Regional Director and Southwest Tribal Fisheries Commission sign MOU
Southwest Regional Director, Dr. Benjamin Tuggleof the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Service) and Southwest Tribal Fisheries Commission (SWTFC), Chairman, Arthur "Butch" Blazer, signed a Memorandum Of Agreement (MOU) in a cooperative effort to build upon and maintain Government-to-Government relations with tribes in the southwest, the MOU was established as a means to support native fish conservation and recreational fisheries management where mutually held goals of aquatic resource management provides opportunities. A signing ceremony was held at the BIA Regional Office, Albuquerque, NM, which was coordinated between BIA Regional Biologist, Joe Jojola, and Service Native American Liaison. Joe Early.
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| Southwest Regional Director, Benjamin Tuggle, PhD. and Southwest Tribal Fisheries Commission Chairman, Arthur "Butch" Blazer, shake hands after signing a MOU cooperative. Photo credit: USFWS. |
The Service entered into this MOU under the authority of the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act, 31 United States Code. 6505, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Cooperation Act, 16 USC 661 to 667, and other applicable provisions and policies. The SWTFC entered into this MOU under their current by-laws.
In addition to member participation from the SWTFC, Region 2 Service personnel also present at the signing ceremony were the new Deputy Regional Director, Brian Millsap, Assistant Regional Director (ARD), Fisheries, Mike Oetker, ARD, External Affairs, Charna Lefton, and Supervisory Fish Biologist, Chris Kitcheyan.
Chris Kitcheyan, a tribal member from the White Mountain Apache Tribe, AZ, was also recognized by the SWTFC and was presented with an award by SWTFC Executive Director, Michael Montoya (awaitng feedback on the actual type/title of the award, and exact wording).
The mission statement of the SWTFC is " To advance tribal self-determination and tribal stewardship of fisheries resources through the professional development and support of tribal resource management programs." For more information on the SWTFC, visit their website at http://www.swtfc.org/
For more information on the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and work with tribes across the county, visit our national Native American Liaison webpage at http://www.fws.gov/nativeamerican/
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Service Participates with Navajo Nation to Teach Cultural Heritage and Stewardship Ethics Through Modern Day Hunt
Keeping with a new found tradition, the Navajo Nation Department of Fish and Wildlife held its fifth annual tribal youth deer hunt September 25-27, 2009. For a second year the Southwest Region’s Native American Liaison, Joe Early, volunteered as a hunt mentor, teaming up with a great young man named Julian Francisco, from Prewitt, New Mexico. Thirteen year old Julian was already an experienced marksman with a BB gun and .22 caliber rifle, but had never before hunted deer, let alone pursued anything larger then a rabbit.
The hunt itself is designed to provide an opportunity for Navajo youth between the ages of 12 to 16 who have never hunted and have no other opportunities to hunt. Youth are chosen based on essays they must submit that explain why they want to hunt, why they do not have the opportunity to hunt, and why they are interested in hunting, fishing or other outdoor recreational activities. Once selected, all youth must attend and participate in a mandatory tribal 20-hour hunter education course, which is certified by the Arizona Game and Fish Department, and two firearm range practice days. An application formand announcement are posted every year notifying members the Navajo Nation of this unique opportunity.
This year, eighteen youth qualified and were selected to participate as novice hunters in one of the tribe’s deer management units, located in the Carrizo Mountain range of northeast Arizona.
Hunters arrived at the camp on the afternoon of the September 25, upon which they helped to set up camp and listened to instructions from the Department’s Director, Gloria Tom. They were then provided with free hunting gear ranging from a full set of clothing, boots, sleeping bag, backpack, knives, first-aid kit, flashlight, binoculars and a variety of other equipment. All of the gear was donated by various Navajo Nation, State and private entities, including The Outdoor Channel’s Bone Collector television show which filmed during the hunt, as well interviewed tribal personnel and hunters.
As a hunt mentor Joe helped explain the environmental rationale and relationship between proper wildlife management; the biology of the deer and their habitat; and principles of ethical hunting and responsible natural resources stewardship, both from a modern day standpoint as well as from his cultural background as a Pueblo of Laguna, New Mexico tribal member. Julian shared talked with Joe about what he had learned from a traditional Navajo upbringing and with their combined knowledge Julian and Joe were successful in harvesting one of the largest deer of the hunt. After just over an hour of hunting on the first day, the two were able to stalk several deer and, with some straight shooting at a 130 yards, Julian harvested his first deer, a fine 5X5 (including eye guards) mule deer buck! (Joe and Julian are modest fellows, but his colleagues in the Service have no compunction about mentioning the fact that theirs is ostensibly the biggest buck harvested in this year’s hunt.)
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| Photo Credit: Joe Early, FWS |
In all, every hunter harvested a deer, making it the fourth year in a row where there has been a 100% success rate in the Navajo Nation youth hunt. After harvesting the deer, proper field-dressing, skinning and care for the meat was taught to each hunter. All meat was transported by the tribe to a meat processor, upon which it was processed, cut, wrapped and provided free of charge for each hunter’s family.
Being raised on a reservation Joe was fortunate enough to have family to teach him how to hunt, as well as help him to see both the cultural and the religious significance behind the hunt.
“I have personally witnessed today’s tribal youth facing tough challenges and in some cases slowly losing their cultural heritage, whether it be through their language, cultural doings, or the connection to the earth and the outdoors,” note Early. “However, the Navajo Nation has taken a proactive approach in connecting tribal youth to the outdoors by combining tribal knowledge, proper natural resources stewardship and wildlife management education, and modern day hunting opportunities. It’s a great program.”
Joe’s new friend and “brother of the hunt,” Julian agrees that his tribe is doing an outstanding job in not only managing its wildlife, but also in providing a unique opportunity for tribal youth.
Julian is the youngest son of Bennie and Lenora Francisco, and Joe was honored that they allowed him to share his knowledge and experience with their fine young son.
For more information on the youth hunt, please contact Navajo Nation Fish and Wildlife Department at (928) 871-6451, or visit their website at http://www.nndfw.org. The Outdoor Channel, Bone Collector show is scheduled to air the youth hunt in early part of 2010. |
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