Topeka, Kans. – Oct. 8, 2018 – The Habitat Organization is excited to announce the hiring of new Private Lands Conservationists in the state of Kansas. Brandi McCoy (Seneca) and Keith Murrow (El Dorado) will use their natural resource expertise to achieve Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever’s mission of habitat conservation on private lands in the Sunflower State, working to positively influence pheasant and bobwhite populations.
Supported through a strategic partnership with the Natural Resources Conservation Service and Pheasants Forever Inc. & Quail Forever, McCoy and Murrow will add much-needed capacity for private lands conservation assistance as part of the state’s Farm Bill Biologist Partnership. Commonly referred to as the “One Stop Shop” for anything conservation or wildlife-related on private lands, Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever biologists possess the knowledge of federal, state, and local programs to assist landowners in finding the right program to meet their personal agriculture, wildlife, and land use goals. Since 2010, the Farm Bill Biologist Partnership in Kansas has worked with 10,685 landowners to impact 415,923 acres throughout the state.
“The State of Kansas continues to be a stronghold for a variety of wildlife species, including upland birds,” stated Chris McLeland, south region director for Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever. “With a strong culture of habitat conservation in Kansas, we’re excited to continue adding boots on the ground to help interested landowners achieve their wildlife habitat objectives.”
Private Lands Conservationists
Brandi McCoy – Seneca, KS: McCoy grew on her family’s farm in Nemaha County, KS before graduating from Kansas State University in May 2017 with degrees in Animal Science Production Management and Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences. During that time, she interned for Round River Resource Management near Rush, Colorado where she worked with ranchers in the eastern reaches of the state to establish rotational grazing practices. McCoy was employed as a seasonal worker for the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks & Tourism as a stream technician before joining Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever, seining and surveying rivers for aquatic species.
For more information about private lands conservation assistance in northeast Kansas, contact Brandi McCoy at (785) 285-2356 or BMcCoy@PheasantsForever.Org.
Keith Murrow – El Dorado, KS: Murrow was raised in south-central Kansas and earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Wichita State University as well as a MS degree in Environmental Studies at Friends University, concentrating in ecology. Preparing for a career with Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever, Murrow was previously employed with Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism for more than two years, focusing on grassland reclamation, timber stand improvement, wetland management and prescribed burning as a member of their Public Lands Division.
For more information about private lands conservation assistance in central Kansas, contact Keith Murrow at (316) 350-4236 orKMurrow@PheasantsForever.org.
About Pheasants Forever
Pheasants Forever, including its quail conservation division, Quail Forever, is the nation's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to upland habitat conservation. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever have more than 149,000 members and 725 local chapters across the United States and Canada. Chapters are empowered to determine how 100 percent of their locally raised conservation funds are spent; the only national conservation organization that operates through this truly grassroots structure. Since creation in 1982, Pheasants Forever has spent $784 million on 530,000 habitat projects benefiting 17 million acres nationwide.
Media Contact
Jared Wiklund
(651) 209-4953
jwiklund@pheasantsforever.org