LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
It's likely his office wall displays the only "Arachnids of Afghanistan" poster on base. He's been an air commando officer in Southeast Asia and a college professor. He has also worked with bottle-nosed dolphins, white-tailed deer, red fox, black snakes, rattlesnakes, wild horses and antelope.
Welcome to the world of Dr. Terry Bashore.
Dr. Bashore is the senior ecologist and research scientist to the director of operations in Air Combat Command. He is also the elected president of the National Military Fish and Wildlife Association, and took office in March.
The association was chartered in 1983 by a group of Department of Defense resource management professionals. The nonprofit organization consists of professional resource managers who work to protect and manage wildlife and other natural resources on DOD land. There are 25.5 million acres managed by the DOD worldwide.
Dr. Bashore is constantly weighing myriad factors involving the stewardship responsibilities of species on Air Force ranges, which can impact the mission.
"At Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, there's a plant called Slickspot Peppergrass," Dr. Bashore said. "The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service tried to list it as an endangered species."
He found the scientific data submitted to the F&WS was insufficient and submitted a data quality petition to preclude the unwarranted listing of the plant as endangered. The F&WS agreed with Dr. Bashore that the science was insufficient to list the plant. "A species listed as endangered could impact Air Force Ranges," said Dr. Bashore.
Sometimes when people try to fix one problem, nature has a way of proving mankind wrong. For example, birds are a hazard for pilots, and the Air Force has an aggressive Bird Aircraft Strike Hazard program. Ferruginous hawks hunt prairie dogs out in the west where many of the service's training ranges are located.
If the prairie dog population is significantly reduced, the grass in the area will grow higher. Then a different kind of aerial hunter, the Swainson's Hawk, will move in, which can increase the BASH risk. This is just one example of an issue Dr. Bashore is researching.
Tessa Martin-Bashore is a land manager at Fort Eustis and, according to her husband, "We work well together." An example can be found on the NMFWA Web site, under the Herpetology Working Group link. Through a series of 71 slides, the husband-and-wife team demonstrate in detail the field techniques for surgically implanting radio transmitters in venomous snakes. Mrs. Martin-Bashore is also recognized as a natural resource subject matter expert by the Army and serves as natural resource advisor to a special NATO taskforce.
As the new president for the NMFWA, Dr. Bashore's goal is for members of the association to obtain professional certification as military natural resource managers. This will provide DOD professionals with career-specific recognition and also help them gain a stronger understanding of their profession. This certification is also an important part of continuing education for members.
As the DOD moves toward joint basing, Dr. Bashore will become more involved with Integrated Training Area Management. "I will strongly recommend where the Army uses Air Force property and has a significant impact on the land, that the Air Force institute or maintain an ITAM program."
Dr. Bashore is also working to germinate and re-establish a threatened plant, the Pigeon Wing, on Avon Park bombing range in Florida.
And what's his philosophy for the men and women in ACC who strive to conserve natural resources on their bases?
"If we all follow Air Force and DOD procedures, I think we will continue to be good stewards of the land while achieving no net loss in the capacity of our installations to support the military mission."