25th Annual Meeting and Symposium of the
Desert Tortoise Council, April 21-24, 2000
Abstracts

Perspectives on Initiatives and Accomplishments of the Desert Tortoise Management Oversight Group: A Panel Discussion by Agency Cooperators

Ed Lorentzen, Executive Secretary to the Desert Tortoise Management Oversight Group
California State Office, Bureau of Land Management, Sacramento, CA 95825

The cooperating agencies of the Desert Tortoise Management Oversight Group (Tortoise MOG) have coordinated on numerous tortoise conservation and recovery actions in the past 12 years. The primary mission of the Tortoise MOG is to coordinate agency planning and management activities involving the desert tortoise and its habitat so as to ensure the survival of this species in the wild. The Tortoise MOG includes representatives of the Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, National Park Service, Department of Defense, and State wildlife management agencies from Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah. Perspectives on the accomplishments by, and challenges confronting, cooperating agencies are given by representatives of BLM, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Department of Defense, and Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.