Ducks Unlimited Partners With VDGIF & Others To Conserve Habitat In Virginia
Acquisition protects habitat and provides outdoor recreation opportunities.
MCCLUSKY, N.D. –-(Ammoland.com)- Ducks Unlimited recently partnered with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and others to purchase a 2,542 acre Wildlife Management Area in Caroline County, Virginia.
The site was purchased in late 2010 and will be open for public use, including waterfowl hunting in 2011. Of the acres purchased, 820 consist of wetlands that provide resources for waterfowl and other wetland dependent wildlife species.
Ducks Unlimited provided $30,000 in funding toward the $2.4 million purchase of Mattaponi WMA. In addition to numerous other funding avenues, VDGIF used $400,000 from the Virginia Migratory Waterfowl Stamp Fund, which is derived from the sale of Virginia Duck Stamps, to protect this diverse landscape in the headwaters of the Mattaponi River.
“Mattaponi WMA boasts excellent habitat for wildlife, including expansive wetlands that are critical for waterfowl and other wetland dependent wildlife species in Virginia,” said DU regional biologist Ben Lewis. “Ducks Unlimited is proud to partner with VDGIF on this acquisition and pleased to help provide additional public hunting opportunities to Virginia residents.”
Other partners include The Nature Conservancy, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service through the Federal Assistance in Wildlife Restoration Program, The Trust for Public Land and the U.S. Department of Defense through their Army Compatible Use Buffer Program.
Ducks Unlimited is the world’s largest nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving North America’s continually disappearing waterfowl habitats. Established in 1937, Ducks Unlimited has conserved more than 12 million acres thanks to contributions from more than a million supporters across the continent. Guided by science and dedicated to program efficiency, DU works toward the vision of wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow, and forever.