Grant Program

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  Missouri Bird Conservation Initiative Grant Program

2011 Call for Proposals

July 9 through September 30, 2010

The Missouri Bird Conservation Initiative (MoBCI) serves as a conduit in providing financial support to private and public organizations or to individuals who have partnerships that carry out bird habitat conservation projects in Missouri.  Eligible activities include projects that protect, enhance or restore bird habitats on any lands in Missouri.   All projects should be habitat based and not strictly designed for monitoring, however monitoring can be a component of the project (<10%); some component of monitoring is recommended. 

MoBCI grant projects must be relevant to the goals and objectives of one or more of the major national and international bird conservation initiatives, including the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, Partners in Flight Bird Conservation Plans applicable to Missouri, North American Waterbird Conservation Plan, U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan, and the Northern Bobwhite Conservation Initiative.  If you do not have ready access to these plans you can find them at the following web addresses:

http://www.fws.gov/midwest/nawmp

http://www.lmvjv.org/

http://www.chjv.org/CHJV_Conservation_Planning.html

http://www.uppermissgreatlakesjv.org/hibitatandSpecies.cfm

http://www.partnersinflight.org

http://www.waterbirdconservation.org/nawcp.html

http://shorebirdplan.fws.gov

http://www.acjv.org/documents/Northern_Bobwhite_Plan.pdf

In addition, priority will be given to projects that address priority habitats which benefit priority bird species identified in any of the 36 Conservation Opportunity Areas (COA’s) or approved species/habitat restoration plans.  For specific information on priority Missouri habitats see the MoBCI web site at www.mobci.org or visit the Missouri Department of Conservation’s, Comprehensive Wildlife Strategy, “Conservation Opportunity Area” web site at http://mdc.mo.gov/landwater-care/priority-focus-areas.  A map of Missouri’s Important Bird Areas can be found at http://mo.audubon.org/birds-science-education/important-bird-areas/audubon-missouris-important-bird-areas-initiative-map.

Projects should benefit an array of species, such as grassland birds, forest birds, wetland birds or glade birds. An acceptable project may target one or more high priority bird species, but should include benefits to other species, involve habitat and ecosystem level planning and management, and engage partners with shared goals and objectives. 

Grant awards:

The Missouri Department of Conservation (Grantor) has made $100,000 available for MoBCI grants. Individual grant awards are available up to a maximum of $20,000 annually.  MoBCI grants require a one to one match of [local, state, or federal] funds that do not originate from the Department of Conservation.  The match may include acquired realty, partner financial contributions, monitoring and evaluation costs, stewardship costs, volunteer time, etc.  Projects which include a significant amount of overhead (i.e., indirect administrative expenses) are strongly discouraged.  Funds may be spent over a two-year period. 

Grantees will be required to submit a semi-annual progress report that includes both a financial and narrative summary and comply with the Grantor’s (Missouri Department of Conservation) policy regarding grants.  

Application and Review Process:

Grant applications must follow the format listed in the “General Requirements” section below and be received no later than 5:00 p.m. September 30, 2010, at the following address:  MoBCI Grant Subcommittee, in care of Kelly Srigley Werner, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-Missouri Private Lands Office, 101 Park DeVille Drive, Suite B, Columbia, Missouri  65203.  Mailed applications should contain one original and five copies.  No faxed applications will be accepted.   Electronic applications will only be accepted in MS Word format to the following address: kelly_srigleywerner@fws.gov, please put MOBCI GRANT PROPOSAL in the subject line.

The MoBCI Grant Subcommittee will review, score (based on the ranking criteria below), and provide funding recommendations to the MoBCI Steering Committee.  The MoBCI Steering Committee will make recommendations for final approval to the Missouri Department of Conservation (MoBCI grant administrator).

Ranking Criteria:

Proposals will be ranked by the MoBCI Grant Subcommittee based on the following:

Ø   Priority bird species addressed (15 points)

Ø   Priority habitats conserved (i.e., Important Bird Areas, Conservation Opportunity Areas) (15 points)

Ø   Bird initiative plan goals and objectives addressed (15 points)

Ø   Partnerships developed (20 points)

Ø   Use of project as a model for other projects (10 points)

Ø   Capacity of the organization(s)/individual to accomplish the project (10 points)

Ø   Budget (15 points)

Ø   Bonus for first time MoBCI proposal – (5 points).

General Requirements:  (maximum of five pages for entire proposal)

Ø  Grant Title

Ø  Purpose of Grant (Clearly define goals, objectives, or activities to be achieved with applicable time lines.)

