The tribe is conducting several research projects to better understand the numbers of elk calves and black-tail deer fawns born each year and how many of them survive to maturity.“Without this kind of specific knowledge, it can be easy to over-estimate the expected rate of increase in a population and make mistakes in harvest management plans,” said Rob McCoy, wildlife division manager for the Makah Tribe.
If salmon are to be restored in this state, it will require many efforts. Most of all, it will require a team effort. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The state and the tribes must learn to
work together. Like people paddling a canoe, it only makes
sense for us to paddle in the same direction.
We hope this is a message that Jeffrey Koenings, the newly appointed director of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, will take to heart. It is critically important for the director of WDFW to be aware of the fact that treaty Indian tribes are co-managers of the salmon resource in this state. It is important for him to understand
that decisions regarding the salmon resource must be made on a government-to-government basis, in full collaboration with the tribes from the outset of any natural resource planning process. Just as important, it will be necessary for him to understand the need for the co-managers to work together, as a team, in the management
and restoration of the salmon resource.