The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is awarding $177,190 to the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin for a study of salmon as a food source.
The funds will support the Menominee Tribal Wildlife Kokanee Salmon Project in Upper Bass Lake.
More than $6.4 million is being awarded to federally recognized Tribes to benefit fish and wildlife resources and their habitats. This year’s funding will support 36 Tribes for conservation projects across 17 states including Michigan and Wisconsin, benefiting a wide range of wildlife and habitat, including species of cultural or traditional importance to Indigenous communities.
“Our success in achieving shared conservation goals depends on our relationships, knowledge-sharing and co-stewardship with federally recognized Tribes,” said Service Director Martha Williams. “By respecting and supporting Tribal interests and needs, we can improve and enhance fish, wildlife and natural and cultural resources for the benefit of all.”
The Tribal Wildlife Grants Program helps fulfill federal trust responsibilities and achieve Tribal sovereignty by expanding Tribes’ natural resource capacity. Since its inception in 2003, including this year’s grants, the competitive Tribal Wildlife Grants Program has awarded more than $118 million to Native American and Alaska Native Tribes, providing support for 662 conservation projects.
The Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in Wisconsin (Lac Courte Oreilles Ma’iingan Relationship Plan) will receive $110,510 to update the 2013 Ma’iingan (gray wolf) management plan to better reflect Tribal Ecological Knowledge and contemporary ecological, biological and social science for this culturally important species.
