Historic, archived document

Do not assume content reflects current
scientific knowledge, policies, or practices.

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Cover photo by Stan Thomas, APHIS. Interior photos are
from the APHIS library.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits
discrimination in its programs on the basis of race, color,
national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs,
and marital and familial status. (Not all prohibited bases
apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require
alternative means for communication of program information
(braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the USDA
Office of Communications at (202) 720-2791.

To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture, U.S.
Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250, or call
(202) 720-7327 (voice) or (202) 720-1127 (TDD). USDA is
an equal opportunity employer.

2/ADC Program Highlights, 1995

Mention of companies or commercial products does not
imply recommendation or endorsement by the USDA over
others not mentioned. USDA neither guarantees nor
warrants the standard of any product mentioned. Product
names are mentioned solely to report factually on available
data and to provide specific information.

This publication reports activity involving pesticides. All
uses of pesticides must be registered by appropriate State
and/or Federal agencies before they can be recommended.

CAUTION: Pesticides can be injurious to humans, domestic
animals, desirable plants, and fish or other wildlife—if they
are not handled or applied properly. Use all pesticides
selectively and carefully. Follow recommended practices for
the disposal of surplus pesticides and pesticide containers.

Issued July 1996

Introduction

Since 1985, the Federal Government's efforts to manage
wildlife damage to agricultural and other resources have
been centralized in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s
(USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS). APHIS’ Animal Damage Control (ADC) program
works to minimize the effects of wildlife on livestock and
crops and to protect human health and safety from wildlife
damage as well.

This report documents ADC’s accomplishments during fiscal
year (FY) 1995. The highlights of the year include signing
the Record of Decision for the programmatic environmental
impact statement, completion of the new animal research
building in Ft. Collins, CO, completion of a customer service
brochure, the development of two workforce planning
initiatives, and continuing research on innovative
approaches to lessen wildlife damage. In addition to
traditional responsibilities for protecting agricultural
resources, we continued our involvement in the protection of
human health and safety and threatened and endangered
species.

Preparing the 1995 highlights report is one way we are
working to keep the public and our State and local
cooperators better informed about ADC activities. To learn
more about our research activities, you are encouraged to
request a copy of the Denver Wildlife Research Center
Highlights Report, Fiscal Year 1995. Write to USDA/APHIS/
DWRC, Building 16, P.O. Box 25266, Denver Federal
Center, Denver, CO 80225-0266, and ask for
Miscellaneous Publication 1533. For more details about the
overall ADC program, please write to:

Deputy Administrator, ADC
USDA, APHIS

4700 River Road, Unit 87
Riverdale, MD 20737-1234

ADC Program Highlights, 1995/3

Program Highlights

New Strategic Plan

In October 1994, ADC published Animal Damage Control:
Mission and Strategy—a new strategic plan—which was the
result of a long process involving a “futuring” exercise that
began in 1991 and involved employees at all levels within
the program. We recognized the need for increased public
awareness of the extent and magnitude of wildlife damage
problems, as well as the need for socially acceptable and
effective control methods. The new strategic plan has been
provided to ADC employees and stakeholders. You may
request a copy by writing to ADC at the Riverdale, MD,
address given on page 3.

Sheep and Goat Loss Survey

ADC has continued its interagency agreement with USDA’s
National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) to determine
the magnitude and extent of wildlife damage to various
agricultural resources. In May 1995, NASS released the
results of its survey to determine predator losses to the
sheep and goat industry. Results indicated that, during
1994, predators killed 368,050 sheep and lambs valued at
$17.7 million. Predators also killed 140,000 goats valued at
$5.5 million. Coyotes continued to be the largest single
predator of sheep and goats, followed by feral dogs.

NASS also documented in the survey that both fencing and
husbandry practices tied for the leading nonlethal control
measures used during 1994, and farmers and ranchers
spent an average of $1.77 per breeding animal on nonlethal
control compared to $0.50 for lethal measures. The ADC
program has renewed the NASS contract to obtain
information regarding the amount of agricultural losses
caused by wildlife on an annual basis.

Program Development Activities

The total cooperative funding provided to the ADC program
increased by approximately $2 million during 1995. The
majority of this funding was allocated for beaver control and
human health and safety projects. Examples follow.

In Nebraska, the governor signed a bill providing $50,000
per year for animal damage control activities in that State.
The money will be used under a cooperative agreement and
work plan between ADC and the Nebraska Department of
Agriculture.

