Habitat agreement benefits Red Cockaded Woodpecker Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Robert Barham and Weyerhaeuser regional timberland manager Ed Smith signed an agreement setting aside 58,763 acres of Weyerhaeuser forest land as a Safe Harbor Management area for preservation of the endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker, during a ceremony in January at the Jackson Parish Civic Center in Jonesboro. The Safe Harbor Management Agreement establishes a baseline number of 48 Red Cockaded Woodpecker (RCW) family groups on Weyerhaeuser lands. This represents the second largest population of RCWs on private land in Louisiana. Weyerhaeuser's main RCW population is within the Jackson/Bienville Wildlife Management Area, leased by LDWF for public outdoor recreation. Weyerhaeuser Forester Alan Boyd, based at the Dodson, Louisiana Weyerhaeuser forestry office, said "Although the RCW is the primary concern of this effort, it is not the only beneficiary. The management implemented to benefit the RCW also benefits a number of non-game and game species. The management, which is strongly dependent on prescribed burning, also contributes greatly to ecological diversity." The RCW is a federally and state-listed endangered species that inhabits open pine forests greater than 60 years old. The RCW Safe harbor Program represents LDWF's commitment to engage private landowners and reward them for proactively stewarding endangered species on the lands," said Eric Baka, RCW Safe Harbor Coordinator. |