Ø  Project Location

Ø  Is this the first time you have submitted a MoBCI Grant Proposal?  Yes or No

Ø  Project Description including narrative and any pertinent tabular information

Ø  Measurable Outcomes (Identify specific and measurable outcomes that will be used for tracking progress.)

Ø  Measurable Deliverables (Describe products or services that will be provided by the grantee.  Note: Mandatory deliverables for 2010 projects will include 3-5 good quality photographs of people conducting project actions and 1-2 photos clearly illustrating habitat improvements.)

Ø  Grant Request Amount (Including matching and non-matching partners and description of match.)

Ø  Reporting and monitoring plan (Describe process for monitoring and reporting progress and identify a point of contact to include e-mail address.)

Ø  Lead organization, point of contact, and their capacities (Provide names, titles, addresses, electronic addresses and phone numbers of parties who can answer questions relating to the agreement; if applicable, include a list of NGO Board members and officers.)

Ø  List of partners involved in the project and point of contact for those other partners (same as above for Lead Organization)

Ø  Fiscal Responsibility/Management (Describe fiscal management and identify grantee fiscal agent.)

Ø  Habitat types, birds, and other wildlife benefited

Ø  Public Benefits

Deadlines:

All grant proposals must be received in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office by 5:00 p.m. September 30, 2010.  The MoBCI Grants Subcommittee will notify applicants of their status within three months of submission date and indicate reasons for rejection and/or suggestions for making the proposal more competitive.

Please go to the MoBCI website www.mobci.org for examples of funded proposals to serve as a guide in preparation of FY2012 proposals.  

For Assistance Contact:

Kelly Srigley Werner

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

101 Park DeVille Dr., Suite B

Columbia, Missouri 65203

Phone:  573-234-2132 Ext. 112

E-mail: Kelly_srigleywerner@fws.gov

OR

Gene Gardner

Missouri Department of Conservation

P.O. Box 180

Jefferson City, Missouri  65102

Phone: 573-522-4115 ext. 3353

E-mail: gene.gardner@mdc.mo.gov

GRANT TITLE:     RIVER HILLS FOREST HABITAT PROJECT

PURPOSE OF GRANT:

This grant would provide funds that would be used to encourage private landowners through cost share funding and educational efforts to help achieve a goal of maintaining 10 – 15 % of the project area in a regenerating oak-hickory forest condition.  Currently, less than one percent of the forest in the project area is in this condition.

PROJECT LOCATION: 

The River Hills Project Area in Central Missouri includes portions of Callaway, Montgomery and Warren Counties.  The area is bounded by Highway 54 to the west, Interstate 70 to the north but does include the Whetstone Conservation Area, Warren County’s eastern boundary on the east and the Missouri River to the south.  Included within this area are state-managed ownership’s that form the core of the project area (Daniel Boone, Danville, Little Lost Creek, and Reform Conservation Areas (CA’s), Reifsnider State Forest and Whetstone Creek Wildlife Management Area).  Of these, Daniel Boone and Little Lost Creek CA’s have been identified as Important Bird Area by Audubon Missouri.  The Focus Area includes and mostly consists of the Missouri River Hills Conservation Opportunity Area which is recognized in the Missouri Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: 

Oak-hickory forest types have dominated Missouri forests for the last 6,000 years but have been changing at an accelerated rate since European settlement.  Frequent and uncontrolled burning of oak forests ended less than a century ago in the Missouri Ozarks.  From an ecological perspective, the current control of fire is likely the single most significant human-induced alteration to the central hardwood forest landscape (Thompson and Dessecker 1997). The pre-settlement and early settlement history indicates the Central States were heavily impacted by humans, and the widespread abundance of oak today is largely a result of this disturbance history.  Many of today’s oak dominated stands are successional in nature and will likely convert to forests comprised primarily of shade-tolerant species in the absence of continued disturbance (Johnson 1993). Active forest management will be required to maintain oak as an important component of future forests (Healy et al. 1997).  Generally, where the objective is to perpetuate oak, an even-aged management silvicultural system is considered the most appropriate regeneration method. 

Oaks have a fundamental role in central hardwood wildlife communities.  Acorns are the base of a complex ecological web that affects the regeneration and abundance of oaks, the abundance of mast-consuming wildlife, the predators and parasites of mast-consuming species, and the abundance of defoliators and decomposers of oaks (Healy et al. 1997).  Resident and migratory birds use a wide range of forested and semi-forested habitats in central hardwood landscapes.  Probst and Thompson (1996) reported that of 187 species of neotropical migratory birds that breed in the Midwest, 95 use shrub-sapling or young-forest habitats to some degree during the breeding season.  Several of the bird species of highest management concern on the Partners in Flight Database for Missouri breed in young forest or shrub habitats.  Thompson et al. (1992) found that recently regenerated stands in the Missouri Ozarks supported significantly higher densities of blue-winged warbler, prairie warbler and field sparrow than did older stands.