The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture increased its
cooperative funding by $153,556; this allocation is being
used to fund several animal damage control specialist
positions.

4/ADC Program Highlights, 1995

Texas increased its cooperative funding by a $200,000
allotment that was used to fund four additional beaver
control specialist positions in east Texas to respond to
increasing requests for local assistance. The city of San
Antonio also provided $20,000 to ADC for rabies
suppression efforts in and around that city.

The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
provided $164,000 in funding, and the Mississippi
Department of Transportation provided $100,000 to expand
beaver control activities throughout the State.

In South Carolina, ADC, the State’s Department of
Transportation, and various counties initiated a cooperative
program to reduce damage to roadbeds and bridges caused
by beavers along State roads in an eight-county area.
Adjacent landowners also benefit wnen beaver
impoundments are drained from forest and agricultural
lands. Interest in ADC expanding its beaver damage-
management services in South Carolina is growing rapidly
as private landowners and local governments from other
regions of the State become aware of the economic benefits
already being derived from the program.

In North Carolina, the State’s Wildlife Resources
Commission and several counties increased cooperative
funding by $278,372 to expand the pilot beaver control
program to 27 counties in response to increasing requests
for assistance.

ADC was a sponsor of the second annual conference of The
Wildlife Society held September 12-17, 1995, in Portland,
OR. More than 2,000 wildlife biologists from around the
world gathered for presentations on diverse topics of
concern to natural resource managers. Several ADC
employees made presentations on bird—aircraft protection,
immunocontraception in wildlife management, chemistry in
wildlife research, international trap standards, coyote-sheep

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interactions, and crop damage by rats. An agency booth
was also hosted by personnel from the Oregon and
Washington State ADC offices.

We provided cooperative toll-free telephone services to the
public in Maryland, Wisconsin, and Vermont. Phone bank
personnel handled more than 22,500 wildlife damage
management calls, including 18,500 relating to nuisance
wildlife in Maryland and Wisconsin and 4,000 calls about
rabies in Vermont. Cooperators in this service include the
Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources, and the Vermont
Departments of Fish and Wildlife, Health, and Agriculture.

Workforce Planning Initiative

During 1995, ADC offered two developmental opportunities
designed to increase the workforce’s leadership skills and
the program’s ability to fill future leadership vacancies.

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The first developmental opportunity, a course entitled ADC
Critical Skills Development for Nonsupervisory Personnel,
was designed to build critical leadership skills in
nonsupervisory personnel. To enable employees at all
levels to prepare themselves to perform (formal or informal)
leadership roles, the ADC Workforce Planning Team
identified 12 leadership skills critical to the success of
everyone in our workforce. These skills include vision/
change management, customer orientation, conflict
management, teamwork and team building, concern for
improvement, influencing and negotiating, leadership,
interpersonal skills, creative thinking, problem solving, oral
communication, and external awareness. In addition, limited
matching funds were provided to help employees pay for a
training course or developmental assignment to enhance
their skill level in 1 or more of the 12 critical leadership skills.

ADC Program Highlights, 1995/4

The second developmental opportunity, the ADC Leadership
Excellence Program, is aimed at increasing the size of future
candidate pools for select management positions. This
comprehensive 18-month program includes leadership skills
assessment, group coursework and individually tailored
curricula, developmental assignments, leadership
interviews, team projects, interaction with the ADC
Management Team, and formal mentors. Ten individuals
targeting Management Team, State Director, and Research
Leader positions participated in the first session of this
program, which was held in September.

Also during the year, the ADC Individual Development
Planning Guide was distributed to provide employees with a
tool to plan for their development for current and future
positions. Included in the guide were position overviews of
all ADC supervisory positions and the Management
Competency Framework, which identifies skills needed at all
levels of the organization.

Brown Tree Snake (BTS) Control Program

During FY 1995, the Department of Defense (DoD) allocated
$1 million to help fund the BTS program at nine military
locations in Guam and Hawaii.

The discovery of a live BTS at Schofield Barracks on Oahu
in the State of Hawaii in late December 1994 generated
renewed concern within and beyond Hawaii. The snake was
captured in a warehouse and apparently arrived on the
island 9 days before in equipment returned to Hawaii from
Guam. This was the first BTS at the Schofield Barracks, but
six others have been documented at the shared facility of
the Honolulu International Airport/Hickman Air Force Base
since 1990.

