PHOENIX – Clay Hernandez, a Tucson attorney and avid outdoorsman, has been nominated to the Arizona Game and Fish Commission.
The nomination was announced by Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey last week, and must be confirmed by the Arizona Senate.
“Clay’s dedication to wildlife conservation and to his community make him a great fit for the Game and Fish Commission,” Ducey said in a news release. “I look forward to his service on the commission and know that he will serve Arizona well.”
Hernandez is a long-time hunter and angler, and has dedicated nearly 30 years to wildlife conservation. He is a member of Trout Unlimited, the National Wild Turkey Federation, the Arizona Elk Society, the Arizona Antelope Foundation and Project Healing Waters of Southern Arizona. He has served as president of the Old Pueblo (Tucson) Chapter of Trout Unlimited, and was on the board of the Tucson Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation.
He has volunteered as a fly fishing guide for Project Healing Waters in Arizona, Colorado and Alaska. He also volunteered for four years in an Outdoor Studies class for a Tucson High School.
“I am humbled and honored to be able to serve the Game and Fish community of Arizona in such an impactful way and am ready to hit the ground running,” Hernandez said in the news release. “I look forward to working with my fellow commissioners, and I thank Governor Ducey for this opportunity.”
Hernandez has called Arizona home for more than 40 years. He has been a practicing attorney in Tucson since 1986. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from Arizona State University in 1981 and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Arizona in 1986. He is a licensed pilot and speaks Spanish.
Biologists combing rugged mountains to count gray wolves
PINETOP – Biologists are combing the rugged mountains of the U.S. Southwest to find out how many Mexican gray wolves are roaming the wild.
The annual count in Arizona and New Mexico started in November and is expected to continue through early February. The population numbers of the endangered predators will be released in March.
At least 163 wolves were counted during the last survey. That marked a nearly 25% jump in the population from the previous year.
The count put wildlife managers about halfway to meeting the goal set to declare the species recovered. The wolves were first released in parts of their historic range in 1998.
Biologists are looking for single wolves and wolf packs from the ground and air. The operation is more limited because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Any wolf that’s captured will be fitted with a tracking device.
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