The ruffed grouse has a fragmented distribution throughout the Central Hardwood Region.  This distribution is largely the result of land-use patterns and active efforts to restore ruffed grouse populations (Thompson and Dessecker 1997).  In Missouri, ruffed grouse have ranged from a common bird to one near extirpation, and have been the focus of a long-term, restoration effort (Kurzejeski and Thompson 1999).  The ruffed grouse restoration program in Missouri covered a span of almost 40 years, from 1959 to 1996.  Complete area counts of drumming male grouse have been conducted since 1974 on a 633 acre section of the Daniel Boone Conservation Area, one of the initial release sites.  The number of drumming males on this site has averaged 1.25 drummers per 100 acres of habitat. Densities of drumming males on the Daniel Boone decreased over time most likely associated with a decrease in seedling-sapling habitat from 16 to 7 percent of the area (Kurzejeski and Thompson 1999).  Grouse can be locally abundant in Missouri and will always be most abundant where appropriate habitat, particularly young dense forest cover, exists.  Thompson and Dessecker (1997) suggest that central hardwood forests from 3 to 15 years old provide brood and/or adult cover for grouse.

Management activities to maintain this important young forest habitat component and the long-term maintenance of the oak-hickory forest type in Missouri are mostly limited to public land holdings.  Currently in the project area, less than one percent of the forest is in this young forest condition with the majority found on the Daniel Boone and Little Lost Creek CA’s.  Non-industrial private landowners currently control 85% of the forestlands in Missouri and play a major role in the populations of wildlife in the state.  In the Ozark/Ouachitas Bird Conservation Plan, Fitzgerald and Pashley (2000) recommend that management for early successional birds should be encouraged on private lands through incentive programs.

To address these needs, a partnership was formed in 2000 to regenerate oak/hickory forest habitat in three counties in Central Missouri. Landowners are encouraged through a cost-share assistance program to conduct approved management practices to promote young oak/hickory forest habitat on the landscape.  The partners, listed below, developed a comprehensive plan and have sought out and received project funding.   Practices that can be implemented to provide young forest habitat include woodland improvement and woody edge enhancement.  Woodland improvement is the elimination of shade tolerant competitors and providing conditions more conducive to regenerating an oak/hickory forest.  Woody edge enhancement consists primarily of creating small openings in mature oak/hickory forests to stimulate natural regeneration.  Landowners of high priority project sites, especially those on property immediately adjoining state conservation areas, can be reimbursed up to 90% of actual project costs.

On the ground project work began in the spring of 2003.  As of 1 September 2007, 58 different cooperating landowners had completed woodland improvement projects on 2,017 acres and received reimbursements totaling $120,299.  Cooperators are already signed up for funding assistance for all remaining funds on hand (nearly $20,000), with more on a waiting list.

HABITAT TYPES AND WILDLIFE BENEFITED: 

This project will increase young forest habitat and provide conditions more conducive to regenerating oak/hickory forests.  In addition, practices that enhance woody edge habitat would be promoted.  Dense young forest and edge habitat would be expected to benefit local birds such as ruffed grouse and Northern bobwhite as well as migratory songbirds, including American woodcock, Bell’s vireo, Bewick’s wren, brown thrasher, blue-winged warbler, Eastern towhee, field sparrow, great-crested flycatcher, prairie warbler, white-eyed vireo and yellow-breasted chat.  Of these, American woodcock, Bell’s vireo, blue-winged warbler and prairie warbler are included on the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Partners in Flight Watch List (Pashley et al. 2000) as species not listed under the Endangered Species Act but warrant conservation attention. Bell’s vireo, Bewick’s wren, blue-winged warbler and prairie warbler have been identified as priority birds for the Central Hardwoods Bird Conservation Region (BCR 24) (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2002). All of these species, except blue-winged warbler, have shown significantly declining population trends in Breeding Bird Survey reports.

According to the Missouri Breeding Bird Atlas Project, American woodcock, Bell’s vireo, Bewick’s wren, brown thrasher, blue-winged warbler, Eastern towhee, field sparrow, great-crested flycatcher, loggerhead shrike, Northern bobwhite, ruffed grouse and yellow-breasted chat are confirmed breeders in the project area with prairie warbler and white-eyed vireo identified as possible breeders (Jacobs and Wilson 2000). Mammals including the endangered Indiana bat, flying squirrels and bobcat are expected to respond favorably to these activities (Wade 2003).

