MIDDLETOWN - Have you seen any snapping turtles lately? If so, that would have been a lucky sighting.

       According to John Hall, director of the Jonah Center for Earth and Art, â€�"The reptiles are taken from our waters ‘at an extremely high rate’ according to the people who do that kind of trapping.” Until last year, the snapping turtle was recently â€�"exclusively excluded” from any protection in Connecticut.

       The Jonah Center contacted the Wildlife Division about the species’ lack of protection, and convinced the Division to establish a state Department of Energy and Environment Protection (DEEP) hunting season--July 15 to Sept. 30--a bag limit of per day, and a total possession of 30 per season.

       Hall said this is an example of the kind of involvement DEEP is seeking from wildlife conservation organizations and individuals. The state requires DEEP to develop an updated plan every 10 years. The current plan was for 2005 to 2015. The new plan will include information on climate change, emergent wildlife diseases and revised mapping.

       Citizen input is vitally needed for its â€�"Species of Greatest Need” list to help develop a revised Wildlife Action Plan. Co-sponsors of this meeting were the Connecticut Forest & Park Association, the Connecticut River Coastal Conservation District, the Middlesex Community College Environmental Science program and the Middletown Resource Recycling Commission.

       Hall thanked the Rockfall Foundation for making space available at the deKoven House in Middletown.

       Participation by conservation partners, academic institutions, and the public is key to making the revised plan an effective tool for conserving Connecticut’s diversity of wild species for future generations.

       â€�"The overview presentation will inform participants who may want to attend a facilitated workshop on November 6, to be hosted by the Connecticut Forest & Park Association at 16 Meriden Road, Rockfall CT 06481,” said Hall. For more information, visit www.thejonahcenter.org .

       Hall shared his convictions about conservation.

       â€�"Protecting wildlife and living in a world with a diversity of life forms [means] we really live in a world where there is a variety and richness of life,” he said. â€�"So whatever our environmental group is or whatever it is focused on, wildlife biodiversity and preservation lies at the heart of it all.”

       Hall then introduced Julie Victoria, a widely-known and respected wildlife biologist who worked for the DEEP for over 32 years, specializing in raptors, shorebirds, invertebrates, reptiles and amphibians.

       â€�"[Victoria’s] presentation helps us all to be better informed as concerned citizens and offer the input DEEP hopes to receive from us,” Hall said.

       Victoria is now working as a private consultant to help the state re-write its Wildlife Action Plan. Her presentation â€�"will give you an introduction to what the 2005 plan was all about, tell why it needs to be revised, and where we’re going with it,” she explained.

       To be eligible for federal and state Wildlife Grant funds, the state requires the DEEP to develop a new Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (CWCS) every 10 years, with the new plan to be completed by September, 2015.

       â€�"The funding for this plan is not for game species per se, there is other funding for that,” Victoria said. â€�"Only 8 percent of Connecticut’s fish and wildlife funds come from the state general fund. Most other funds for the Wildlife and Fisheries Division come from licenses and federal grants.”

       Victoria’s presentation, â€�"Creating a Blueprint for Conserving Wildlife for Future Generations,” gives an introduction to the current plan (2005-2015) that was put together by Jenny Dickson of the DEEP Bureau of Natural Resources, Wildlife Division. This â€�"blueprint” is a kind of template for the writing of the new CWCS, which will contain input from citizens, wildlife conservation groups, and academic conservation entities.

       The current grant addressed all wildlife species, and was funded through the Federal Wildlife and Conservation and Restoration Program and the State Wildlife Grants Program and was established coast to coast; every state participated in this particular grant.

       The 2005-2015 plan was a new call for conservation--to keep common species common, to include not just game life or game fish, but all species and to preserve wildlife for future generations.

       Connecticut’s Vision for the 2005 plan for Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (CWCS) was to fit into current strategic plans and goals, to focus on species of greatest conservation need, to address the full array of wildlife and related issues, to take a biota community and habitat approach, to complement existing management strategies and to have public participation throughout the process.

       The Connecticut CWCS included eight elements identified by Congress with guidance provided by the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agency and the National Advisory Acceptance Team. Each state could write its own plan, but had to include all of the eight elements.

       Element 1: Abundance & distribution--distribution and abundance of wildlife, including low and declining populations, such as the least tern in Connecticut, as the state deems appropriate, that are indicative of the diversity and health of the state’s wildlife. This was chapter 1 of the state plan and contains many maps referring to distribution of species. The development process included reviewing what is already known from reports such as the â€�"Deer Summary Report,” â€�"From the Shore,” â€�"Bluebird Bulletin” and raw data and maps. An expanded review sought information from other agencies such as Connecticut Audubon, Land Use Land Cover and Forest Fragmentation maps at UConn. All major species were addressed: Mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. A thorough study enabled the researchers to determine the species of greatest need in each group.

       Element 2: Key Habitats--describing the level of conditions and locations of each habitat with determination of what conservation actions are needed. In 2005, the plan listed 12 key habitats and 43 ecological communities, such as tidal wetland, upland forest and freshwater aquatic.

       Element 3: Threats and Problems--information to determine threats and to develop focused conservation actions. When lacking sufficient information, then, research and surveys are used to obtain more information.

       Element 4: Conservation Actions--describes conservation acts and the threats. It describes conservation actions sufficient to address the threat, how they will be implemented and what measures of success will be used. Victoria called this element the â€�"meat” of the document. Connecticut works with regional agencies and other states to help conserve the Indiana bat, the golden-winged warbler, the New England cottontail, the timber rattlesnake, the Atlantic and the shortnose dolphin.

       Element 5: Monitoring--describes plans for monitoring species in their habitats and the means for monitoring success. If a species cannot be monitored or monitoring is not appropriate or necessary, the strategy explains why.

       Element 6: Periodic Review--describes the process that will be used to review the strategy within the next 10 years.

       Element 7: Coordination--efforts to involve federal, state and local agencies as well as Indian tribes, then continuing to work with these groups on the implementation, review and revision of strategy.

       Element 8: Public Participation--efforts to involve the public and continue public involvement in the implementation and revision of strategy. This wildlife conservation document for 2005-2015 â€�"Is a whopper!” added Victoria.

       If you are interested in participating in this process, you may find the original 2005 plan on the DEEP website at www.thejonahcenter.org . Submit your comments at the website or on www.thejonahcenter.org , or twitter @Ct_SWAP, #CTSGCN. Plan to attend informational workshops this fall, Nov. 6 and Dec. 6 and 9.