State Buys Dauphin Island West End For Conservation

Alabama Newscenter recently reported on the purchase of 838 acres on the west end of Dauphin Island state that conservation officials said would “help protect a diverse coastal habitat frequented by endangered birds and sea turtles.” Funds from Alabama’s portion of the US$8.8-billion BP Deepwater Horizon settlement were used to buy the land that had been privately owned, the Alabama Trustee Implementation Group announced. The diverse habitat includes dunes, marsh and beaches where turtles and birds, including the federally protected piping plover, nest. Neotropical migratory birds also use the area for resting during migrations. Next, a partnership of the U.S. Department of the Interior, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Mobile County and Dauphin Island will develop a bird conservation and management plan to guide future activities on the land.