PUBLIC BENEFITS:

The public benefits from this project in several ways.  First, private landowners obtain education and funding to help implement important forestry and wildlife habitat activities as part of a landscape level project.  These activities are expected to bring about a better appreciation of the role private landowners can have on maintaining and enhancing wildlife populations.  Since private landowners control the majority of forestland in Missouri it is essential that they are important participants in wildlife management activities.  These activities would also be expected, over the long term, to improve habitat and populations of wildlife species that require young forest or edge habitat for all or part of their life cycle.  Game and non-game wildlife populations of targeted species should increase, providing greater recreational and viewing opportunities for the general public.  In addition, forestry contractors will be hired by the landowners with the allotted funds to conduct these management activities generating taxable income.

MEASURABLE OUTCOMES:

The River Hills Forest Habitat Project Assistance Agreement form provides a tracking tool for all accomplishments of this project.  These accomplishments will include the amount of funding received, the type, level, and amount of management practices conducted per landowner.

MEASUREABLE DELIVERABLES:

The grantee will provide an annual report at the end of the calendar year to all partner organizations regarding the dispersal of project funds and accomplishments.

GRANT REQUEST AMOUNT: 

This grant request is for $20,000 to be matched with $ 20,000 from a portion of the value of the Yale and Alicia Muhm 1,000 acre conservation easement in the River Hills Focus Area.  Following is a summary of funds received so far and those involved:

Funds Received to Date - $140,157

Missouri Department of Conservation, Private Lands Services - $38,000

Missouri Bird Conservation Initiative Grant - $46,767

Ruffed Grouse Society - $41,500

US Fish and Wildlife Service - $7,090

National Wild Turkey Federation - $5,000

Quail Unlimited - $1,000

Enterprise Leasing - $500

Anonymous Donor - $300

Additional Contributions Pledged or Available – $40,910

Ruffed Grouse Society - $10,000 ($5,000 in-kind services)

Missouri Department of Conservation, Private Lands Services - $5,000

Audubon Missouri - $1,000 (in-kind services)

US Fish and Wildlife Service (Partners for Wildlife Program) - $4,910

Yale and Alicia Muhm Conservation Easement - $20,000  Match Funds

REPORTING AND MONITORING PLAN:

The MDC or RGS field representatives review all projects prior to the allocations of funds.  Annual status reviews of fifty percent of completed MDC cost-share projects are conducted by MDC Resource Coordination Team members.  Failure by a landowner to comply with terms of the assistance agreement will result in termination of the agreement and reimbursement for contractor services provided.  Landowners who fail to comply with the terms of the agreement will not be eligible for future participation in this program.

The project contact person, Gary Zimmer, rgszimm@newnorth.net , will provide an annual report to all partner organizations regarding the dispersal of project funds and accomplishments.

Monitoring of bird populations will be ongoing to assess project impacts.  These include the continuation of the 11 ruffed grouse survey transects on the Daniel Boone Conservation Area as well as survey routes on Little Lost Creek Conservation Area.  Spring turkey hunters will continue to be surveyed in the project area for ruffed grouse observations either with mail in surveys or by personal contacts.  These surveys will be coordinated by MDC wildlife research staff.  Federal breeding bird survey routes are included in the project area and will provide useful monitoring data on songbird populations in the area.  Audubon Society of Missouri will continue to conduct bird surveys on selected project sites across the project area to monitor population.

LEAD ORGANIZATION:                                        CONTACT PERSON:

The Ruffed Grouse Society                                          Gary Zimmer, Regional Biologist

(National and Missouri Chapter)                                   Ruffed Grouse Society

451 McCormick Road                                                 P.O. Box 116

Coraopolis, PA  15108                                                Laona, WI  54541

Phone: 412-262-4044                                                 Phone: 715-674-7505

                                                                                Email: rgszimm@newnorth.net

ADDITIONAL PARTNERS:

Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC)

  Contact: Bob DeWitt, Private Land Services Reg. Sup., 1907 Hillcrest Dr.,Columbia, MO 65201

            Phone: 573-882-8388 ext. 234           Email:  Bob.DeWitt@mdc.mo.gov

Audubon Society of Missouri

   Contact: Edge Wade,             1221 Bradshaw Ave., Columbia, MO 65202

            Phone 573-445-6697 Email: edgew@socket.net

US Fish and Wildlife Service (Partners in Fish and Wildlife Program)

  Contact: Kelly Srigley Warner, 101 Park DeVille Drive, Suite A, Columbia, MO 65203

