It’s not uncommon for someone filling out income tax returns to proclaim out of frustration that the process is for the birds.

In Alabama, a state income tax return can literally be for the birds and other nongame wildlife such as salamanders and turtles.

The Alabama Nongame Wildlife Fund checkoff box on state income tax forms allows residents to donate a portion or all of their refund to programs that help wildlife such as bald eagles and bluebirds

Alabama’s nongame wildlife management programs receive no money from the state’s general fund.

Alabama is home to more than 1,000 species of animals that are categorized as nongame, because they cannot be hunted, fished for our trapped.

As part of its duties, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources manages those nongame species.

The money that helps the state manage nongame species comes from the sale of hunting and fishing licenses, from federal excise taxes and from donations to the Alabama Nongame Wildlife Fund.

Each winter, a biologist flies the length of the Tennessee River counting bald eagles to ensure the state’s winter population of the birds is in good shape. Other biologists monitor populations of shorebirds along the Gulf Coast and keep watch on rare species such a cerulean warblers and red-cockaded woodpeckers.

That research costs money and that’s where residents can help when they fill out their state income tax return.

Each dollar donated to the nongame wildlife fund is matched by federal money from excise taxes collected on the sale of sporting firearms, ammunition and archery

equipment.

Past donations to the Nongame Wildlife Program helped boost the populations of bald eagles, ospreys and bluebirds in Alabama.

In this economy, every dollar is important to most Alabama families and giving up even a small portion of a state income tax refund might be a difficult decision.

Any donation to the nongame wildlife program helps. Donating $5, $10, or more of a state income tax refund is a small price to pay for the thrill of seeing a bald eagle catch a fish on one our north Alabama lakes or to watch a pair of our bluebirds build a nest in a backyard birdhouse and raise a family there.

For those not receiving a state income tax refund, tax-deductible donations can be made to Alabama’s Nongame Wildlife Program, Alabama Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, 64 North Union St., Montgomery, AL 36130.

Dennis Sherer can be reached at

256-740-5746 or dennis.sherer@timesdaily.com.