Georgia's Wildlife Action Plan and Teaming with Wildlife Benefits Both Game
and Non-game Species

Since the late 1930’s sportsmen have been funding wildlife restoration and wildlife habitat improvement through the Pittman-Robertson Act. The Act was passed in 1937 because a coalition of hunters who wanted to see wildlife restored in this nation worked tirelessly to get Congress to pass this voluntary tax. It mandated that funds be collected from a Federal excise tax on sporting arms, ammunition, and archery equipment. In 1950 a similar act, the Dingell-Johnson Act, was created thanks to a coalition of anglers. This Act provides funding for the purpose of management, conservation and restoration of fishery resources. Revenues for this program are collected from the sale of fishing tackle and other fishing equipment. To add to this mix in the 1990’s a coalition of wildlife enthusiasts started the Teaming with Wildlife Coalition to encourage Congress to provide funds to help conserve declining species of wildlife and protect critical habitat before they become too rare and costly to protect. As a result of this effort the State Wildlife Grants Program was created in 2001. It has provided over $9 million over the last six years for wildlife conservation work in Georgia. The legislation that passed also had a provision that required each state to develop a comprehensive wildlife action plan by October of 2005.  

In December 2002 the Wildlife Resources Division (WRD) of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) began developing Georgia’s State Wildlife Action Plan with input from public and private research institutes, conservation organizations, sportsman’s groups, environmental educators, landowners and land managers throughout Georgia. Fourteen public meeting were held across the state to gather input, review and revise the plan. In late summer of 2005 the plan was complete and the Board of DNR unanimously passed a resolution endorsing the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (State Wildlife Action Plan) and urging DNR to implement the plan for the benefit of the wildlife and citizens of Georgia.

Our State Wildlife Action Plan is an extremely comprehensive plan that assesses the condition of Georgia’s wildlife and habitats, identifies the problems they face and outlines the actions needed to conserve them over the long term. This proactive plan focuses on all wildlife in the entire state and will benefit both game and non-game species. Even though the focus of the plan is on improving habitat for species that may become endangered it also improves habitat for game species. Many game species share habitat with species that are the focus of the plan. For example, the plan calls for an increased use of prescribed fire to manage habitat for species such as the Red Cockaded Woodpecker. Burning of the under story also benefits turkey, grouse, quail and deer.  Private land owners will also be educated and encouraged to use prescribed fire as a habitat management tool.

Many actions laid out in the plan will benefit streams, rivers and fish populations. These include the development of a statewide strategy for conservation of wetlands, conducting statewide assessments of fish communities to determine the biotic integrity of streams and reducing the impacts of ATV use on streams and other sensitive habitats.

Some of the funds from the existing program have been used to purchase critical habitat for declining wildlife species. This land is also open for hunting and other recreational opportunities.

To advocate for increased federal funding and to assist in the implementation of the plan, the Teaming with Wildlife Coalition is being revitalized. The Georgia Wildlife Federation is actively working with WRD to rebuild the Coalition that was formed in the 1990’s and was instrumental in obtaining increased federal funding in order to develop the State Wildlife Action Plan. Members of the Teaming with Wildlife Coalition will advocate for increased funding for wildlife through state wildlife grants and will assist the DNR in implementation of the Wildlife Action Plan.

We are encouraging organizations, businesses, hunting and fishing groups, churches, and any other group interested in protecting habitat for Georgia wildlife to sign on as a member of Teaming with Wildlife. It will not cost you anything. By signing the form your group is supporting implementation of the State Wildlife Action Plan which is critical to wildlife in our state. We will use this list of supporters to show Congress that there is widespread support among their constituents for additional funding to implement this plan. Numbers count and we need your groups’ endorsement. We would also like to work with any group that would like to volunteer to assist with implementing any component of this plan. There are now close to 300 groups signed on. If you’re a member of any group or club please talk to them about joining. This is a national initiative and we want Georgia to be a leader in obtaining supporters for Teaming with Wildlife. Join today. Make a difference.

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View the current Georgia Teaming with Wildlife Coalition.