States and territories have just been allocated about three-quarters of a billion dollars for their use in building facilities, providing services, and conducting planning and research related to fishing, hunting, wildlife conservation, and recreational opportunities. This is a gold mine for local environmental stories.
2011 is the "Year of the Turtle," orchestrated by Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation. A USA Turtle Mapping Project and other resources offer opportunities to cover turtle declines and related issues.
"Rising demand for powdered rhino horn in Vietnam and China has driven the price as high as US$50,000 per kilogram, roughly equal to the street price for cocaine in the UK, says a international wildlife conservation organization headquartered in the hamlet of Kingsfold, West Sussex."
"Sen. Frank Lautenberg introduced legislation Tuesday designed to give the federal government more tools and financial resources to combat such wildlife diseases as white nose syndrome, a fungus that has contributed to the death of more than a million bats in New Jersey and other states in the past few years."
"Yellowstone National Park's iconic bison herds are suffering their worst winter in several years with almost 400 of the animals being held for possible slaughter — and a much-heralded initiative to expand where they can roam on the verge of failure."
"Searching for food, one female bear was tracked as she swam for 9 days across the Beaufort Sea before reaching an ice floe. Litigation continues over protection of bear habitat."
"A proposal from the wife of Texas billionaire T. Boone Pickens to create a sanctuary in Nevada for wild horses removed from public rangeland around the West has been rejected, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management said Friday."
"The nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity [Tuesday] filed notice of intent to sue the Department of the Interior for failing to write a recovery plan for wolves in the lower 48 states."
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