Washington's chapters of the NWTF have had a major impact toward the wild
turkey population in Washington. Unknown to most people, Washington now
contains three different subspecies of the four (not counting the goulds
currently being transplanted in Arizona) needed to receive a "Grand Slam".
Washington has it's own "Grand Slam" pin for those fortunate to bag a rio,
merriam, and an eastern all in Washington. Another unknown to the rest of
the country is our population of merriams. Probably one of the biggest
west of the Mississippi! Washington NWTF chapters have all played a hand
in these great numbers and continue to have an impact on Washinton's
conservation efforts in general. Below, you can see some of the impacts
Washington NWTF chapters have had in the past:
Administered jointly
by the NWTF, its state chapters and state
wildlife agencies, the Wild Turkey Super Fund is
used for projects that support the conservation
of the wild turkey and preservation of the
hunting tradition. Nationally, NWTF chapters and
cooperating partners have raised and spent over
$175 million dollars for wild turkey
conservation. Since 1985 over $420,576 has been
raised and spent by Washington chapters on
projects within the state. More than $38,074 has
been spent in 2003 alone. A sampling of these
projects is provided below.
Habitat Enhancement· Spent $33,180 on habitat
improvement projects.
· maintenance and
development of brood habitat
· wildlife openings
· prescribed fire
· tree planting
· riparian restoration
· water development projects
· control of invasive plant species
· support for seed subsidy and
conservation seed programs
· Habitat enhancement projects have
impacted more than 3,956 acres within the state.
· 168 acres of wildlife openings
Purchased equipment for habitat management including:
· 3 trailers
· 3 planters
· 1 disk/harrow
Projects were completed on:
· Eagle Rock
· McDonald Mountain
· Sneed Mountain
· Tacoma Creek
Education
· Spent $15,658 on
educational programs and literature including
scholarships, education boxes, 4-H and teacher
workshops.
· Awarded 9 scholarships.
· In 2003, 6 scholarships totaling
$3,500 were awarded to graduating high school
seniors that have an interest in hunting.
· Donated more than 65 education boxes
to area schools.
· Spent $1,447 on educational projects
for volunteers and professionals including:
· volunteer leadership workshops
· Wild Turkey Woodlands field days
· state web sites and newsletters
· Purchased 6 educational CD-ROMs.
JAKES
· Spent $16,205 to
introduce youth to outdoor activities,
conservation and hunting.
· Sponsored 24 JAKES Conservation Field
Days throughout the state.
Hunting Heritage
· Spent $6,136 to protect and promote the hunting tradition including contributions to the U.S. Sportsman’s Alliance and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.
Hunter Safety
· Spent $3,000 to
support hunter safety classes and initiatives
within the state.
· Purchased hunter safety materials and
equipment, including interactive shooting
systems.
Turkey Restoration
· Spent $75,126 to trap
and transfer turkeys within the state.
· Expenses include the purchase of
trapping equipment such as nets, rockets and
rocket charges.
· Spent $208,905 to reimburse other
states for expenses related to the trap and
transfer of 834 donated turkeys.
Women’s Programs
· Spent $4,400 on
programs, materials and equipment to introduce
women to the outdoors, hunting and conservation.
· Conducted 12 Women in the Outdoors
events throughout the state.
Rewards
· Spent $835 to protect wild turkeys and other wildlife through support of state sponsored reward programs, the printing of reward signs and reward payments.
Management
· Spent $892 on wild
turkey management.
· operation of wild turkey check
stations
· hunter success and satisfaction
surveys
· completion of wild turkey management
plans
· support of law enforcement activities
· Purchased equipment to support law
enforcement and management activities including:
· ATV’s