The control program includes the use of traps, glue boards,
fencing, electrical barriers, detection dogs, habitat
modification, and prey-base removal. Additionally, DoD
funded research conducted by scientists at the Denver
Wildlife Research Center (DWRC) to develop toxicants and
fumigants for BTS control. Several toxicants and fumigants
proved to be effective as potential control methods.

Public Information

ADC continued its “Living With Wildlife” public information
campaign in 1995. Teachers throughout the United States
received wildlife coloring and educational posters, “Both
Sides of the Coin” activity sheets, factsheets, brochures,
pens, pencils, rulers, and lesson plans. Additionally, articles
about the availability of ADC educational materials were
placed in Project WILD newsletters.

In October 1994, ADC’s public affairs specialist attended an

Ag in the Classroom conference in California and conducted
five focus groups with teachers in an effort to develop lesson
plans about conflicts between humans and wildlife.

6/ADC Program Highlights, 1995

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Throughout the year, items about wildlife management were
placed nationwide in a variety of media markets, including
the Kansas City Star, the Chicago Tribune, The Washington
Post, the Wall Street Journal, Smithsonian magazine,
Reader’s Digest, CNN, ABC’s 20\20, the Los Angeles
Times, National Public Radio, and several local newspapers
and television stations.

ADC personnel set up exhibits at State fairs, agricultural
shows, conferences, and community celebrations. Public
affairs materials were distributed at the Minorities in
Agriculture and Natural Resources conference as well as the
annual Oshkosh Experimental Air Show. ADC also
completed a national “Living With Wildlife” traveling exhibit,
which was displayed at the Southeastern Wildlife
Conference, the American Society of Landscape Architects
Annual Meeting and Expo, and several other wildlife-related
events.

Several informational materials were developed in 1995,
including the Animal Damage Control 1994 Highlights
Report and two new brochures, Animal Damage Control:
Mission and Strategy, and Animal Damage Control
Customer Service. New factsheets include “National Wildlife
Research Center,” “Denver Wildlife Research Center,”
“Living With Wildlife,” “Careers in Animal Damage Control,”
“ADC Assistance With Waterfowl,” and “ADC Assistance at
Airports.”

The University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension Service,
the Great Plains Agricultural Council, and ADC edited and
published a new, expanded version of the Prevention and
Control of Wildlife Damage Handbook. This version
contains 65 chapters and is intended for nationwide use.
The handbook is also available on CD-ROM.

DWRC hosted a symposium on repellants in wildlife
management in Denver, CO, August 8-10, 1995. The
symposium brought together leading experts, resource
managers, and others interested in repellants and their use
in wildlife management to exchange ideas, discuss research
findings, management approaches, and future research
plans. Over 100 participants attended the symposium
representing the United States and 7 other countries. The
proceedings of this symposium will be published
cooperatively by Colorado State University in 1996.

DWRC Activities

In December 1994, Richard Bruggers was selected as the

Assistant Director for the Denver Wildlife Research Center.
Dr. Bruggers was previously chief of DWRC’s international
programs section.

The Food and Drug Administration recently granted an
Investigational New Animal Drug application to ADC to use
propiopromazine hydrochloride in Tranquilizer Trap Devices

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attached to traps and snares set to capture coyotes and
wolves. The tranquilizer will immobilize the captured
animals for up to 24 hours, thereby helping reduce stress
and trap-related injuries.

The first building of a state-of-the-art research facility for the
National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC) was completed
in January 1995 on the foothills campus of Colorado State
University in Ft. Collins. The new facilities, being completed
as part of a master plan for NWRC, will allow for the future
relocation of all DWRC headquarters activities to Ft. Collins.
Initial research will emphasize developing attractants and
repellants, a research area that promises to produce new,
effective, and socially acceptable wildlife management
methods. Planning and design activities are under way to
develop additional facilities on the remainder of the 43-acre
site. These plans include offices, laboratories, a conference
and technology transfer center, maintenance shops, and
outdoor animal holding and research facilities for a variety of
mammal and bird species.

