FPA. Potential conflicts are identified and mitigated. Several landowners have recently begun to prepare Habitat Conservation Plans, a planning option described in the Endangered Species Act. HCP's offer land-management flexibility in exchange for commitments to provide endangered species habitat over the long term. Each HCP undergoes review by Wildlife Diversity Division biologists. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service approves HCP's. In concert with landowners whose properties are used by bald eagles, biologists develop bald eagle management plans. These plans are required under the state's special Bald Eagle Protection Rule, and have aided recovery of this state- and federally-threatened species. In cooperation with the Department's Priority Habitats and Species unit, wildlife biologists write management recommendations for listed and candidate species. If acquisition of critical habitat is appropriate for listed species, biologists evaluate and nominate potential sites. Wildlife Surveys and Data Management A primary function of the Wildlife Diversity Division is to monitor species of concern - are populations increasing, declining, or remaining stable? Surveys are critical for measuring progress toward recovery of listed species and to evaluate the status of candidate species. Surveys are also important for collecting baseline data on groups of species for which we lack information on population trends. Washington's endangered, threatened, and sensitive species require a variety of recovery strategies. These pages provide an overview of tasks undertaken to conserve listed species during the past few years.
Waking to birdsong, seeing butterflies dance among wildflowers, watching a hawk trace circles in the sky, hearing frogs croaking after an evening rain -- these encounters are extraordinary gifts and reminders of the importance of wildlife in our lives. Surprisingly, the vast majority of our nation’s fish and wildlife receive scant attention until their populations are endangered or threatened with extinction. Thousands of birds, turtles, fish, butterflies, mammals, and other animals lack programs that state fish and wildlife agencies need to protect them. Their conservation, ironically, is seriously underfunded precisely because they are not hunted, fished, or listed under federal or state laws. With some thought and planning, and at very little cost, we can ensure a future for these species. A tremendous number of Americans -- some 160 million -- take part in wildlife-related recreation. The lands and waters these recreationists enjoy are the very same high-quality areas upon which fish and wildlife depend. Now is the time for all outdoor enthusiasts to invest in a future where fish and wildlife thrive, through the Fish and Wildlife Diversity Funding Initiative. For more than half a century, hunters and anglers have paid user fees when purchasing equipment. The fees have been earmarked for conserving millions of acres of habitat and restoring populations of sport fish and game. Teaming With Wildlife creates a similar investment opportunity for all outdoor enthusiasts by broadening existing user fees to include a wider array of outdoor recreation equipment. Hikers, bird watchers, paddlers, mountain bikers, nature photographers, backyard wildlife enthusiasts, and campers across the nation can team up to conserve wildlife. The user fee will be less than five percent of a manufacturers’ cost on a product -- adding about 30 cents to a $10 field guide or $2.50 to a $100 pair of binoculars. Proponents expect to raise $350 million to conserve fish and wildlife diversity and enhance recreational and educational opportunities. Already, almost 1500 businesses, conservation groups, recreation groups, and industries have sponsored or endorsed Teaming With Wildlife.
 State-listed and Candidate Species The listing/delisting process can be initiated by the Department or by petition. A petition must contain specific evidence to show that a species may be failing, declining, vulnerable, or recovered. We begin the process by publishing a notice in the Washington State Register. We then write a status review and draft listing recommendation. The preliminary report undergoes a 90-day comment period, after which we complete a final status review, listing recommendation, and documents required by the State Environmental Policy Act. These are released for another 30-day comment period before we present them at a public meeting of the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission. The Commission decides whether to list or delist species.
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Wildlife watching is a booming pastime. Every day, thousands of Washingtonians enjoy and
appreciate our state's diverse wildlife communities. During 1991, they spent over $350 million to view, feed, and photograph wildlife and to hike and camp in wildlife habitats.
Puget Sound Eyes on Wildlife (PSEOW) is a regional Watchable Wildlife program established in 1992 and involving the U.S. Forest Service, Pilchuck and Black Hills Audubon Societies, and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. These partners have been involved in more than twenty innovative projects on public lands throughout the Puget Sound area. Many of these project sites are included in the Washington Wildlife Viewing Guide.
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