            Phone: 573-234-2132 ext. 112  Email: kelly_srigleywerner@fws.gov

National Wild Turkey Federation, Quail Unlimited, and Enterprise Leasing

FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY/MANAGEMENT:

Landowners apply for assistance through the MDC Private Land Conservationists and Resource Foresters in the project area.  Only projects that address project goals related to woodland improvement and/or encourage woody cover along field edges and within woodlands are authorized.  Assistance is not authorized for commercial thinning but is authorized for post harvest timber stand improvement and forest regeneration.  Assistance can not be obtained from management practices where profits from the sale of products created by the practice take place.  All landowners complete an assistance agreement that identifies the cooperator and land where the practices would take place, the contractor, cost and scope of the practices and approval signatures of the contractor and a MDC or RGS representative. Projects are prioritized by potential benefits to the project goals and lay on the landscape.  MDC or RGS representatives make payments for completed projects only after field verification.

All project funds are deposited in a specific River Hills Project Account at the Bay-Hermann Berger Bank in Herman.  Copies of all payments are forwarded to the MDC Private Land Services Regional Supervisor, RGS National Office, Missouri RGS Chapter representatives and the MDC Private Land Conservationist or Forester involved.  The RGS Regional Biologist provides quarterly updates of account funds to the project steering team.

LITERATURE CITED:

Fitzgerald, J.A., and D.N. Pashley. 2000. Partners in Flight Bird Conservation Plan for the Ozarks/Ouachitas (Physiographic Area 19).

Healy, W.M., K. Gottschalk, R. Long, and P.M. Wargo. 1997. Changes in Eastern Forests: Chestnut is Gone, are the Oaks Far Behind? In: Transactions of the 62^nd North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference, 1997 March 14 – 18, Washington, D.C. Wildlife Management Institiute: 249-263.

Johnson, P.S. 1993. Perspectives on the Ecology and Silviculture of Oak-dominated Forests in the Central and Eastern States.  Gen. Tech. Rep. NC-153. St. Paul, MN: U.S.D.A. Forest Service, North Central Forest Experimental Station. 28 p.

Kurzejeski, E.W. and F.R. Thompson, III. 1997. Ruffed Grouse Status, Hunting , and Response to Habitat Management in Missouri.  Research Paper NC-333. St. Paul, MN: U.S.D.A. Forest Service, North Central Forest Experimental Station. 14 p.

Pashley, D.N., C.J. Beardmore, J.A. Fitzgerald, R.P. Ford, W.C. Hunter, M.S. Morrison and K.V. Rosenberg. 2000. PIF – Conservation of the Land Birds of the U. S.. Amer. Bird Conservancy.  92 p.

Thompson, F.R., III and D.R. Dessecker. 1997. Management of Early-successional Communities in Central Hardwood Forests: With Special Emphasis on the Ecology and Management of Oaks, Ruffed Grouse, and Forest Songbirds.  Gen. Tech. Rep. NC-195. St. Paul, MN: U.S.D.A. Forest Service, North Central Forest Experimental Station. 33 p.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2002. Birds of Conservation Concern 2002.  Division of Migratory Bird Management, Arlington, VA. 99 pp.

Wade, E. 2003. Ruffed Grouse in Missouri – Past, Present and Future. Pp. 6 – 17 in The Bluebird. Vol. 70:2. The Audubon Society of Missouri.

SAMPLE MOBCI GRANT PROPOSAL

Missouri Bird Conservation Initiative

Kansas City WildLands-Bridging The Gap

Blue River Parkway Restoration Project

Purpose

The purpose of this proposal is to restore native habitat for birds and other wildlife in an urban riparian forest along the Blue River. Primary restoration will be accomplished through a large scale elimination of invasive shrub honeysuckle from bottomland and upland riparian forest along the Blue River Parkway. This ongoing restoration effort will improve habitat, enhance and protect biological diversity and improve the aesthetic and recreational value of this area to the urban public.

This proposal will provide funding for additional and continued work in the Blue River Parkway riparian corridor.  Initial funding was provided for this work through a MoBCI grant for 2004-05 and continued funding has been received in subsequent years to address new areas in the linear parkway. 

Project Location

The Blue River Parkway is a linear park system administered by Jackson County Parks and Recreation along the upper Blue River from Swope Park to the Kansas state line in southern Kansas City. The parkway totals over 2,300 acres; however, this figure includes ball fields and other park infrastructure.  Private land inholdings and other public lands (most notably Kansas City’s Minor Park) are also present in the corridor.

