Programs

Wildlife Habitat Education Program (WHEP)

   

What is WHEP?

WHEP (Wildlife Habitat Education Program) is a hands-on, environmental education program that teaches young people valuable lessons about wildlife management, conservation, leadership, team-building, citizenship, and communication.

What Will I Learn?

As a participant in WHEP, you will gain a greater understanding of the value of land and how it can be managed to benefit many wildlife and fish species. You can apply your skills and knowledge to create better habitats for wildlife and fish now and in the future, perhaps as a wildlife professional, a landowner, or an active volunteer in your community.

You will learn:

1. About different kinds of wildlife, what they eat, and where they live.
2. Wildlife terms and ideas.
3. How to attract different wildlife species.
4. How to judge the quality of wildlife habitat.

The WHEP Contest

WHEP program members have the opportunity to travel and compete in state and national contests each year.

2012 Virginia WHEP Contest – Montgomery County, April 28, 2012

The contest portion of WHEP is divided into four activities including: 

• Wildlife Identification – Participants compete as individuals and are tested on their ability to identify pre-determined wildlife species. Twenty photographs of wildlife species, which clearly show either a juvenile, adult, male, or female of the species is presented to the participants.
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• General Wildlife Knowledge – Participants compete as individuals and are tested on their knowledge of topics ranging from wildlife habitat for select species to management practices that benefit wildlife.
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• Wildlife Management Practices – Participants compete as individuals and are taken to an outdoor site with defined boundaries and are asked to evaluate the quality of habitat for select wildlife species. Based on each participant’s site evaluation, he or she is asked to recommend wildlife management practices that will benefit each select wildlife species.
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• Written Wildlife Management Plan – Participants compete as a team to write a two-page management plan for an outdoor site with defined boundaries that meets objectives established in a field conditions sheet provided to each team.
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  • Oral Defense of Written Plan – Although each team member completes this activity individually, the individual score counts toward the final team score for the written plan. Each individual team member appears before a panel of two to three judges and answers questions over a five-minute period about their written plan, as well as general wildlife questions.

How to Get Involved?

• Recruit adult volunteers to provide leadership to a WHEP program in your county.
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• Recruit youth who are interested in learning about wildlife and wildlife management.
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• Download the National WHEP manual. This is your study guide. It has a lot of information, so it is best to break it down into smaller sections for teaching.
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• Visit the Virginia 4-H website for more information and training materials: http://www.4-h.ext.vt.edu/programs/nree/nree.html
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• Recruit wildlife professionals, groups, and enthusiasts in your area to help.
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• Contact your local 4-H office for support.
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• Participate in the state contest as an observer and/or volunteer.
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• Have fun!