Monticello Live

The Southeast regional office of Duck Unlimited has hired a UAM Wildlife graduate student as its new State Waterfowl Biologist. Jakeb Spears started his new job in Jonesboro, Arkansas, on September 21st.  He will assist private landowners and state partners in improving waterfowl habitat on their properties.   He will help them enroll eligible lands in federal conversation programs such as the Wetland Reserve Easement Program.

Spears graduated from the College of Forestry, Agriculture, and Natural resources in August 2020 with a Master of Science degree in Wildlife Ecology and Management. Jake Spears worked in the lab of Dr. Douglas Osborne. His research examined the perceptions of Arkansas duck hunters on the change in water management plans on green-Tree reservoirs managed by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.

Spears supervisor Tim Willis said in a staff e-mail, “Jake will be working closely with our state and federal partners to coordinate technical aspects of private lands habitat conservation projects in Arkansas.  He will also serve as primary contact for our NRCS project delivery and assist with Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Green-Tree Reservoir Enhancement Initiative”. The program works to improve forest health on numerous Wildlife Management Areas across the state to help improve future hunting opportunities.

“As you can see, Jake’s background will complement our conservation efforts in the Natural State and help grow our overall conservation programs throughout the Mississippi Alluvial Valley.  I am very excited to welcome him to the Conservation Team and the Ducks Unlimited family.”, said Willis.

This entry was posted on Monday, September 28th, 2020 at 12:43 am and is filed under Announcements. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.