Tuesday, October 04, 2005

Emphasis shift from TNC?

In my opinion, if you carefully compare two Arkansas-related press releases from the Nature Conservancy, you can see a significant wording shift.

In a June press release, there was heavy emphasis on the Ivory-bill "rediscovery":
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So Arkansas is home to what is probably the rarest bird in the world, and this fact has brought immediate worldwide news coverage and attention. And we have in the Big Woods a vast and beautiful area that affords literally hundreds of other bird or wildlife watching opportunities. The question is, how will we manage this economic opportunity while never losing sight of what’s most important – the continued survival and recovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker?
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In a September press release, the Ivory-bill doesn't receive nearly the heavy emphasis it did in June--other wildlife species seem to have gained mindshare:
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“The successful history of conservation in the Big Woods of Arkansas is a result of great partnerships – federal and state agencies working with other organizations, local communities, hunters and landowners,” said Scott Simon, director of The Nature Conservancy in Arkansas. “And this addition to the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge is the latest success story – one that will add habitat for waterfowl as well as the ivory-bill and other species that live in these magnificent woods.”

“The Federal Duck Stamp program has made it possible for the Service and its partners to conserve vitally important wetland habitats for the benefit of waterfowl,” said Sam Hamilton, the Service's southeast regional director. “This acquisition at Cache River National Wildlife Refuge is no different. But one of the reason's this program is so important to the Service's national wildlife refuge system is because the land conservation it makes possible benefits so many other wildlife species, not the least of which is the Ivory-billed Woodpecker.”

“The restoration of the entire corridor of the Cache River is extremely important to the habitat of many wildlife species, not only the Ivory-billed Woodpecker,” Arkansas Game and Fish Commission director Scott Henderson said. “This purchase gives outdoorsmen more opportunity to enjoy the natural resources of Arkansas,” he added.
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Please take a look at both press releases to see the above snippets in context.