Table 1.  Non-Turner support received by the Turner Endangered Species Fund for 2004.

Source of Non-Turner Funds	Amount	Purpose
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation	$35,000	Swift fox restoration
Foundation for North American Wild Sheep	$10,000	Desert bighorn sheep restoration
New Mexico Department of Game and Fish – services contract and state wildlife grant	$23,625	Desert bighorn sheep restoration
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Memorandum of Agreement	$40,000	Mexican wolf restoration
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Private Stewardship Grants Program	$6,459	Black-tailed prairie dog restoration at Vermejo
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Private Stewardship Grants Program	$29,000	Black-tailed prairie dog restoration at Bad River
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Private Stewardship Grants Program	$10,000	Swift fox restoration

BLACK-TAILED PRAIRIE DOG & BLACK-FOOTED FERRET

Efforts to restore the black-tailed prairie dog continued to exceed expectations.  We have increased occupied range at Bad River from about 670 acres in 1999 to nearly 2,000 by December 2004, and at Vermejo from about 500 acres in 1997 to nearly 3,000 by December 2004.  Increased range for prairie dogs has benefited other imperiled species including the burrowing owl, mountain plover, ferruginous hawk, and swift fox.  Our success at restoring the prairie dog justifies our effort to initiate an experimental release of black-footed ferrets at Vermejo in 2005.  Assuming continued success with prairie dog restoration and the ferret experiment, by 2010 “Team Turner” could be responsible for two projects (one at Vermejo and one at Bad River) to restore populations of ferrets that count toward federal recovery objectives.  This would be a tremendous contribution on behalf of the world’s most endangered mammal!

GUNNISON PRAIRIE DOG

During 2004 we conducted a comprehensive assessment of Gunnison prairie dogs at Vermejo and determined that 1)  about 900 acres are currently occupied, and 2) tremendous potential exists for cost-effectively promoting the growth and persistence of the Castle Rock colony.  Gunnison prairie dogs are becoming increasingly rare.  Recently a consortium of grasslands conservation organizations petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list the species as threatened. 

We believe that we can increase the size of the Castle Rock colony by managing grass height through intensive grazing by the Castle Rock bison herd (prairie dogs do not like tall grass).  This bison-prairie dog system could eventually serve as the basis for restoring a third population of black-footed ferrets!

SWIFT FOX

The swift fox project continued to mature, and we are now in our third year of our six-year reintroduction plan.  We have made notable progress on three related fronts:  1) wild pups are now being born each spring (see attached photos), 2) 70 landowners are now cooperating with our project, and 3) restoration efforts are now being conducted by the National Park Service ( Badlands National Park ) and the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe. 

RED-COCAKDED WOODPECKER

Our red-cockaded woodpecker project continued to catalyze the effectiveness of the Red Hills Ecological Consortium, which is now working on several plantations to promote conservation easements and recovery of woodpeckers and long-leaf pine forests.

DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP

The desert bighorn sheep project continued to make significant contributions to New Mexico ’s statewide population targets and our understanding of the impact of cougar predation on small populations of sheep.  The Fra Cristobal project is now the Game Department’s best opportunity for establishing a wild herd that is secure enough to serve as a donor of sheep for restoration projects elsewhere in New Mexico .  At the end of 2004 about 55 sheep inhabited the Fra Cristobal Mountains at the Armendaris Ranch.

GRAY WOLVES IN NORTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAINS

During 2004 our efforts to monitor and manage gray wolves in southwestern Montana became a mainstay of federal efforts to recover the species in the northern Rocky Mountains.  We have been integrated into Montana ’s field team that is being assembled in anticipation of the state assuming responsibility for wolf management from the federal government.  Our active involvement with the Montana ’s wolf program is critically important since state biologists and administrators are inexperienced with the species.

MEXICAN WOLF

The Ladder Ranch breeding facility continued to serve as an important component of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s efforts to restore Mexican wolves to southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona .  Because Melissa Woolf (TESF field biologist) is such a valued member of the federal Mexican wolf team, the Service volunteered to increase the size of our contract by 20% (from $35,000 to $42,500) to ensure that we are able to continue to offer her services.

WOLF RECOVERY IN SOUTHWESTERN UNITED STATES

We continued to play an active and effective role in wolf recovery planning in the southwestern U.S.   Additionally, we catalyzed the decision by the International Wolf Center to locate their 2005 international conference on wolf conservation in Colorado Springs and include a differential focus on wolf recovery in the southwestern U.S.