A recent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service tour of the Pool 8 Islands, near Winona, Minnesota, revealed a stunning sight that wasn’t to be experienced for decades on the Upper Mississippi river—hundreds of European White Pelicans—the state bird of Louisiana—wheeling through the air and settling on islands in the midst of America’s river road.

Widespread use of DDT pesticide devastated the numbers of pelicans in the post World War II period, but farmers have continually improved their methods across the spectrum of chemical applications, soil and water conservation and one of the results is this magnificent river wildlife scene. For decades, pelicans were not in this picture, but in the last few years they have returned and their numbers continue to grow.

“In the past forty years farmers and people who depend on the river for commerce have proved that agriculture and commercial navigation of the Mississippi River can coexist with wildlife habitat—environmental concern and successful farming are not mutually exclusive,” said DeVonna Zeug, a farmer in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, and president of Minnesota Corn Growers Association.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers oversees the Environmental Management Program of the Upper Mississippi River system—in all 72,000 acres of wildlife habitat along the river have been rehabilitated through the program—making up a refuge that stretches more than 200 river miles, from Wabasha, Minnesota south to Rock Island, Illinois.