If You Build It, They Will Come: Conserving Virginia Quail
The tense second before a whopping covey explodes is the most nerve-wracking silence in history — Havilah Babcock, I Don’t Want to Shoot an Elephant (1958) Virginia’s wild northern bobwhite quail population isn’t what it once was, but for Mr. Bob fans, there’s good...
Why I Stand with Ducks Unlimited
A mallard dropping through flooded timber is a pretty good argument for getting out of bed at four in the morning. So is a Labrador trembling beside you, convinced that you are the only thing standing between her and the greatest day of her life. In those moments, I’m...
The Adults in the Room: Why I Support the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation
Washington is full of people willing to tell a sportsman what he wants to hear. Finding someone who will tell him what he needs to know takes more insight. That is one reason the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation stays near the top of my call list. I’ve served on...
Conservation’s Greatest Weakness Is Not Science. It Is Silence.
Conservation has a communication problem, and pretending otherwise may be one of the greatest threats to its future. We have extraordinary scientists, experienced land managers, passionate philanthropists, dedicated hunters and anglers, conservation organizations,...
Do Constitutional “Right to Hunt and Fish” Amendments Really Matter?
By the time Florida voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to hunt and fish in 2024, the movement had already spread quietly across much of America. More than two dozen states now have some version of a constitutional Right to...
Governor DeSantis’ Everglades Work Adds To Conservation Legacy
Florida’s 2,400-square-mile Everglades wetland is a water, wildlife and fisheries reserve unrivaled on the North American continent, and for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, saving the ecosystem is vital to the future of the state. Since taking office, DeSantis has...
Unique Auction Is A Calling For Conservation
That a country kid from Mississippi could build a game call company into a household brand among America’s 15 million hunters is a classic American success story. That he would use his fortune from the sale of the company to, among other things, order a custom...
Dorsey: “Time is Now” to Mainstream Hunter-Conservation Message
Chris Dorsey was the featured Keynote Speaker at the 2025 Bobwhite Ball to open the 2025 Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic in Kansas City, Missouri. Dorsey stressed that the time is now to bring the message of hunter-based conservation to mainstream media to protect...
Safari Origins: The First Seeds of Conservation
Involving dozens of porters and other native helpers, the early safaris were lavish affairs that only the wealthiest sportsmen could afford.