Protection of Agricultural Resources

Birds and mammals of many species cause damage to food
crops and livestock worth several hundred million dollars
annually. Blackbirds and starlings regularly consume grain
crops in all stages of growth, from sprouting seeds to mature
crops. Affected crops include wheat, corn, rice, sorghum,
and sunflowers. Ducks and geese trample, eat, and foul
swathed grain and seeds. Fish-eating birds cause serious
losses to catfish and other fish grown at aquaculture
facilities. Mammals, such as deer, prairie dogs, gophers,
and raccoons, also cause damage to a wide variety of foods
crops. Certain predators cause significant damage to the
livestock industry by killing or injuring sheep, goats, cattle,
poultry, and other kinds of livestock.

Here are some specific examples of ADC’s
accomplishments in protecting U.S. agriculture in 1995:

e ADC responded to more than 1,400 black bear complaints
in Wisconsin during the year. Over half of these complaints
involved bears damaging agricultural resources. As a result
of the requests for assistance, ADC trapped and relocated
607 problem bears.

e A sheep producer in southwestern Montana lost 30 ewes
to coyotes in 2 nights during January 1995. At the time of
the attacks, the sheepherder observed two coyotes decoy
the livestock guarding dogs away from the sheep and over a
hill. Six other coyotes then attacked the sheep. ADC
specialists removed several coyotes from the area with
aerial hunting and ground control methods before the losses
stopped.

e After coyotes killed an emu valued at $15,000, a Madison
County, TX, resident contacted ADC for assistance.
Although the bird was penned along with others, coyotes
managed to enter the pen and make the kill. An ADC
specialist surveyed the situation and used traps and M-44’s
at the site to remove four coyotes to prevent further losses.

e Many Wisconsin corn farmers experienced extensive crop
damage from raccoons during the 1995 growing season.
Although raccoon damage is not new to corn producers, an
unusually high number of Wisconsin fields were affected
during the year. ADC responded by recommending
integrated damage management utilizing temporary electric
fencing, scare devices, and trapping.

e In January 1995, sandhill cranes caused $4,000 in
damage when they grazed on a winter wheat pasture in
Kearney County, KS. ADC specialists provided the farmer
with technical information on harassment methods and
suggested the use of Mylar™ flags and propane cannons to
scare the birds away from the area.

ADC Program Highlights, 1995/7

e A sheep producer in Idaho contacted ADC after losing 40
lambs to coyotes during the spring. Despite having a herder
and three guarding dogs, the coyotes still killed the lambs.
ADC specialists used a combination of control methods
including traps, calling and shooting, and aerial hunting and
removed six coyotes from the area to stop the losses.

e A rancher from Mendocino, CA, requested ADC
assistance after reporting that a mountain lion had killed all
of his livestock. The ADC specialists responding to the
request confirmed that a lion had killed 11 goats and 2
llamas. The specialist captured a 150-pound male lion at
the site, and no further predation has been reported.

e Acommercial baitfish producer in Paragould, AR,
estimated that lesser scaups caused approximately
$500,000 in losses to his aquaculture business the previous
winter. This waterfowl species had never been present in
such large numbers or caused extensive losses in the past.
ADC prepared a damage management plan emphasizing
harassment to be implemented during the winter months
before the birds become habituated to feeding on
commercial fish stocks.

8/ADC Program Highlights, 1995

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e Blackbirds caused more than $50,000 in damage to rice
crops in Matagorda and Brazoria counties in Texas in early
1995. Both locations that received damage were adjacent to
large roosting and staging areas used by the birds. ADC
specialists, in cooperation with the Texas Agricultural
Experiment Station in Beaumont, used the avian toxicant
DRC-1339 to remove many of the blackbirds and reduce
the incidence of further damage in the area.

e An ADC specialist in Solano County, CA, received a
request for assistance from a local resident to help with a
problem caused by beavers. The rodents had cut down nine
mature pear trees valued at over $20,000. The specialist
removed four beavers from the area, and no further damage
to the fruit trees has occurred.

e ADC received numerous complaints from farmers in
Arkansas reporting blackbird damage to their ripening rice
crops. ADC personnel spent considerable time helping the
farmers disperse the birds by establishing a bird scaring
program using recorded blackbird distress calls, propane
cannons, and various pyrotechnic devices. These methods
were successful in scaring the birds away from the crops.

Protection of Endangered Species and Other
Natural Resources

Specific Endangered Species Protection Efforts

During 1995, the U.S. Department of the Interior's U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service (FWS) and several State wildlife
agencies asked ADC biologists to help protect threatened or
endangered species. Those requests involved control
activities to protect endangered warblers in Michigan, piping
plovers in Nebraska, three species of salmon in Washington,
Aleutian Canada geese in Alaska, and several endangered
plants in Hawaii.

