Proceedings of the Ninth Mountain Lion Workshop - Carnivore ...

Formation of a Professional Organization: the Wild Felid Research and
Management Association
Linda L. Sweanor, 68761 Overland Rd, Montrose, CO 81401, USA jsweanor@montrose.net
John Beecham, Beringia South, 2723 N Lakeharbor Lane, Boise, ID 83703, USA.
Chris Belden, U S Fish and Wildlife Service, 1339 20th St, Vero Beach, FL 32960, USA.
Deanna Dawn, San Jose State University, 8760 McCarty Ranch Dr, San Jose, CA 95135, USA.
Richard DeSimone, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, 600 North Park Ave, Helena, MT, USA.
59620 rdesimone@mt.gov
Gary Koehler, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, 2218 Stephanie Brooke, Wenatchee,
WA, USA 98801koehlgmk@dfw.wa.gov
Sharon Negri, WildFutures, 353 Wallace Way, NE, Suite 12, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110, USA
snegri@igc.org
Chris Papouchis, 1320 18th St, Apt 3, Sacramento, CA 95814, USA papouchis@gmail.com
Hugh Robinson, University of Montana, College of Forestry and Conservation, Missoula, MT
59802, USA hugh.robinson@umontana.edu
Ron W. Thompson, Arizona Game and Fish Department, P.O. 1588, Pinetop, AZ 85935, USA.
ABSTRACT Participants expressed an interest in the formation of a new professional
association on wild felids in a survey given at the Eighth Mountain Lion Workshop held
in Leavenworth, Washington, USA in May 2005. As a consequence, 10 people with a
mix of experience in felid research, management, and conservation met in Bainbridge,
Washington in August 2006 to create the Wild Felid Research and Management
Association, or WFA. Together, we structured the WFA to be a professional, nonadvocacy
organization of biologists, wildlife managers, wildlife educators, and others
who are dedicated to the management and conservation of wild felids in the Western
Hemisphere through science-based management and education. In this presentation I
discuss the results of the Mountain Lion Workshop Survey, outline the need for a
professional wild felid organization, and present the objectives of the newly formed Wild
Felid Research and Management Association. I will also present an update on the present
status of the WFA, including its organizational structure, the publication of the first issue
of the WFA’s newsletter: the Wild Felid Monitor, the development of the WFA web site
(www.wildfelid.org ), and the characteristics of the current membership. This
association’s main objective is to facilitate communication and collaboration across
scientific disciplines and among agencies, universities, and nongovernmental
organizations. The newsletter and web site are 2 ways the WFA will achieve this
objective. As the WFA develops, we hope to provide other services, including counsel
and advice on policy issues, translations of technical information into popular literature
and other media, conferences, workshops, and peer-reviewed proceedings, and
scholarships and grants for felid research, management and education. Because the
development of these tools and services will require further involvement by a voting
membership, I will end the presentation with a discussion of WFA’s current needs,
including how interested persons can help advance the professional goals of this
organization and help best meet the needs of its membership.
Proceedings of the Ninth Mountain Lion Workshop
204