Elk—an iconic species whose bugle inspires hunters and wildlife watchers alike—is a symbol of conservation success. Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky are four eastern states that have recovered elk populations successfully in the last few decades.
Onancock, Va., has been welcoming every kind of boater, from steamship crews and watermen to cruisers, since its founding in 1680. The place is only about a square mile in size and home to around 400 families, but it’s a great location, a couple of miles from Chesapeake Bay by way of Onancock Creek.
The nēnē, sometimes called the Hawaiian goose, is an endemic species found only on the Hawaiian Islands and is the official state bird. Once common, the species declined to only 30 individuals by 1957 due primarily to habitat destruction, introduction of predators, and historic hunting pressure.
The same source of conservation funding—excise taxes paid by tackle manufacturers via the Sport Fish Restoration Act—that pays for scientific fisheries research and management, boat ramps, aquatic education, and fish population surveys has righted an upside down trout stream.
To get a more accurate count of the state’s moose population, researchers, along with state officials, will use drones and trail cams as part of a new moose surveillance program, which started last week and will continue for three years.
The lesser prairie-chicken is a prairie grouse found in New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Kansas, and Oklahoma. Today, the population in southeastern Colorado is rebounding thanks to a conservation partnership between Colorado and Kansas stakeholders and funding support through the State Wildlife Grant Program.
Each June marks both National Fishing and Boating Week and Great Outdoors Month. Like many other outdoor recreation activities, boating ownership has increased in recent years giving the boating industry many reasons to celebrate.
Funds from the State Wildlife Grant Program (SWG) are used by state and U.S. territory fish and wildlife agencies to develop and implement programs that benefit wildlife and their habitats. Grant funds support a variety of conservation needs including research, species restoration, and habitat management.
Wildlife Restoration Act grants are funded by excise taxes on firearms, ammunition, and archery equipment, and provide a significant portion of funds to state fish and wildlife agencies for land conservation efforts.
The story of ducks, geese and swans is a story that involves a lot of people. More than 45 million birders and more than 2.3 million migratory bird hunters engage with wild birds each year in America.
Like many other states, New York’s turkey restoration efforts were funded in large part through the Pittman-Robertson Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Fund.
State agencies use SFR funding to attract new anglers as well as to help keep current or lapsed anglers fishing.
