TEAMING WITH WILDLIFE
A Natural Investment
For Massachusetts' Wildlife & Its People
The black-capped chickadee, our state bird and familiar
backyard visitor, is on the team. The secretive spotted turtle, occasionally
glimpsed basking on a log and the common loon are also part of the
wildlife team that needs your help.
Endangered species and game species alike have long
benefited from state wildlife management programs supported by federal
funding. Just as we are cheering successes in securing our valuable
and renewable game populations and bringing back a number of endangered
species from the brink, we are experiencing losses of common songbirds,
amphibians, fish and other creatures that until recently attracted
little notice.
Unfortunately, there has been little funding for the
more than 80% of wildlife species classified as "non-game".
Meanwhile, wildlife recreation activities such as bird
and whale watching in the Bay State have experienced tremendous growth
in the past 10 years. So has the need for conservation education for
our young people. Simply stated, today's youth are the stewards of
the future. Young people need materials and programs today that will
help them make informed decisions tomorrow. Municipal planners and
conservation commissioners, youth group leaders and other adult learners
also need programs that will assist them in making today's decisions
which will benefit both wildlife and people.
A new effort to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered
is gearing up in Massachusetts and we want you to be part of it! Teaming
with Wildlife is a coalition of more than 3,000 organizations and
businesses working to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered by
supporting increased state and federal funding for wildlife conservation,
outdoor recreation and conservation education in every state. We invite
you to join our coalition and help conserve wildlife and vital natural
areas for future generations. This is an exciting time for wildlife
in Massachusetts.
The state recently completed a Wildlife
Action Plan, which was developed by scientists, sportsmen, conservationists
and members of the community, working together. The Wildlife Action
Plan has the potential to:
- Prevent wildlife from becoming endangered.
- Become a driving force for wildlife conservation efforts in Massachusetts.
- Benefit the health of wildlife and people.
- Continue and create new partnerships between conservationists,
sportsmen, scientists and MassWildlife
In 2000, the Teaming with Wildlife Coalition helped pass
national legislation to create the State Wildlife Grants Program. In the
five years since its inception, this program has distributed over $400
million federal dollars to the states. Massachusetts' $5.5 million portion
has gone to highly successful
on-the-ground conservation programs that have benefited both wildlife
and people. The State Wildlife Grants have been recognized as our nation's
primary conservation program for keeping species healthy and off the list
of threatened and endangered species.
Massachusetts' Wildlife Action Plan was a requirement of
the State Wildlife Grants Program and will build on the wildlife conservation
projects that are already underway in the state. Teaming with Wildlife
is committed to the full implementation of the wildlife action plan, which
will address wildlife habitat restoration, management and protection as
well as information collection on wildlife habitat and species in greatest
need in Massachusetts. We hope you will join us as we work to secure adequate
funding to fully implement Massachusetts' Wildlife Action Plan!
With 6 million people living on the 5 million acres that
is the Bay State, wildlife and people are already competing for space,
food, water and places to raise their young. Wildlife and people need
and deserve a high quality of life.
Support the team and the effort to provide a higher quality
of life for people and wildlife in Massachusetts. Join the Massachusetts
Teaming With Wildlife Coalition whose goal it is to push for
this important funding! It's a natural investment in our future!
Teaming
With Wildlife Coalition Endorsement Form -- Conservation minded
groups and individual who want to assist in the Teaming With Wildlife
effort are encouraged to fill out this form and take action for a future
teaming with wildlife in Massachusetts!
*********************************************************************************************
For more information or to request an endorsement
form, contact the Environmental
League of Massachusetts or Meg Amundsen at mamundson@environmentalleague.org
Membership to this Coalition is free. This is an opportunity for organizations,
businesses and individuals to publicly express their support for the Teaming
With Wildlife Coalition's goal. Members receive meeting updates, action
alerts and other information as it becomes available.Coalition members
are encouraged to attend occasional meetings, distribute flyers, assist
at public events, write letters to newspapers, Congress and others to
help promote awareness and support for their goal.
For specific information on proposed legislation and action
alerts, check out the National Teaming With Wildlife site at www.teaming.com
.
Questions? Comments? Contact:
MassWildlife at Mass.Wildlife@state.ma.us
Note:
The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife (MassWildlife)
provides external links to the websites of entities mentioned on this
page as a public service. The Division does not exercise control over
the content of these websites. A link's presence here should not be
construed as an endorsement of its contents by MassWildlife.
Date Last Updated: September 26, 2006
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