There are many reports from around the world that highlight just how vitally important are those professional men and women who wear the badges of their state, provincial, or national wildlife law enforcement agencies. These dedicated officers risk their lives to make sure that wildlife and forest resources are not illegally taken and sold on the black market, or disguised as normal trade. Some call themselves "gamewardens" but in truth, they are often police officers with full powers to investigate and arrest those who break any laws, although they concentrate on conservation issues.

This July, the North American Wildlife Officers' Enforcement Association, or NAWOEA, met in St. John's, Newfoundland, for their annual get-together. Some 500 Canadian and American officers congregated to pay their respects to the 7 of their number who died in the line of duty since last year's meeting. They shared information on poaching networks, and attended seminars on how to more efficiently investigate and prevent illegal trade in wildlife resources. Our congratulations to the officers of NAWOEA for their dedication to the job of protecting North American wildlife.

Reports that are shared among "game wardens" of the world include those who serve in Cambodia, where the fight is to protect forests from illegal logging, on the beaches of Florida, where wardens protect the nests of sea turtles from those who would steal the eggs and sell them on the black market, and in the Black Sea area, where officers work to protect giant sturgeon from those who would illegally take them for the roe. In the UK, there is a significant illegal trade in the eggs of protected birds, especially raptors such as osprey, eagles and falcons. Officers do their best to protect these species by ferreting out those who steal eggs from nests, and then smuggle them into or out of Europe, in a vast network of black market activity. In these times of rapid communication, wildlife protection includes expertise in combating crime through use of satellite phones, computer networks, and video recordings of illegal transactions. It's more than fast car chases and gunfights, and today's wildlife officers have become experts in surveillance techniques that would have astounded their predecessors. Our gratitude and congratulations to all the world's "gamewardens" for their efforts and especially, their successes.