September 2020

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) Wildlife and Sportfish Restoration Program, working closely with the shooting sports and archery industry, released a new video in August that spotlights how excise taxes on the equipment they produce has helped restore wildlife across the country. The Enduring Partnerships video is intended to show how the critical relationship forged between industry and fish and wildlife management agencies is the foundation for these conservation successes.

It is estimated that 73 percent of our nation’s land is privately owned and that the majority of our fish and wildlife resources occur on those lands. Approximately 73 million people live, work, and recreate in the Midwest Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (MAFWA) region (U.S. states only), and roughly 93 percent of land area (total land and water area is 506 million acres) is in private ownership. Both agricultural and industrial development have altered most of the land found in the region. The Midwest contains some of the richest farmland in the world and is a national leader in corn and soybean production. It is also a leader in the production of grain-based ethanol and pork. Understanding the dynamics of private landownership, and the uses for these private lands, is essential for planning the region’s conservation future.

Kansas is the home to a diverse aquatic community. However, many fish have been designated as species in need of conservation because of land use change, water alterations, and other human impacts. The Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit (Kansas Unit) at Kansas State University is leading research on "big hairy audacious goals" (BHAGs) – tools that create visions of realistic future success that can be incorporated into resource management.