The area addressed by this funding lies in the Upper Blue River Conservation Opportunity Area.  The Upper Blue River COA is the only one of its kind located within an urban context.  The Blue River riparian corridor--where MoBCI habitat work will occur--is the key public land feature of the COA and provides linkage and connectivity to the other natural communities within the COA.  Over 3,000 acres of public land are present in the COA and along with riparian forest includes limestone glades, woodlands and the only remnant prairie in Jackson County.

The majority of the parkway land is free from formal park development and is composed of bottomland forest, upland forest and old fields in various stages of succession.  The upper Blue River is a notable feature itself and is contained in the Natural Heritage Database as a good example of a small river in the State’s prairie region.  The channel of the upper river has not been significantly altered; it has a mostly rocky substrate with a good pool and riffle structure and a largely intact riparian corridor.  This upper portion of the Blue River contains a diverse fish fauna including healthy populations of typically Ozarkian species such as orangethroat darter and slender madtom. 

Project Description

Previous MoBCI funds have been expended in three separate locations in the parkway lands.  Initial work (2004) took place in a ~35-acre section of bottomland forest bordered by Minor Park on the north, Martha Truman Road junction to the south, the Blue River to the west and Blue River Road to the east.  The second area (addressed in 2005) is bounded by Blue Ridge Boulevard to the north, 139^th Street to the south and the Blue River to the west.  The third area (treated in 2006) is on the west side of the river in the uplands and is bordered by 118^th St. trailhead to the south, Minor Park to the north and the Blue River to the east. Work scheduled for fall of 2007 will address additional land bounded by Martha Truman Road junction to the north, Blue Ridge Blvd to the south, the Blue River to the west and Blue River Road to the east, encompassing land between the sites previously treated.   All of the locations are in Kansas City, Missouri. 

Work scheduled for fall 2008 will incorporate new locations along the Parkway not previously restored, expanding on and connecting the restored areas of the riparian corridor. Kansas City WildLands (KCWL) will implement the MoBCI project in cooperation with Jackson County Parks and Recreation, which administers Blue River Parkway lands.  Approximately 25% of allocated funds will be used to re-treat the four sites covered in previous years.

A number of invasive exotic species are present in this forest including garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), wintercreeper (Euonymus fortunei) and Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica).  However, the greatest threat to the area is posed by shrub honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii), which forms dense stands in many places.

Shrub honeysuckle, an escapee from urban landscaping use, suppresses the herbaceous ground flora and eliminates recruitment of other shrubs and trees due to its rapid proliferation, fast growth and the effects of shading by large plants. These shrubs leaf out in March and retain green leaves into December, thus providing a dense sunlight-screening canopy. It is suspected that these shrubs also possess allelopathic properties that additionally inhibit other plant growth. The lack of vegetation at the ground level in an area severely impacted by honeysuckle can also lead to significant amounts of erosion and soil loss, especially on slopes. 

Shrub honeysuckle does produce prolific crops of berries in fall that persist into winter.  These fruits are consumed by birds that in turn readily disperse the seeds to create new infestations.  Prescribed fires can in some situations control shrub honeysuckle, but this application is limited.  Plants must be small, fire must be repeated, and adequate fuels must be present to provide sufficient heat to be effective.  Hand or mechanical removal is difficult, impractical and can cause significant soil disturbance.  For these reasons, control of this noxious shrub must rely on herbicides applied either as a foliar spray to young plants, cutting or stump treating, or basal applications. Manually cutting and treating honeysuckle will require thousands of hours of volunteer time and take several years to complete. Funding through the MoBCI grant will provide a one-time basal application to the honeysuckle, thus greatly accelerating the successful restoration of this bottomland forest.

Project Timeline

Fall 2008:  Shrub honeysuckle basal application.  Work to be done from late October to early December after first frost when vegetation is dormant but honeysuckle is retaining green foliage.  [Optional:  Reserve two days for follow-up in early spring, 2009 to assess, kill and treat surviving plants.]

Spring 2009: Plant appropriate native shrubs and trees within previously treated areas.

Measurable Outcomes/Deliverables

Measurable outcomes and deliverables will include acres of bottomland forest cleared of exotics, increased quantity of hard and soft mast habitat-specific trees planted as food/shelter for birds and other wildlife, a complete and continually updated bird list for the corridor, restoration management plans for short and long term restoration/conservation goals of the corridor (for ongoing use by the land manager and as a model for future greenway restoration planning in the two-state urban watershed), restoration volunteer hours and new partners/stakeholders committing to the project to ensure its long-term success.

Grant Request

Kansas City WildLands is requesting $20,000 for the Blue River Parkway Project. 

Matches for the Project will come from:

·       Key Partner and Project site landowner, Jackson County Parks and Recreation, will provide in-kind contributions in the form of staff time (administrative, supervisory and labor), equipment and maps.   $1,000 minimum in-kind.

