Topeka, KS – Sportsmen will now have an influential ally in the State Legislature as Kansas forms its Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus with a Kick-Off event at the Topeka Country Club this evening.  The Caucus will also become the 35th state affiliated with the National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses (NASC). A Sportsmen’s Caucus is formed by passionate, like-minded legislators that understand America’s hunting, fishing, and trapping heritage and its importance to wildlife management and its economic importance to the state. Caucus members set partisan politics aside and maintain a unified front by remaining informed and organized on the sportsmen’s legislative issues they see every day.

Tonight’s event will bring together current members of the caucus, other interested legislators and members of numerous state conservation groups like the National Wild Turkey Federation, Quail Unlimited and Pheasants Forever. Outdoor writers, outfitters and trappers have expressed an interest in the caucus and will attend the reception to visit with legislators about the new caucus and the sportsmen’s legislative issues in Kansas.  Bethany Erb, State Caucus Manager from NASC will also be there to celebrate the caucus’s first formal gathering.

The Legislative co-chairmen of the new bipartisan caucus are House Majority Leader Ray Merrick and Representative Gary Hayzlett.  Tonight, the co-chairmen will announce the formation of the caucus, its objectives for 2008 and its affiliation with NASC. Both of the Representatives and other Kansas policy-makers attended several NASC events in 2007 including the Annual Summit in Missouri last November where they met with NASC officials and were able to interact with caucus state legislators from around the country.

States that have reduced barriers to hunting

EDGEFIELD, S.C.— Across the country, more than 87,000 new hunters have taken to the field thanks to laws that remove barriers to youth hunting.

The new laws and regulations are the direct result of the Families Afield initiative, which was launched to help turn the tide against waning youth hunter recruitment and decreasing license sales- a key source of revenue for state wildlife agencies. The program was spearheaded by the NWTF and its partners, the National Shooting Sports Foundation and the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance.

Together, with the support of the National Rifle Association and local sportsmen's organizations, Families Afield is getting results. As barriers to hunting are struck down in state capitals nationwide, a new generation is discovering America's time-honored hunting tradition. To date, 25 states have passed laws as a result of Families Afield.

Evergreen, Colo. - March 24, 2008 - Colorado quail enthusiasts have formed the state's first chapter of Quail Forever (QF), known as the Colorado Covey Chapter of QF. The Arapahoe County-based chapter is uniquely positioned to benefit habitat for three species of quail - bobwhite, scaled and Gambel's quail.

"For many, Colorado doesn't come to mind when one thinks of quail and quail hunting," said Larry Gysin of Evergreen, the chapter's newly-elected president, "But there are plenty of die-hard quail hunters and conservationists in this state and with Quail Forever's local model, we now have an opportunity to do some great things for this great game bird."

Pheasants Forever launched Quail Forever in August of 2005 to address the continuing loss of habitat suitable for quail and the subsequent quail population decline. QF chapters promote local, state, and federal conservation programs that help landowners protect environmentally sensitive acres for quail and other wildlife. They also employ the organization's unique model of empowering local chapters with 100 percent control of the chapters' locally-raised funds to complete habitat and youth education projects in the chapters' own communities.

Omaha, Neb. - March 24, 2008 - Pheasants Forever (PF) and Quail Forever (QF) announce that John Gottschalk has been elected to the organization's National Board of Directors. A lifelong outdoorsman and conservationist, Gottschalk is Chairman of the Omaha World-Herald Company. The 17-member board meets quarterly and oversees the operations of Pheasants Forever, Inc. and Quail Forever.  

Gottschalk joined the Omaha World-Herald as a general management executive in 1975, after having launched his publishing career in 1965 at the Sidney (Nebraska) Telegraph. He rose to become only the fifth CEO and publisher in the newspaper's 122-year history and served eighteen years in that capacity through 2007. Outdoor recreation and conservation have received considerable attention throughout his journalism career, with both editorial and financial support a consistent priority.

The Omaha World-Herald provides extensive soil and water conservation coverage and has annually awarded and publicized top conservation projects across the Midlands since the 1930's. Gottschalk also created the company's Branching Out program following an early heavy winter snowstorm in 1997 that destroyed thousands of trees in Omaha. The Branching Out program acquired and planted 500,000 trees in the metropolitan area, nearly doubling the canopy of city.

