Pheasant Fest Offers Free One-on-One Wildlife Advice at Landowner Help Desk
Expert Biologists Use Internet-Generated Aerial Photos to Offer Conservation Options

St. Paul, Minn. – November 29, 2004 – At Pheasants Forever’s (PF) National Pheasant Fest, Nebraska and Iowa landowners will get free one-on-one attention from expert wildlife biologists at the new Landowner Help Desk.  The Landowner Help Desk will provide property owners with a unique opportunity to explore options for creating wildlife habitat on their land.  This new feature provides landowners with “one-stop shopping” for information about enrolling private lands in federal, state, and local conservation programs to benefit wildlife.  PF’s National Pheasant Fest is slated for January 14 – 16th at the Qwest Center in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. 

Using computer software, expert wildlife biologists will be able to look at a landowner’s property through aerial photographs.  Landowners just need to bring the legal description of their property (township, range, and section).  From that description, the biologists will be able to find aerial photos of any property on the computer.  In some cases, a general description of how the property relates to a town is all that is needed to visually identify the land.  Using those aerial photos, the biologists will discuss the landowner’s conservation options. 

Biologists will be fluent in federal conservation programs run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).  Those programs include the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP), and Grasslands Reserve Program (GRP) to name a few.  In addition to federal programs, the biologists will be knowledgeable about state and local PF conservation programs and will be able to discuss steps for enrolling in all eligible programs.  Landowners will also be able to discuss potential cost-share options, as well as average land rental rates.  Biologists will be most knowledgeable about Nebraska and Iowa programs; however, they should be able to offer some assistance to all interested landowners.  The Landowner Help Desk is presented in part by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, NRCS, FSA, and Successful Farming magazine.

“This is a huge attraction for Pheasant Fest 2005 and very unique in the conservation world,” said Pete Berthelsen, PF’s director of conservation programs in Nebraska.  “For the Nebraska and Iowa landowner, we can give the entire array of wildlife options available to them on their property.  From federal programs like CRP and WRP, to Nebraska’s state programs like CRP-MAP, to local PF project cost-shares; we can walk through wildlife-promoting conservation options in an easy-to-understand format.”

National Pheasant Fest 2005, presented by Cabela’s, promises to be the country’s largest event for upland hunters, sport dog owners, and wildlife habitat conservationists.  Pheasant Fest 2005 will be Pheasants Forever’s (PF) second such event.  The first Pheasant Fest was held in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2003.  That first Fest attracted thousands of members, conservation leaders, and pheasant hunters from around the country.  This year’s Omaha event will be double the size of the first Fest with twice the exhibitor booths, bigger seminars, and more special events.  There's even a chance to go hunting if you are so inclined; Nebraska’s pheasant hunting season is open until January 31st.  Nebraska’s 59 PF chapters and Iowa’s 102 PF chapters will also conduct their annual state meetings at this year’s Pheasant Fest.  For more information about PF and Pheasant Fest 2005, go to www.pheasantsforever.org.

PF is a national non-profit conservation organization dedicated to the protection and enhancement of pheasant and other wildlife populations in North America through habitat improvement, land management, public awareness, and education.  Such efforts benefit landowners and wildlife alike.  There are more than 108,000 PF members in over 600 local chapters across the U.S. and Canada.