Wildlife Action Plan 2015 Revision Process White Paper Ranking Criteria for Prioritizing Wildlife Species for Conservation and Management
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Introduction 1 States use federal funds generated by excise taxes provided by the Wildlife Restoration Act (Pittman–Robertson), Sport Fisheries Restoration Act (Dingell–Johnson), and the Wallop– Breaux Act to support the conservation and management of game fsh and wildlife species. Te State Wildlife Grants (SWG) program was established by the US Congress to provide funding for nongame species not traditionally covered under most previous federal fund- ing programs. Te US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has oversight of the SWG program and gives states the authority to determine how they identify these priority species. To qualify for SWG funds, each state is mandated to develop conservation strategies with a focus on Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN). In North Carolina, SGCN have been defned as species that are currently rare or have been designated as at-risk of extinc- tion; those for which we have knowledge defciencies; and those that have not received adequate conservation attention in the past. In addition to these species for which there is high conservation concern, SGCN may also include those species for which we are unable to determine true status in the state, making them a priority for research due to these knowledge gaps. Species that may be vulnerable to local threats; species of recreational, commercial, or tribal importance that are vulnerable; and those identifed as having high management needs or for which there are management concerns are referred to as priority species. Work related to priority species may be funded from sources other than the SWG program; however, eligibility for SWG funds is restricted to SGCN, which include conserva- tion concern and knowledge-gap priority species.
Developed by Wildlife Action Plan Revision Technical Team Ranking Criteria Work Group (D. H. Allen, S. K. Anderson, C. S. Carr, J. C. Fuller, R. B. Nichols, V. F. Stancil, and K. C. Weeks) 1
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2015 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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