ADC was contacted by the Maine Audubon Society in
January for assistance in protecting a nesting colony of
endangered piping plovers from red fox predation during the
upcoming nesting season. ADC provided electric fencing
materials to personnel from the society so that they could
construct a predator-proof fence to exclude the foxes. Asa
result of this effort, the nesting success for the piping
plovers has increased significantly.

Biologists at DWRC captured 400 brown-headed cowbirds in
early April to be used in the cooperative recovery effort for
the endangered Kirtland’s warbler in Michigan. The
cowbirds are used as decoys to trap other cowbirds in the
areas of jack pine forest where warblers nest, thereby
reducing the incidence of nest parasitism during May and
June. This was the 15th consecutive year that DWRC
biologists from the Ohio Field Station have provided the
FWS with cowbirds for this project.

In Washington State, ADC and the Chelan County Public
Utility District entered into a cooperative agreement to
reduce predation on salmon smolt caused by northern
squawfish. Squawfish feed heavily on salmon smolts, and
at least three species of salmon are listed as endangered in
the Snake River and Columbia River. During the 14-week
squawfish control program, more than 17,000 fish were

removed. Cooperative funding in the amount of $106,483
was provided to ADC by the District to conduct this control
project.

ADC obtained a label from the Environmental Protection
Agency during 1995 specifically to use the M-44 device to
control arctic foxes in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska for the
protection of threatened and endangered bird species. ADC
conducted a joint training session with the Alaska
Department of Environmental Conservation in May to certify
FWS employees for M-44 use. ADC will maintain strict
monitoring of all M-44 use in Alaska via weekly reporting
from FWS.

The Nevada Division of Wildlife and the Arizona Game and
Fish Department requested ADC assistance in a mountain
lion survey. Nevada officials speculate that an endangered
subspecies of lion, the Yuma puma, may be residing in
southern Nevada. ADC captured four lions and collected
blood samples for DNA analysis.

The U.S. Army garrison in Hawaii signed a cooperative
agreement with ADC during the summer to conduct feral
goat and pig control operations in forest reserves and
military reservations that they manage on the island of
Oahu. These forests and mountains provide habitat for
numerous species of endangered plants that are at risk from
the goats and pigs. On the island of Kauai, ADC expanded
its control program to include the Huleia National Wildlife
Refuge near Lihue. In this area, feral cats and dogs that
prey on endangered waterbirds are being removed.

In September 1995, a pack of six wolves killed at least three
500-pound calves about 40 miles southwest of Helena, MT.
ADC’s wolf management specialist confirmed the loss, and
as directed by the FWS, trapped five of wolves, which are
listed as an endangered species. The wolves were then
relocated to another area where they were less likely to
cause damage. No further predation on calves has occurred
since the wolves were caught.

ADC assisted research biologists from Louisiana State
University in capturing two nuisance Louisiana black bears
on Avery Island, which is located in lower Iberia Parish. The
bears, listed as threatened under the Endangered Species
Act, caused school officials to become concerned about
safety when the animals began frequenting the island’s
elementary schoolyard in search of food. The bears were
immobilized and translocated 70 miles north to the
Atchafalaya River National Wildlife Refuge to resolve the
problem.

ADC Program Highlights, 19959

Other Natural Resources Protected

During 1995, ADC completed a project in cooperation with
the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD) to protect
pronghorn antelope fawns in the northeastern portion of the
State. AGFD biologists targeted critical areas where
existing coyote populations were detrimental to pronghorn
fawn survival, and under the direction of AGFD and ADC
biologists, coyotes were removed from three game units by
aerial hunting. In past years, these efforts have resulted in a
significant increase in fawn survival.

In Idaho, ADC cooperated with the Idaho Department of Fish
and Game in a project to remove predators from selected
study areas as part of a 5-year study to explore causes of
declining pheasant populations. Feral cats, striped skunks,
and red fox were designated as target species.

ADC personnel recently completed the first stage of a
coyote control effort on the National Bison Range Wildlife
Refuge in northwestern Montana to increase antelope and
bighorn sheep survival. During the past several years, fawn
survival has been as low as 1 percent with the resident
population of only 60 does. ADC personnel removed 11
coyotes from the refuge and 5 others from adjoining private
land.

