[Image: Longleaf Pine]Private landowners control large quantities of wildlife habitat in Louisiana. Because of this, the National Wild Turkey Federation recently partnered with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to restore 500 acres of traditional longleaf pine habitat on private lands in the Pelican State.
The partnership used a grant from The Wildlife Conservation Society to enhance EQIP and WHIP, two federal habitat cost-sharing programs, and help landowners plant longleaf pine trees and native warm-season grasses on their properties.
“Partnerships, such as this one with the Louisiana NRCS, are imperative in helping landowners keep their lands as working forests,” said Lynn Lewis-Weis, NWTF biologist. “Working forests provide clean water, wildlife habitat, recreation and forest products that benefit our entire society. Without this combined effort, landowners would not have been able to plant longleaf on their properties, much less include the native plants component.”
Majestic longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) forests once dominated the southeastern United States, occupying more than 90 million acres from Virginia to Texas, but today occupy only 3 percent of their original range.
However, conservation agencies and organizations, such as the NWTF, are working to restore longleaf pine forests by helping replant longleaf pines in historic areas and by educating the public about this southern icon.
In addition to habitat enhancement, the partnership provided a one-year subscription to the NWTF’s Get in the Game magazine featuring a special insert focused on conservation issues in Louisiana. This publication was sent to 4,000 landowners throughout the state.
Contact your state’s NRCS, forestry or wildlife agency office for information on longleaf pines and available cost-sharing programs. Or visit The Longleaf Alliance Web site for information on obtaining seedlings, as well as planting and management advice, at www.longleafalliance.org.