In 2019, the Western Native Trout Initiative (WNTI), one of 20 partnerships under the National Fish Habitat Partnership, announced a new 12-state Western Native Trout Challenge.
The Western Native Trout Challenge invites anglers to help celebrate by catching native trout and char in each of 12 Western states (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming), at their own pace. The challenge includes three levels of achievement; expert, advanced, and master.
Participation in the Western Native Trout Challenge helps to fund WNTI’s conservation efforts. For every $25 program registration fee, $23 goes toward helping to conserve these species.
State fish and wildlife agencies in each of the 12 states that are partnering on this program, along with the USDA Forest Service, the federal Bureau of Land Management, and Trout Unlimited.
The Western Native Trout Initiative (WNTI) is a program of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) and a nationally recognized partnership under the National Fish Habitat Partnership program that works cooperatively across 12 Western states to conserve (protect, restore, and recover) 21 native trout and char species across their historic range.
Since its inception in 2006, WNTI has directed more than $33 million in federal, public and private funds to serve 161 priority native trout conservation projects.
WNTI and partners have removed 96 barriers to fish passage, reconnected or improved 1,199 miles of native trout habitat and put in place 35 protective fish barriers to conserve important native trout populations.
For more information, visit: www.westernnativetroutchallenge.org
source: Western Native Trout Initiative