BILL TO SUPPORT OUR LOCAL MALLARDS PASSES KEY COMMITTEE
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AB 2106, which would provide critical start-up funding for a state game bird nest cover incentive program via a $5 surcharge on state duck and upland stamps, passed an important hurdle Wednesday when the Assembly Appropriations Committee approved the measure with bipartisan support.
The bill, which is sponsored by California Waterfowl and authored by Assembly Member Aguiar-Curry, would help increase mallard and pheasant numbers, especially in the Sacramento Valley rice growing region, by providing incentives to farmers, duck clubs and other private landowners to maintain or enhance upland nest cover adjacent to waterfowl brood water. Funds could also be used to provide gamebird hunting opportunities for the public on private lands.
AB 2106, which has not yet received any "no" votes, is expected to clear the Assembly Floor later this month and then be considered in the Senate in July. Click
here
to read more about the bill.
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Ohhh, man! Have you seen our weekly online auctions?! Not only can you bid on the same high-quality exclusive items and once-in-a-lifetime hunts available at our local banquets, but we have NEW and EXCITING items every week! How does a 2013 Harley sound? Nice, right? What if it was signed by MICK FLEETWOOD of Fleetwood Mac?! Bid on it this week!
Also available:
- Six-person Canada hunt with Black Dog Outfitters
- Case of cabernet from Chateau Montelena
- Two-person salmon trip aboard the Blue Runner
- Custom-built three man duck blind
And SO MUCH MORE!
Click
here
to register and start bidding TODAY!
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NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR INNOVATIVE CAMP
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CWA's
College Camp, a transformative program that introduces UC Davis wildlife biology students to hunting, was featured prominently in a piece published last month in the Journal of Wildlife Management, a peer-reviewed scientific journal devoted to the ecology of non-domesticated animal species. The article concluded that the programs - which make hunting accessible to students by providing training, mentors and, critically, loaner gear - successfully introduce future wildlife professionals to a key constituency, and represent rich opportunities for hunter recruitment.
Click
here to read the article.
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INCREDIBLE EGG SALVAGE VIDEO
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Check out this breathtakingly beautiful video by
River Garden Farms, one of the biggest and most proactive farms enrolled in California Waterfowl's
Egg Salvage Program. River Garden Farms covers about 15,000 acres in Reclamation District 108, which is a hot spot for wild mallards nesting and rearing broods in farm fields. Why? Because there is a lush mix of cereal and alfalfa crops, which make great nest cover, and rice, which is ideal habitat for rearing ducklings (you'll see at the end of the video how easy it is for a duckling to hide in rice).
Click
here to watch, and if you'd like to learn more about our efforts to help California mallards, click
here.
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GRASSLANDS TO RECEIVE $1M IN WETLAND FUNDING
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California Waterfowl was awarded $1M in federal funding through the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant program last month for its Wetlands of the Grassland Ecological Area, Phase II grant proposal. Our proposal was the second highest ranked NAWCA project
IN THE ENTIRE NATION! Scott Capra, our San Joaquin Valley regional biologist, deserves the lion's share of the credit. Nice work Scott!
Click
here for the complete story.
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CWA FIGHTS POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC WETLAND LOSS IN TULARE BASIN
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California Waterfowl's
bill aimed at protecting managed wetlands in new state-required groundwater sustainability plans is not going forward this year, but CWA has not stopped fighting for wetlands.
CWA sent a strongly-worded
letter this week to the state Department of Water Resources outlining the need to protect wetlands in the Semitropic Water Storage District. Semitropic's Groundwater Sustainability Plan ultimately calls for allowing so little water for managed wetlands that 72 percent of them would be lost. "California Waterfowl requests that DWR ... take into account the state's policy of 'no net loss' of wetlands when deciding whether to approve the water budgets set forth in the Semitropic GSP," CWA wrote. "Without the substitution of other affordable water sources, the water budgets required by 2040 would lead to the catastrophic loss of wetlands in the Tulare Basin."
Click
here to learn more about CWA's efforts surrounding the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act.
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SUMMER ISSUE OF
CALIFORNIA WATERFOWL
HITTING MAILBOXES SOON
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The Summer issue of our magazine, hitting mailboxes soon, is a blockbuster chock-full of fascinating stories: Disturbing data showing that Eastern wild mallards are overwhelmingly polluted with game-farm mallard genes - a cautionary tale you won't want to miss. The story of duck clubs that produce fat little salmon, which suggests there is a path forward in which efforts to save endangered fish don't come at the expense of duck clubs. And a detailed infographic with harvest stats from Type A and B wildlife areas and refuges during the 2019-20 season - we know a bunch of you had your worst seasons ever last year, but harvest and averages were actually up at these hunt areas. Click
here to read the full preview, with links to select articles.
Also, welcome our new magazine editor,
John Geiger, who is a seasoned veteran of hunting magazines. This is his first issue with us!
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California Waterfowl is a 501c3 organization whose mission is to grow California’s waterfowl populations, wetlands and hunter-conservationist communities.
Our vision is a California with thriving waterfowl populations, vibrant wetland ecosystems and respected hunting communities.
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