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Thank, you Mr. Chairman tor the opportunity to present to the sub- 

 committee of Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans support for the Teaming with 

 Wildlife Initiative. 



First, let me introduce myself I am Rob Keck, Executive Vice President 

 and CEO of the National Wild Turkey Federation. 1 love the outdoors. I hunt, 

 fish, canoe, bird watch and am an active member and past board member of the 

 Outdoor Writers Association of America. The organization I represent was 

 founded in 1973. By our first years end, we had 1,300 members. Today it is made 

 up of 140,000 members in all 50 states and 8 foreign countries. Correspondingly, 

 in 1970, the wild turkey population in this country was 1,250,000 and hunting 

 seasons were open in 3 1 states. Today that number has increased four-fold and 

 includes 49 states. This diverse group is dedicated to the conservation of the 

 American Wild Turkey and works hand in hand with professional state and federal 

 agencies to further the cause, not only of the wild turkey, but for conservation of 

 our other wildlife in this country. With our partners, we have spent over 55 

 million dollars on over 4,000 projects for the wild turkey. Our diverse 

 membership ranges from blue collar workers to CEO's of Fortune 500 companies. 

 Their common bond is the wild turkey, one of the conservation success stories of 

 this century. 



The wild turkey was on the brink of extinction at the turn of the century, but 

 now numbers 4.2 million birds which allows for spring hunting seasons in every 

 state, but Alaska which has no turkeys. Those 2 million of us who love the sport, 

 generate over $750 million annually to support the economy of the small 

 communities of this country by buying groceries, staying in motels and supporting 

 landowners through paying of trespass fees. This purchasing power also 

 contributes to the clothing and accessories industry for products which hunters 

 purchase (calls, clothing, blinds, etc) to pursue their sport. In this case, as with 

 many other similar circumstances, good conservation translates into good 

 business! 



None of this or the comeback of the white-tailed deer, pronghom antelope, 

 and black bear and other species would have been possible without the foresight 

 of early conservationists and the Congressional leaders in the 1930's. When the 

 Pittman-Robertson Act was passed in 1937, it opened the door to the management 

 of habitat and ultimately the comeback of our nations valuable wildlife resources. 



