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For release May 6, 1996 Hugh Vickery 202-208-5634

SERVICE ANNOUNCES "FLIGHT PLAN" FOR SONGBIRDS,
HIGHLIGHTING INTERNATIONAL MIGRATORY BIRD DAY CELEBRATION

The Interior Department's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today
unveiled a national strategy to stop the decline of songbirds and
other migratory birds by coordinating conservation efforts at the
local, state, and national level.

The announcement highlighted International Migratory Bird Day, an
annual celebration of the northern spring migration of 340
species of migratory birds. The celebration features bird walks
and other events open to the public at sites throughout the
Americas.

"Three decades after Silent Spring first awakened us to threats
to songbirds, we finally have a blueprint that will allow
everyone involved in the conservation of migratory birds to work
together toward common goals," said Mollie Beattie, the Service's
director.

The North American Bird Conservation Strategy, dubbed the "Flight
Plan," was developed under the auspices of "Partners in Flight,"
a partnership of 16 Federal agencies; 60 state and provincial
fish and wildlife agencies; and 60 non-government organizations
including conservation groups, philanthropic foundations, and
academic, professional, and industry groups.

Under the Flight Plan, teams of biologists will identify and rank
bird species most in need of conservation and then set population
and habitat objectives for each species. They also will
designate geographic areas critical to migratory birds and
develop a blueprint for conserving each species.

The various partners in Partners in Flight will use the blueprint
to guide their own conservation projects and to work with
landowners, birding clubs, and other groups that want to
voluntarily restore or conserve songbird habitat.

For example, the plan will provide interested landowners with
management guidance to increase and maintain bird populations on
their property in coordination with other landowners in their
region.

"Partners in Flight has done a lot to conserve songbirds, but the
Flight Plan provides the framework for much more," said Amos S.
Eno, executive director of the National Fish and Wildlife
Foundation. "If we are going to stem the decline of many
species, we can no longer afford this catch-as-catch-can
approach; we have to have a Flight Plan."

The Flight Plan is entirely voluntary and creates no new
government regulations or programs. In its initial
implementation, the plan will be limited to the United States.
However, it lays the groundwork for increased international
cooperation for the protection of all birds throughout the
hemisphere.

International Migratory Bird Day celebrates the joys of bird
watching, one of the most popular hobbies in the United States.
The annual event, held on the second Saturday in May, features
hundreds of events at national wildlife refuges, city and state
parks, national forests, national parks, National Audubon Society
sites, and other nature reserves.

The 65 million adults who participate in bird watching spend from
$5 billion to $9 billion a year on everything from bird seed to
birding trips, according to a 1995 study commissioned by the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.

But even as bird watching has grown in popularity, many songbird
populations have declined sharply in recent years. These include
species such as the Kirtland's warbler, the black-capped vireo,
the cerulean warbler, and the mountain plover. Some species are
declining as fast as 2 percent to 4 percent a year.

Biologists believe loss of habitat throughout the Western
Hemisphere is the major reason for this decline. For example,
the United States has lost more than half its wetlands, nearly
all its tallgrass prairie, 75 percent of shortgrass prairie, and
almost all of its virgin forest.

Partners in Flight was created in 1990 to better focus limited
conservation resources on the monitoring, research, management,
and education programs of declining migratory bird species.

"Many birds travel over dozens of countries, states, and
provinces in the course of a year-long migratory cycle," said
Beattie. "To be effective, there must be a strong, coordinated
conservation program every place they go."

For an information packet on International Migratory Bird Day,
Partners in Flight, or the strategic plan, write: International
Migratory Bird Day, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Room 634,
4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203.


-FWS-


Deborah Wisti-Peterson email:nyneve at u.washington.edu
Department of Zoology, University of Washington, Seattle, Wash, USA
Visit me on the web: http://weber.u.washington.edu/~nyneve/
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