Pheasants Forever to celebrate habitat work at state meeting

The completion of more than 2,000 wildlife habitat projects during 2010 will be the focus of the annual state meeting of Illinois Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever this weekend.

The state meeting will be held Jan. 22 at the Par-A-Dice Hotel in East Peoria.

Biologists specializing in USDA Farm Bill programs will be available to answer questions from 1:30 – 4:30 p.m.

A slate of seminars will be held during the same hours.

The meeting is for local chapter volunteers, members and anyone interested in improving wildlife habitat in Illinois.

The gathering will celebrate several habitat restoration milestones.

The 43 Pheasants Forever, 18 Quail Forever and their 10,000 members statewide completed 2,114 wildlife habitat projects last year on 16,068 acres.

Those projects include a 108-acre land acquisition that is open to public hunting and recreation. Also completed during the past year were 5,345 acres of nesting cover restoration, 112 acres of wetland restoration, 5,483 acres of winter food plots, 4,867 acres of prescribed burning.

Illinois Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever also planted 55,708 trees and shrubs for winter cover. 

An awards banquet will conclude the meeting starting at 5 p.m.

The banquet is open to the public. Tickets are $40 for current members, $75 for new members. If you are interested in attending the banquet, call 468-6806. 

The cost to attend seminars listed below is $5 for Pheasants Forever members, $10 for non-members.

Seminars:

The Illinois Pheasant Story - Richard Warner, University of Illinois

Predation Management – Aaron Kuehl, Pheasants Forever Director of Conservation in Illinois

Improving Fescue Through Mid-Contract Management – Justin Shew, Southern Illinois University Carbondale

SAFE & The Prairie Campaign – Mike Wefer, Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Instilling a Land Ethic in Youth – Janine Kohn, Pheasants Forever National Education Specialist

The Value of Habitat – Gwen Kolb, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

DNR Habitat Teams and Programs – Wade Louis, Illinois Department of Natural Resources

What’s Going on Outside in Illinois – Jeff Lampe, Heartland Outdoors

Boosting Quail Populations – Bob Caveny, Pheasants Forever Regional Wildlife Biologist in Indiana