PHOENIX - The Arizona Game and Fish Department and the National Wild Turkey Federation, along with sportsmen and private citizens, successfully captured and relocated 50 Gould's wild turkeys from the Huachuca mountains in early March. The captured birds were relocated to the Santa Rita and Catalina Mountains to help supplement existing populations and continue to expand the range of this unique but once eradicated wild turkey subspecies. The Gould's turkey is common in Mexico, but only Arizona and New Mexico support populations in the United States.

A total of 10 gobblers and 15 hens went to each mountain range. Birds taken to the Santa Ritas were released near Josephine Canyon. Birds taken to the Catalina Mountains were released near the Rose Canyon Lake area. This is the second year that Gould's turkeys from the Huachuca Mountains have been released into these mountain ranges, although Gould's turkeys from Mexico have also been released here. Relocation has been the cornerstone of this restoration success story.

That is the question before the state of Alaska in regards to the Pebble Mine Project.  I have written about this issue once before and I am appalled that the threat still exists.  The issue is the area of the Pebble Mine in Alaska and whether the citizens of Alaska are going to allow an amazingly beautiful lake, watershed and wilderness be turned into a hard rock mine for Gold.

Do we really need more gold in this world?

Please read the following article about the situation.  

Wild Heritage by Todd Tanner (Published in Sporting Classics)

As well please go check out Sportsman's Alliance for Alaska 

EDGEFIELD, S.C. - Recent floods in several central U.S. states have some hunters concerned about the impacts to wild turkey populations. However, wildlife biologists with the National Wild Turkey Federation say there isn't need for concern.

During the spring, wild turkey hens lay their eggs in nests on the ground and, when the entire clutch of eight to 12 eggs has been laid after a period of several days, sit atop the nest to incubate them.

"Hens haven't started nesting in affected states such as Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio yet," said Robert Abernethy, NWTF's director of agency programs. "Until the floodwaters recede, the birds will simply move to higher ground or get into trees and move limb-to-limb to get out of the flooded areas."

According to Abernethy, an overabundance of rain during the breeding and nesting season could cause problems by displacing wild turkeys from wet bottomlands. This is more a matter of inconvenience to hunters than to the wild turkey population in the area.

Madison, Wis. – March 20, 2008 – At a press conference this morning,
Pheasants Forever (PF) President and CEO Howard Vincent announced that
Madison, Wisconsin is the destination for PF's National Pheasant Fest 2009.
Slated for February 6, 7 & 8, 2009, at Exhibition Hall at the Alliant
Energy Center, it will mark the first time Wisconsin hosts the national
conservation organization's main event.

National Pheasant Fest 2009 will be Pheasants Forever's fifth such event.
Nearly 30,000 people attended the fourth-ever Fest this past January in
Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the event has grown into the nation's largest
event for upland hunters, farmers, sport dog owners and wildlife habitat
conservationists. National Pheasant Fest is a unique family event that
offers a wide variety of exhibits, seminars, dog training events and youth
attractions. "National Pheasant Fest is a must-see event for outdoor
sportsmen and women, and Wisconsin can boast having hundreds of thousands
of them," Vincent said, "It's the perfect match."

Gerhard Damm has been publishing the African Indaba Newsletter for several years now and it is one of the best sources of great conservation and hunting information about Africa!  Please Download it here and share it with everyone you know who is interested in Africa!

African Indaba Newsletter March 2008 in .pdf format

African Indaba Website



This issue is incredibly special to me because it holds an article by Shane Mahoney which is a must read for anyone interested in learning more about the North American Conservation Model.  Shane is one of my Heroes of Conservation!

The rest of the articles are great too!!!

Hunter Specialties®, the world's largest manufacturer of hunting accessories, is pleased to announce it has acquired Calef Calls.

Calef Calls offers a line of high quality hand-tuned duck and goose calls designed by three-time world duck calling champion, Barnie Calef.

Calef, who had worked as a member of the Hunter's Specialties Pro Staff prior to 2005, will re-join the company to head up their waterfowl product development and field work.

"I'm excited to be back with Hunter's Specialties," said Calef. "I'm looking forward to helping the Hunter's Specialties team grow their line of dependable products to meet the demands of serious waterfowlers."