NWTF AND NBCI JOIN FORCES AGAIN

For Immediate Release For more information, contact Pete Muller at (803) 637-7698 NWTF and NBCI renew Memorandum of Understanding Jim Douglas, Director of Nebraska Game & Parks and Vice Chairman of the NBCI Management Board and Becky Humphries, CEO of NWTF EDGEFIELD, S.C. — The National Wild Turkey Federation and the National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the 2017 Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies annual conference in Sandy, Utah. This signing formalizes and renews an already strong relationship between the two organizations and provides the framework for even greater future joint efforts and accomplishments in upland wildlife habitat. Several new cooperative habitat projects have been identified and are now in the developmental stages that will benefit wild turkeys, bobwhite quail and other species. “Setting the stage for future collaborative habitat projects with partners as important to us as the National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative is truly exciting,” said Becky Humphries, NWTF CEO. “Our march to achieve our mission to Save the Habitat. Save the Hunt. takes all of us working towards a common goal and it takes partners like the NBCI.” NWTF and NBCI share mutual goals for upland wildlife habitat enhancement and restoration across public and private lands. Both organizations have designated focal regions to concentrate their efforts, and in many cases, these regions have considerable overlap. There is great potential in these overlaps for collaboration, coordination and implementation of upland habitat projects. “Formalizing our partnership with the National Wild Turkey Federation, by way of this MOU, is an exciting opportunity to leverage our resources and make even greater strides in conservation,” said Jim Douglas, Nebraska Game & Parks Commission director and vice chairman of the NCBI Management Board. NWTF has historical success in working with numerous agencies and other entities to restore populations of wild turkeys and continues its conservation efforts through the Save the Habitat. Save the Hunt initiative. NBCI is a coordinated effort by 25 state wildlife agencies and other partners to restore bobwhite quail populations on a landscape scale. About the National Wild Turkey Federation When the National Wild Turkey Federation was founded in 1973, there were about 1.3 million wild turkeys in North America. After decades of work, that number hit a historic high of almost 7 million turkeys. To succeed, the NWTF stood behind science-based conservation and hunters’ rights. Today, the NWTF is focused on the future of hunting and conservation through its Save the Habitat. Save the Hunt. initiative – a charge that mobilizes science, fundraising and devoted volunteers to conserve or enhance more than 4 million acres of essential wildlife habitat, recruit at least 1.5 million hunters and open access to 500,000 acres for hunting. For more information, visit NWTF.org. About NBCI Headquartered at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture's Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries, NBCI is an initiative of the National Bobwhite Technical Committee (NBTC) to elevate bobwhite quail recovery from an individual state-by-state proposition to a coordinated, range-wide leadership endeavor. The committee is comprised of representatives of 25 state wildlife agencies, various academic research institutions and private conservation organizations. Support for NBCI is provided by the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Program, state wildlife agencies, the Joe Crafton Family Endowment for Quail Initiatives, the University of Tennessee, Quail and Upland Game Alliance, Park Cities Quail and Roundstone Native Seed. National Wild Turkey Federation 770 Augusta Rd., Edgefield, SC 29824