The predator-prey interaction was a highlight of the April 20 morning-long tour, which exposed the seven-person Wyoming Game and Fish Commission and the department’s Cheyenne-based leadership to a vibrant wildlife tourism industry in Jackson Hole. The wildlife tour business extends beyond the hunters and anglers who represent the state agency’s bread-and-butter constituency.
At the same time, Phillips was using the tour to launch and promote a new initiative he conceived to funnel a new source of revenue toward conserving Wyoming’s wildlife. The initiative, called Wildlife Tourism for Tomorrow, allows businesses and their clients to donate a dollar sum or a predetermined percentage of their revenue toward specific projects, like the planned wildlife underpasses along Highway 189 near Dry Piney Creek. A new foundation that partners with Game and Fish, the WYldlife Fund, serves as the intermediary, making the contributions eligible as a charitable donation. The point, Phillips told commissioners ahead of the tour, is to provide a way for private businesses to invest in wildlife.
“If it wasn’t for wildlife, I wouldn’t have a job and this hotel likely wouldn’t be here,” Phillips said from outside the entrance of the Lodge at Jackson Hole. “It’s time for these entities to give back.”
Already there’s some buy in.
Besides Phillips’ Eco Tours, Buffalo Roam Tours and Team 399, which leads photography safaris, have also pledged a portion of their revenue. Four hotels are in as well, the Elk Country Inn, Cowboy Village Resort, Antler Inn and 49er Inn and Suites. Just on Tuesday the fly-fishing guide service Fish The Fly signed on and committed 1% of its sales.
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