The division of wildlife developed a comprehensive wildlife conservation strategy (cwcs) to guide use of SWG funding for our efforts to conserve, restore, and expand populations of species of greatest…

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife (DOW) received a State Wildlife Grants (SWG) Formula Grant (CFDA 15.634) from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Region 3, with $1,102,194.58 obligated for the period July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. Under this award, DOW implements conservation projects aligned with Ohio's State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) to benefit species of greatest conservation need (SGCN). The Division delivers three primary categories of products and services: survey and monitoring activities to assess SGCN distribution, abundance, population dynamics, and habitat requirements; research initiatives to identify limiting factors affecting wildlife population growth and range expansion; and routine operations and administrative activities supporting wildlife management. These projects directly address data gaps that constrain effective SGCN management and contribute to a statewide habitat quality assessment critical for protecting Ohio's wildlife diversity.

DOW achieves SWAP goals and objectives through coordinated research, survey, and monitoring efforts designed to develop and implement management strategies across all organizational units for conserving, restoring, and expanding SGCN populations throughout Ohio. The Division collaborates with the Ohio Biodiversity Conservation Partnership and other research entities to generate the scientific knowledge necessary to support evidence-based wildlife management decisions. Each project submitted identifies specific linkages to conservation needs outlined in the SWAP, ensuring targeted resource allocation toward the state's highest-priority wildlife conservation outcomes.

The division of wildlife developed a comprehensive wildlife conservation strategy (cwcs) to guide use of SWG funding for our efforts to conserve, restore, and expand populations of species of greatest conservation need (sgcn). In late 2015, the division finalized updates to the original cwcs, now referred to as the state wildlife action plan (swap). Division biologists achieve goals and objectives outlined in the swap through projects identified in this grant. Project categories for implementation of conservation strategies include: survey and monitoring, research, and routine operations projects which include administrative activities. Each project submitted in this grant will identify how a proposed activity is linked to or addresses a conservation need identified within the swap.ohios swap points out data gaps that limit our ability to manage sgcn. To be able to improve the status and distribution of sgcn species, we need a better knowledge of present distribution, abundance, population dynamics, habitat requirements, and factors that are limiting population growth and or range expansion. Additionally, a statewide assessment of habitat quality and distribution is critical to protecting ohios wildlife diversity.for this grant, DOW developed innovative projects to identify and address the management needs of sgcn and their respective habitats. Objectives of these projects include: coordinate and conduct research, survey, and monitoring efforts to obtain data on present distribution, relative abundance, population dynamics and the limiting factors for wildlife species and to identify and prioritize those species with the greatest conservation needs in ohio. Develop and implement management strategies within all division organizational units to conserve, restore, and expand populations of species with the greatest conservation need in ohio. Continue collaboration with and support of the research program with the ohio biodiversity conservation partnership (obcp) at the ohio state university (OSU). While research is routinely performed by our staff to build upon established conservation efforts, this partnership allows US to leverage additional expertise and resources to enhance our knowledge base.achieving these objectives will enable the division to enhance its swap, and be more effective at conserving, restoring, and expanding populations of imperiled wildlife, and prioritizing species with the greatest conservation needs.