Exotic Wildlife Association Hosts 43rd Annual Membership Meeting
INGRAM, Texas —-(AmmoLand.com)- Leading wildlife conservation through commerce, the Exotic Wildlife Association (EWA) announces its 43rd Annual Annual Meeting & Fund-Raising Auction will be held on March 11, 2010, through March 13, 2010, at the Inn of the Hills Resort & Conference Center in Kerrville, Texas.
The event will attract hundreds of exotic animal enthusiasts from around the country, and focus fund-raising efforts and media attention on the EWA’s ‘Save the Species Campaign’ to help preserve the legal status of the Scimitar-Horned Oryx, Addax and Dama Gazelle antelope and many other exotics like Blackbuck and Axis deer.
The annual EWA convention features exhibitors from around the hunting and wildlife industries, fund-raising auctions that include exciting exotic hunts, hunting gear and firearms; and other exciting events, such as the Eighth Annual Video Animal Auction, tropaeology school, educational seminars on wildlife management, ranch tours, golf tournament and much more.
“The Annual Membership Meeting is one of the largest EWA events of the year, and this year will be one of the most important conferences ever as we address the critical issue of saving these three rare antelope species,” says Charly Seale, executive director for the Exotic Wildlife Association. “Thanks to the management efforts of EWA members, these animals have rebounded by the thousands but the recent federal ruling puts these animals future in jeopardy. Hundreds of industry professionals, ranchers and sportsmen will be in attendance at the conference and we need everyone to pull together to preserve the legal status of these animals.”
Although the Scimitar-Horned Oryx, Addax and Dama Gazelle are classified as an endangered species, the special rules by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service enacted in September 2005 made it possible for owners of captive herds to engage in activities including the purchase and sales of the animals and to breed these animals on ranches across the United States. In fact, the program has been so widely successful that it now fuels a $1.3 billion industry and thousands of jobs.
However, a Federal judge ruled earlier this year that the three species, which are born and raised in the United States, will no longer be exempted from their listing on the endangered species list. As a result, ranchers who have owned and cared for these animals for years will be required to cease all culling and other management activities without special permits by the Federal government.
The EWA has filed an appeal regarding this judge’s ruling which overturned a special rule put in place by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Department that allowed three antelope species to be born, raised and freely traded in the United States without the USFWD permitting process.
To learn more about the Exotic Wildlife Association or to donate to the Save Exotic Wildlife Fund, call 830.367.7761, email saveanimals@exoticwildlifeassociation.com or visit www.exoticwildlifeassociation.com.
Headquartered in Ingram, Texas, the Exotic Wildlife Association is dedicated to encourage and to expand the conservation of indigenous and non-indigenous hoofstock animals, and to foster development of the alternative livestock market through agricultural diversity. For more information on EWA, call 830.367.7761 or visit www.exoticwildlifeassociation.com.