SCI Foundation Contributes $217,000 to Big Game Wildlife Conservation Projects

SCI Foundation Contributes $217,000 to Big Game Wildlife Conservation Projects Worldwide In Last Quarter of Fiscal Year

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Washington, DC - Safari Club International Foundation (SCIF) today announced that it had distributed over $217,000 in the final quarter of its last fiscal year to fund five critical conservation projects in North America, Asia and Africa. Specifically, SCIF has dedicated the funding to managing sustainable wildlife conservation programs that expand research into the complex interplay between predator and prey species.

“These funds will go a long way to help expand SCIF’s efforts as we continue to fund, support, and manage worldwide programs dedicated to wildlife conservation, outdoor education and humanitarian services around the world,” said SCIF President Larry Rudolph. “A better understanding of predator-prey dynamic will facilitate best management practices around the world for continued sustainable wildlife conservation and management.

Download the entire report at Attachment 3056

In Africa:
SCIF has committed $20,000 to support a national lion population survey in Malawi. Combined with a 2009 survey in Mozambique and a 2010 survey in Tanzania, this survey will show the number and distribution of lions in large contiguous area of prominent lion range. SCIF has again partnered with Philippe Chardonnet of the International Foundation for the Conservation of Wildlife, who will use the same methods previously used for lion surveys in Tanzania and Mozambique. Consistency in the research methods will allow biologists to compare and combine the results into one assessment of lion population in this region of Africa.

SCIF also initiated and funded a leopard research project in Namibia. Leopards are extremely difficult to census and science-based information on this game species is essential to validate its conservation management strategy. An understanding of leopard population trends is important to ensure harvest quotas are sustainable. SCIF granted $45,000 to our partner, the government of Namibia, to conduct a leopard population survey.

In North America:
SCIF continued its support of the Newfoundland Caribou Strategy, a study designed to understand the recent decline in woodland caribou in Newfoundland, Canada. Caribou calf survival is low in Newfoundland, and predation is the primary cause of calf mortality. SCIF granted $50,000 to estimate the density of predators in three study areas by analyzing DNA recovered from predator hair and scat samples. This information will assist future predator management recommendations.

SCIF is also working with the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission to assess the current status of moose, moose calf production, and the influence of bears and climate on the Wyoming moose population. SCIF also granted $50,000 to support the research project.

In Asia:
SCIF has initiated an argali sheep survey in Tajikistan that will take place this summer and fall. Approximately $52,000 was transferred to our strategic conservation partners last month to complete the research, and Joe Hosmer, Conservation Committee Chairman and Dr. Bill Moritz, Director of Conservation Programs will be travelling to Tajikistan in August to oversee the operation. Partners include the government of Tajikistan, Dr. Raul Valdez of New Mexico State University, and Dr. Andrey Subbotin of the Russian Research Institute for Nature Conservation.


The SCI Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization that funds and manages worldwide programs dedicated to wildlife conservation, outdoor education and humanitarian services, including such programs as Sportsmen Against Hunger, Sensory Safari, Safari Care, Disabled Hunter, the American Wilderness Leadership School, Becoming an Outdoors Woman & More and Youth Education Seminars (YES) Outdoors. Call 877-877-3265 or visit www.SafariClubFoundation.org for more information.

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