ORLANDO, Florida -

The Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) will host a press conference at SHOT Show to release the Whitetail Report, a comprehensive look at the status of whitetail populations and whitetail hunting in North America.

When:
Thursday, January 15 at 10:00 a.m.

Where:
SHOT Show Press Conference Room (Room #313).

What:
The Whitetail Report will be released at a press conference hosted by the nonprofit Quality Deer Management Association to update members of the outdoor media on the status of whitetail populations and whitetail hunting in North America. The Whitetail Report focuses on emerging issues and current challenges facing the whitetail. In addition to an audio/visual presentation, conference attendees will receive a comprehensive report for future study and reference throughout the coming year. All four of QDMA"s staff wildlife biologists who compiled the report, including CEO Brian Murphy, will be available for questions and one-on-one interviews following the conference.

Why:
The white-tailed deer is the foundation of the entire hunting industry. Of active North American hunters, 78 percent hunt whitetails, more than the combined percentages for wild turkey, pheasant, quail, waterfowl, grouse, elk, mule deer and coyotes (survey by Responsive Management and the NSSF, 2008). Yet, at the SHOT Show and other industry gatherings, little information is available on wise stewardship of the whitetail resource and protection of our deer-hunting heritage. QDMA will fill this void with the launching of the Whitetail Report, which will provide outdoor writers, editors and communicators with a yearly health report for whitetails and by extension the hunting industry. The Whitetail Report will include useful facts, statistics and science compiled by QDMA in its effort to check the pulse of deer populations throughout North America.

Who:
The Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) is a nonprofit conservation organization that works to educate and encourage hunters and landowners to practice biologically sound deer and habitat management techniques. Founded in 1988, QDMA has more than 50,000 members in 50 states, Canada and abroad.

For more information, visit www.QDMA.com or call (800) 209-3337 and ask to speak to Randy Bowden.

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