North American Bird Conservation Initiative

What NABCI is A vision — an approach to bird conservation A Forum — for working together to make conservation happen

What NABCI is not A decision-making authority Competitor for conservation funding A conservation delivery mechanism

NABCI is a Vision “Populations and habitats of North America's birds protected, restored, and enhanced through coordinated efforts at international, national, regional, state, and local levels, guided by sound science and effective management.” U.S. NABCI Committee, September 2000

NABCI Vision grew from realization that:  Despite our best efforts, bird populations still face tremendous threats to long-term health  Only through a coordinated, integrated approach can these large-scale threats be overcome  The proactive, partnership-based bird conservation initiatives of the past 20 years are the framework to build upon Waterbird Conservation for the Americas North American Waterfowl Management Plan Partners in Flight United States Shorebird Conservation Plan Resident Game Bird Working Group

NABCI is a forum for:  Initiating and broadening partnerships for bird conservation  Increasing funding for conserving birds in North America  Making partnerships and resources more effective by fostering integrated bird conservation  Building on existing structures such as Joint Ventures, and stimulating new JV-like structures and mechanisms as appropriate  Developing a common ecological framework for conservation planning and delivery on a landscape scale

What NABCI is NOT

NABCI Authority and Decision- Making  The U.S. NABCI Committee has no legal authority  No single individual or entity has top- down authority over NABCI and its participants  To the degree that there is a NABCI “organization,” it is designed to serve as a forum to exchange ideas, discuss issues, and help move integrated bird conservation forward

NABCI “Organization” in U.S. U.S. NABCI Committee Steve Williams, Chair U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Tom Bennet Intl. Assoc. of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Agency David Pashley American Bird Conservancy Representing the NGO Subcommittee Gary Myers TN Wildlife Resources Agency Representing Partners in Flight Richard Bishop IA Department of Natural Resources Representing the North American Waterfowl Management Plan Ellie Cohen Point Reyes Bird Observatory Representing the U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan Ron George Texas Parks and Wildlife Representing the Migratory Shore and Upland Game Bird Working Group Kathy Parsons Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences Representing the North American Waterbird Conservation Plan Rollie Sparrowe Wildlife Management Institute Bob Ellis VA Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries Representing the National Flyway Council Val Mezainis USDA Forest Service, Intl. Programs Representing the Federal Agency Subcomm. Rebecca Frank Representing the Joint Venture Management Board Chairs John Frampton SC Department of Natural Resources Representing the Resident Game Bird Working Group Scott Yaich Ducks Unlimited

NABCI Subcommittees/ Working Groups Staff Committee Federal Agency Subcommittee NGO Subcommittee State Subcommittee Monitoring Working Group Communications Working Group National Coordinator, Bob Ford

NABCI “Organization” at regional, state, and local levels None is needed!  Partners work through existing organizations and coalitions  Joint Ventures undertaking all-bird conservation

NABCI “Organization” Tri-nationally Tri-national NABCI Committee 3 representatives each from Mexico, Canada, and United States United States Representatives: Paul Schmidt – U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service George Fenwick – American Bird Conservancy Gary Myers – Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency

NABCI in Canada and Mexico  Both countries have national committees  NABCI and integrated bird conservation have evolved differently from U.S.

NABCI in Central and South America  NABCI currently focused on U.S., Canada, and Mexico  However, more than 330 species spend two- thirds of year migrating through and wintering in other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean  Some bird conservation initiatives and many partner organizations work there already  NABCI has the flexibility to expand in future

Bird conservation funding:  Very limited funding dedicated to NABCI itself:  NABCI Coordinator position  Communications  Partner organization staff time and in-kind contributions  Partners are not bound by funding directives  Increasing conservation funding is a priority  However, on-the-ground funding will NOT go “through” NABCI

Conservation delivery mechanism  NABCI as an “organization” does not deliver conservation on the ground  This is done through the agencies, organizations, and partnerships that are best suited to deliver it  Examples

What NABCI is doing to further bird conservation  Bird Conservation Regions  Action Plan

Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs)  Ecologically distinct regions in North America with similar bird communities, habitats, and resource management issues  Developed in 1998 to:  facilitate communication among the bird conservation initiatives  systematically and ecologically apportion Canada, the U.S., and Mexico into conservation units  facilitate a regional approach to bird conservation  promote new, expanded, or restructured partnerships  identify overlapping or conflicting conservation priorities

NABCI Action Plan  Developed by U.S. NABCI Committee  Priority focus of efforts at national level

Action: Secure a source of funding for upland bird conservation projects Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act State Wildlife Grants Program Farm Bill Conservation Programs Landowner Incentive Program Others

Action: Increase appropriations to federal agencies to allow them to achieve their bird conservation objectives Increase of $215 million being sought Will allow federal agencies to deliver their bird conservation responsibilities

Action: Assure that state wildlife agencies have the capacity to allow them to appropriately contribute to achieving bird conservation objectives State wildlife grants/CARA State all-bird conservation workshops Others

Action: Achieve comprehensive national coverage by effective bird conservation partnerships such as Joint Ventures

Joint Venture Partnerships  Regionally based coalitions of public and private orgs developed under the NAWMP  Accepting challenge of being the mechanism for carrying out multiple bird conservation plans using an integrated approach  Staff hired in several BCR’s to work closely with JVs to develop technical capacity and collaborative planning needed  Staff also hired to work in some regions not covered by existing JVs to develop similar partnerships and capabilities

Waterfowl Habitat Areas of Major Concern NAWMP 1986

Joint Ventures (in green) NAWMP 1996

Joint Ventures and Other Bird Conservation Partnerships 2002

Action: Maintain the health and vitality of the bird conservation initiatives Funding for adequate staffing and assurance of continued broad participation Serve as perennial source of best biological information

Action: Increase the capacity of U.S.- based organizations to contribute to effective bird conservation internationally Completion of Tri-national MOU Broaden awareness within U.S. Bird conservation community of obligations outside U.S.

Action: Develop and implement a communication strategy Strategy completed Products 1.Web site: 2.Q&A 3.This presentation 4.Case studies Help secure continued increases in bird conservation funding Develop collaborative conservation communications efforts

Action: Nurture a system capable of adequately monitoring all of the birds of the country Increase capacity for assessing population status Improve understanding of population responses to management activities Use monitoring results in an adaptive context

Action: Work toward an agricultural policy that provides significant benefits for bird populations Improve accessibility to existing programs Develop tools and information for delivering bird conservation through private lands programs Continue to tie programs to bird conservation plans

Bob Ford, U.S. NABCI Coordinator US Fish and Wildlife Service 4401 North Fairfax Drive MBSP-4075 Arlington, VA Phone: Fax:

Canvasback Snowy Egret Prothonotary Warbler Northern Saw-whet Owl Marbled Godwit Blue Grouse