The Fish and Wildlife Service requested assistance from
ADC to help control prairie dogs at the Ft. Niobrara National
Wildlife Refuge in Nebraska. Prairie dogs on the refuge had
increased to the point where they were competing with the
captive bison herd. ADC used the rodenticide zinc
phosphide to the prairie dog population in the area, and
provided Fish and Wildlife Service officials with information
so they could develop a management plan that would allow
both prairie dogs and bison to exist in a reasonable balance.

ADC personnel worked cooperatively with officials from the
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency on a project to
reduce damage to a valuable bottomland hardwood forest
caused by beaver-induced flooding on the Shelby Forest
Wildlife Management Area. Losses included habitat for
many species of migratory birds and forest wildlife as well as
economic damage to timber resources. The primary
emphasis of the project focused on removing the beaver
dams to eliminate the flooding, followed by reducing the
beaver population to acceptable levels for the area.

Near Wilcox, AZ, an adult female ostrich valued at $18,000
was confirmed by ADC specialists to have been killed by
coyotes. The bird had over a dozen eggs inside her which
would have been worth $1,000 each had they been laid.
ADC specialists removed two coyotes from the ranch and
provided the rancher with advice on how to maintain fences
to deter other predators.

10/ADC Program Highlights, 1995

Protection of Property

ADC was requested by the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) to help find a way to prevent
woodpeckers from damaging space shuttle vehicles at the
Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Damage to the shuttle by
woodpeckers caused NASA to delay a scheduled flight for
several weeks until repairs could be made to the spacecraft.
ADC evaluated damage control strategies being attempted
by NASA and participated in a meeting to identify viable
alternatives. As a result of the meeting, a management plan
for controlling woodpecker damage at the Space Center was
developed by ADC and adopted by NASA.

The Young Men’s Christian Association in Hoquiam, WA,
contacted ADC for help in dealing with a pigeon problem at
the facility. Over time, a buildup of feces and nesting
material from the birds resulted in deterioration of the eaves
of the 5-story building. In addition, pigeons had gained
access to the building’s duct system and were nesting there.
Repairs to the building cost $180,000. ADC provided
information on live-trapping methods and on ways to
exclude the birds from the building to prevent future
problems.

Officials of the Burlington—Northern Railroad requested
assistance from ADC to deal with a beaver problem in
Grayson County, TX, in January. A colony of the rodents
had damaged a drainage structure adjacent to a section of
railroad track. The increased water level flooded the track
bed causing settling that required the railroad to lower train
speeds in that area from about 50 mi/h to about 10.
Damage was estimated at about $8,000. ADC specialists
removed 11 beavers from the area to prevent further
damage and reduce the safety threat.

A white-tailed deer disrupted production in a paper mill in
Eau Claire, WI, when it entered the mill and became
disoriented. ADC personnel responded to the request for
assistance by quickly immobilizing the animal with a
tranquilizer dart. The deer was later released unharmed on
a State wildlife management area.

Protection of Human Health and Safety

ADC has been active in its role to protect human health and
safety through the control of animal-borne diseases and
wildlife hazards to aircraft. We have removed a number of
dangerous animals, such as black bears and mountain lions,
from public areas. ADC biologists assist State and local
health departments in controlling animals in areas where
wildlife disease outbreaks threaten public health. We also
conduct programs at airports, where collisions between
wildlife and aircraft pose a serious safety hazard to
passengers.

Public Safety

On December 10, 1994, a woman hiking in Cuyamaca State
Park about 25 miles east of San Diego, CA, was killed by a
mountain lion. Park officials immediately requested the
California Fish and Game Department and ADC to assist in
locating the lion. ADC recommended that a deer carcass be
placed at the location of the kill to hold the suspected lion in
the area until the lion could be captured. The carcass was
fitted with a transmitter which would activate if the carcass
was moved. About 30 minutes after the carcass was
placed, the transmitter emitted a signal, indicating that the
lion had returned. ADC personnel used trailing hounds and
treed a mature male lion near the site. The lion was killed,
and subsequent examination of tooth spacing and human
DNA confirmed that the animal was responsible for the
attack on the woman.