·       Other key KCWL partners directly involved in the Project include Bridging The Gap, Kansas City Parks and Recreation, Burroughs Audubon Society, Missouri Department of Conservation, University of Missouri – Kansas City and Rockhurst University. Partners will provide in-kind coordination, biological, environmental and educational expertise, monitoring, restoration/management plans, equipment, workday supplies, staff time, transportation, promotions and recruitment via website, newsletters and mailings and meeting facilities.     $12,900 in-kind.

·       KCWL volunteers’ in-kind hands-on restoration, minimum of 325 hours. In-kind based on nationally recognized Independent Sector 2006 published volunteer time value of $18.77 per hour, national average.     $6,100.25 in-kind.

Total in-kind contributions: $20,000.25

Monitoring

Kansas City WildLands partners and volunteers will provide the following to ensure and measure the success of the project:  1) monitor and eliminate any re-growth of shrub honeysuckle in the treated area; 2) maintain vegetation monitoring plots in treated areas; 3) continue to keep a detailed bird list in the Project area.

Time Table for Reporting/Monitoring

Lead Organization

Kansas City WildLands, an affiliate of Bridging The Gap (BTG), will act as the lead organization. KCWL is a coalition of 31 Partners from Missouri and Kansas representing academic institutions, federal, state and local government entities, conservation organizations, conservation-minded individuals and businesses committed to conserving, protecting and restoring the remnant natural communities of the Kansas City region, by involving people in the stewardship of these lands.

Since its inception in 2001, KCWL Partners have worked together to conduct over 120 Ecological Restoration Workdays on 13 sites in and around Kansas City, in both Kansas and Missouri. Over 2,200 volunteers have committed 13,000 plus hours of restoration and conservation work and have conducted a large variety of outreach events to educate the public about the importance of these natural communities. The KCWL Partners have committed their time, in-kind and fiscal contributions, and expertise towards the success of the KCWL goals.

       Applied Ecological Services, Inc.

·       Blue River Watershed Association

·       Bridging The Gap

·       Burroughs Audubon Society

·       Citizen Representation –William Eddy, Dr. Patrick Woolley

·       Clay County Parks, Recreation and Historic Sites

·       Environmental Protection Agency – Region 7

·       Friends of Lakeside Nature Center

·       Grassland Heritage Foundation

·       Jackson County Parks and Recreation – Natural Resources Division

·       Johnson County Parks and Recreation District

·       Kansas City Herpetological Society

·       Kansas City Parks and Recreation

·       Kansas City Power and Light Co

·       Kansas City Zoological Park

·       Little Blue River Watershed Coalition

·       Mid-America Regional Council

·       Missouri Department of Conservation

·       Missouri Native Plant Society

·       Missouri Prairie Foundation

·       Powell Gardens

·       Rockhurst University

·       Sierra Club – Thomas Hart Benton Group

·       The Nature Conservancy

·       UMKC – Geosciences and Environmental Studies Department

·       Westar Energy, Inc

·       William Jewell College

While all KCWL Partners will participate in the Blue River Parkway Project, the key Partners for the Project are described and listed separately within this proposal.

The point of contact is Linda Lehrbaum, Program Coordinator, 435 Westport Rd #23, Kansas City, MO 64111, 816-561-1087, linda@bridgingthegap.org.

2007 KCWL Executive Committee:

Paul Klawinski – Chair, 816-415-7628, klawinskip@william.jewell.edu

Larry Rizzo, MDC, 816-655-6250 x 246, Larry.Rizzo@mdc.mo.gov

             Sarah Hatch, Friends of Lakeside Nature Center, 913-551-7199, hatch.sarah@epa.gov

Chad Scholes, Rockhurst University, 816-501-4160, Chad.Scholes@Rockhurst.edu

Marci Jones, KCMOPR, 816-513-7530, marci_jones@kcmo.org

Joe Werner, KCP&L, 816-654-1741, joe.werner@kcpl.com

Jason Dremsa, Applied Ecological Services, 785-542-3090 x101, jason.dremsa@appliedeco.com

Patrick Woolley, citizen rep, patwoolley@sbcglobal.net

Key Partners for the Project

Bridging The Gap, a community based environmental non-profit, will provide volunteer coordination and recruitment, fiscal management and administrative oversight as the parent corporation for KCWL. Contact Linda Lehrbaum, Program Coordinator, 816-561-1087, linda@bridgingthegap.org.