In February 1995, ADC, the State of Texas, and Rhone
Merieux, Inc., worked together to distribute 850,000 oral
vaccine/bait units aerially across a 14,400-mi* target area in
south Texas. ADC personnel later collected approximately
500 coyotes throughout the vaccine/bait drop area to
provide to labs in Texas, Georgia, and Ontario, Canada, for
testing to determine what percentage of the coyotes had
consumed the baits and to test blood titers from the coyotes
that ingested the vaccines. Initial results indicated that 42
percent of the coyotes that consumed at least one bait
showed a response to the vaccine. Further bait drops are
scheduled for early 1996 and will be expanded to include
areas in west-central Texas where there is presently a
rabies outbreak in foxes.

ADC personnel met with environmental engineers at the
New York City Supply Reservoir during 1995 regarding
contamination of the city’s water supply by gulls. Fecal
deposits from gulls using the system’s final-stage treatment
reservoir resulted in unacceptable levels of coliform
bacteria. The reservoir provides water for the entire New
York City area. ADC assisted by developing a harassment
plan to augment wire grid structures recommended to deter
incoming gulls.

ADC Program Highlights, 1995/11

American coots caused an unusual highway safety hazard
on Interstate 10 near Mobile, AL, during FY 1995.
Numerous near collisions occurred when vehicles swerved
to avoid coots attempting to land on the I-10 bridge over
Mobile Bay during inclement weather. More than 200 coots
were killed by automobiles over a 2-week period. Among
the recommendations provided to the Alabama Department
of Transportation included the use a variety of scare tactics
to keep the birds away from the area during bad weather.

In March, a mountain lion attacked a visitor in a national
forest north of Los Angeles, CA. The man was riding a
mountain bike when he saw the lion charging him. The lion
attacked him, biting and scratching him on his head and
arms. The man grabbed a large rock and hit the animal
several times on its head, causing the lion to flee. The
California Department of Fish and Game requested ADC
assistance to capture the lion, and the ADC specialist who
responded caught it a few days later.

The ADC Rabies Information Service, established in
Vermont to address public concerns about the northward
spread of the mid-Atlantic strain of rabies, completed its third
year of operation. During FY 1995, the toll-free telephone
service logged in 4,096 calls, representing a 77 percent
increase over 1994.

Four people were bitten by rattlesnakes during the summer
of 1995 in the Amarillo, TX, panhandle area. One was a
near-fatal incident involving a 71-year-old man. News
coverage of the problem prompted an increase in calls to the
ADC office. Personnel from ADC and the Texas Parks and
Wildlife Department provided interviews to a local television
station, including information on damage prevention, rodent
control, and the rattlesnake biology. The news segment
aired several times and helped allay citizen concerns.

Safety hazards and health concerns were caused by several
hundred black and turkey vultures roosting on a radio
transmission tower at a private aerospace company in
Seville, FL. Many of the company’s employees refused to
work because of the heavy feces deposits on the tower and
associated equipment. Sensitive military transmission
equipment on the tower is critical for safe operations at the
nearby National Aerospace Civil Firing Detachment-Aster
bombing range. ADC assisted company officials in
developing an action plan that included monofilament lines
placed across prime perching areas on the tower to exclude
the birds and the use of noise-making devices to scare the
birds away from the area.

12/ADC Program Highlights, 1995

Airports

Birds and mammals around airports present a threat to
public safety when they collide or get sucked into engines.
As a result, U.S. aviation regulations (14 Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 139) require airports experiencing
wildlife—aircraft conflicts to develop and implement wildlife
management plans.

Because most airport employees lack the technical expertise
to identify the causes of wildlife hazards, the Federal
Aviation Administration and ADC entered into a cooperative
agreement in 1989 to resolve wildlife hazards at airports. At
the request of either the Administration or airport
management, ADC specialists provide technical and/or
operational assistance to reduce or control wildlife hazards
to aircraft. During 1995, ADC personnel provided such
assistance to approximately 350 airports throughout the
United States. ADC also conducts an agency-developed
training program for airport managers and other airport
employees regarding bird identification and available control
methods. (ADC provides the same service to the U.S. Air
Force as well.)

The following accounts represent a variety of problems
reported during 1995 and describe the action taken by ADC
to resolve wildlife—aircraft hazards.

e ADC continued to provide assistance to John F. Kennedy
(JFK) International Airport in New York City to reduce bird
strikes to aircraft. As a result of this program, where
laughing gulls crossing JFK airspace are removed by
shooting, bird strikes have been reduced by approximately
75 percent. ADC also conducted training sessions on
nonlethal bird control techniques to JFK personnel and
assisted in reviewing landscaping plans to ensure that bird
attractants are excluded.

e ADC personnel actively participated in the fifth Bird Strike
Committee USA Conference held at the Dallas—Ft. Worth
International Airport in August. The annual conference
facilitates information transfer, coordinates the development
of new technologies, and provides training on bird hazards
to aviation. ADC biologists presented several technical
papers, participated on a discussion panel, and conducted
hazard control training for approximately 120 attendees.

¢ Serious safety hazards posed by Canada geese at the
Marshall Municipal Airport in Missouri were reported to ADC in
January 1995 after a twin-engine aircraft struck a goose and
the impact damaged the aircraft's wing. A site visit by ADC
officials revealed approximately 300 Canada geese feeding in
cropland adjacent to the runways. ADC recommended
pyrotechnics to frighten the geese, reinforced by hunting. City
officials implemented a harassment program and removed
geese from the airport and adjacent areas during the State
goose hunting season. No further problems have occurred.

° Officials at the Hector International Airport in Fargo, ND,
contacted ADC for help with removing white-tailed deer from
a secured area on airport property. The number of incidents
of deer on the runways at the airport had been steadily
increasing, and there was fear of a deer-aircraft collision.
ADC specialists removed seven deer and airport officials
then donated the deer to “Hunters for the Hungry,” an
organization that provides meat to food charities.

e Bird-aircraft strikes at Dulles International and National
airports in the Washington, DC, area involving Canada
geese prompted airport officials to seek ADC assistance
after an intensive harassment program failed to reduce the
hazard. With assistance from the Virginia Department of
Agriculture, ADC captured 318 resident geese from Dulles
and National during the birds’ flightless summer molt period.
A number of the geese were relocated to the Tidewater
region of Virginia, and the remainder were donated to
charitable organizations for use as food.

Environmental Compliance

In March 1995, the Acting APHIS Administrator signed the
record of decision for ADC’s program’s final environmental
impact statement (EIS). In the decision, it was determined
that aspects of most of the alternatives analyzed in the final
EIS are currently being used in specific situations across the
United States. Because the EIS is programmatic in nature
and national in scope, a single alternative as the sole, all-
encompassing focus of the ADC program may not
adequately cover all wildlife damage problems and
situations. Therefore, the decision was made to send
forward to regional and local ADC decisionmakers the viable
alternatives discussed in the final EIS for consideration as
management approaches, when appropriate, practical, and
reasonable, in preparation of local and site-specific
documents and actions. This decision will provide a
complete range of wildlife damage control strategies
available as part of an overall integrated management
approach.

During the year, memoranda of understanding with the U.S.
Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management
and USDA’s Forest Service were completed acknowledging
ADC’s lead responsibility for NEPA compliance for predator
management actions on Federal lands managed by those
agencies.

ADC also completed and signed records of decision for
activities on the Lincoln, Apache-Sitgreaves, Lewis and
Clark, Challis, Big Horn, Sawtooth, and Wallowa—Whitman
National Forests in the Western United States.

In May 1995, ADC hired three environmental coordinators
stationed at the Albuquerque, NM, Portland, OR, and
Billings, MT, State ADC offices. These individuals will be
under the supervisory responsibility of the ADC
environmental manager, who was transferred to the Western
Regional Office in Lakewood, CO, a month earlier. Each
new environmental coordinator will be responsible for six
States in the Western Region.

ADC Program Highlights, 1995/3

Customer Service and Program Evaluation

During 1995, we developed an ADC customer service
brochure for the program. This brochure explains our
purpose, our mission, the services we provide, and the
standards that you can expect when you contact us. It also
explains how to contact us if we don’t meet your
expectations. Published in April 1995, the brochure has
been provided to all employees for distribution to customers,
stakeholders, and others who have an interest in our
program.

At ADC’s request, APHIS’ Policy and Program Development
section began the second phase of an evaluation to
determine customer satisfaction. To learn if customers were
satisfied with technical assistance services provided by
ADC, approximately 2,000 technical assistance customers
will be randomly sampled in early FY 1996. Results will be
analyzed and published in the 1996 highlights report. The
technical assistance evaluation is the final phase of a project
that began in 1993 to determine overall customer
satisfaction with the program.

14/ADC Program Highlights, 1995