Burroughs Audubon Society will provide avian expertise, monitoring and promotion of Project. Contact Don Arney, sora@kc.rr.com , 816-931-8536

Jackson County Parks and Recreation, as landowner of the Project site, will provide extensive land and natural resource management expertise. Contact John Jansen, Natural Resources Supervisor, jansjoh@gw.co.jackson.mo.us , 816-554-1265

Kansas City Parks and Recreation will provide strong support in equipment, facilities, volunteers and staff. Contact Marci Jones, Superintendent, South Region, marci_jones@kcmo.org, 816-513-7530

Missouri Department of Conservation will provide biological, environmental and educational expertise, management plan experience and monitoring. Contact Larry Rizzo, Natural History Biologist, Larry.Rizzo@mdc.mo.gov, 816-655-6250 x246

Rockhurst University will provide extensive biological and environmental expertise, volunteers, monitoring. Contact Chad Scholes, Professor, Biology, Chad.Scholes@Rockhurst.edu, 816-501-4160

Fiscal Responsibilities/Management

Bridging The Gap hosts KCWL as a subsidiary non-profit organization. KCWL has its own policy-making structure, similar to a Board of Directors. BTG provides the staff, supervision and expertise in project coordination, and acts as fiscal agent for this project, overseeing all aspects of grant management in collaboration with the KCWL Partners. The fiscal management entails monthly reporting to the KCWL Executive Committee which will then report to the Partner organizations. Bridging The Gap has an annual audit of its finances, including subsidiaries, by an independent CPA firm, Keller & Owens, LLC.

Habitat Type, Bird/Wildlife Benefits

Bottomland forest and intact wooded riparian corridors are valuable habitat for birds and many other species of wildlife wherever they occur.  However, in the context of a largely urbanized landscape, they become even more critical. The Blue River Parkway is a vital pathway for wildlife travel and dispersal in south Kansas City as it connects the urban parklands of Swope Park to less intensely developed lands in the southern city limits. From a bird conservation perspective, the habitat provided by the parkway is home to a wide variety of birds including permanent residents and wintering species, but most notably is used heavily by neotropical migrants. Broad-winged Hawk, Cooper’s Hawk, Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Yellow-throated Warbler, Acadian Flycatcher and Louisiana Waterthrush nest here, however its greatest value is as a refuge and resting and foraging area for migrants. At least 46 species of neotropical birds were documented in the project area of the corridor in 2004.  In Spring 2006, monitoring by members of Burroughs Audubon Society revealed a male Cerulean Warbler singing on territory in June and the rare Connecticut Warbler was seen by several observers in May during migration.

Partners In Flight (PIF) priority birds for Missouri (prairie peninsula physiographic area) include Red-headed Woodpecker, Eastern Wood Pewee and Cerulean Warbler. Each of these species is present in the parkway during nesting season.  The broader goal of this project to benefit neotropical migrants is certainly compatible with PIF’s goals.

The following Audubon watch-list species have utilized the project area from 2004-2007: Red-headed woodpecker, Golden-winged Warbler, Canada Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, and Olive-sided Flycatcher.

The infestation of shrub honeysuckle, however, threatens the value of this habitat. Exotic honeysuckle eliminates a diverse herbaceous flora, reduces the structural heterogeneity of the forest and threatens the long-term viability of the forest by suppressing young trees and eliminating recruitment. Studies have documented that shrub honeysuckle provides inadequate nesting habitat and that birds choosing to nest in honeysuckle shrubs are more vulnerable to predation. Although over 20 species of warblers have been observed in the project area, ground-nesting and foraging species like the Kentucky Warbler and Ovenbird are seldom documented, nor is the Wood Thrush, a species with similar needs. It is reasonable to suspect that the presence of exotic honeysuckle may be affecting the suitability of the habitat for these and other species.

Public Benefits

Trails in the Blue River Parkway are heavily used for a variety of recreational purposes. Parkway lands are easily accessed by birders and represent one of the best places to see several species (such as Pileated Woodpecker) in the Kansas City area.  In good migration years, birders have a realistic chance to see 20 species of warblers on an outing in early May. 

Aside from improving the bird and wildlife habitat and subsequent viewing opportunities for the public, the removal of the dense shrub honeysuckle layer will dramatically improve the aesthetic quality of the area. In many sections of the parkway, visitors today confront a wall of dense green shrub foliage nine months of the year. A small area cleared by Kansas City WildLands in the past year now offers a view of a jack-in-the-pulpit population previously hidden or totally suppressed by shrub honeysuckle.

Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) includes the south Blue River in its Metrogreen comprehensive trail plan for Kansas City.  The honeysuckle eradication work being performed today will greatly enhance the quality of this area for future users when a formal trail system is constructed.