New Mexico Wildlife Federation

10/08/2026

For more than a century, the NMWF has fought to maintain public access to public lands.

Albuquerque, N.M. — New Mexico Wildlife Federation, Battalion Search and Rescue, and Southern Border Communities Coalition filed a lawsuit today challenging the administration’s unlawful transformation of more than 100,000 acres of public land along the New Mexico-Mexico border into a military i...

10/08/2026

Our newest episode of the Ahí Va Podcast is live! Check it out wherever you get your podcasts. The Spotify link is in the comments.

What an honor it was to welcome Kalef Dile into the Ahí Va Podcast studio today. Kalef and his phenomenal wife joined me today so we could talk about all of the challenges and tribulations that led up to Kalef recently harvesting his very first big game animal with a vertical compound bow. Included in our conversation was proper appreciation for New Mexico’s two exceptional archery pro-shops, Hit or Miss Archery Center and The Archery Shoppe.

This was a powerful conversation about perseverance, determination and pure grit. I really can’t wait to spend some time in the field with this inspirational man!

10/07/2026

SAVE THE DATE!

Something big is coming to Legacy Ranch.

The New Mexico Wildlife Federation is bringing back the New Mexico Outdoor Festival & Skills Competition for its second year—and we're making it bigger, better and even more hands-on.

📅 April 2–3, 2027

📍 Legacy Ranch | Edgewood, NM

April 2: Conservation Banquet & Barn Dance
April 3: New Mexico Outdoor Festival & Skills Competition

Two days celebrating conservation, outdoor traditions, family, skills and everything that makes New Mexico special.
Mark your calendar. You won't want to miss this.

The Ultimate New Mexico Outdoor Experience.

09/24/2026

New Mexico's system of elk management is broken and needs reform.

Rocky Mountain Elk traverse a New Mexico hillside. Photo credit: Chris Neary.

09/22/2026

We’ve been working diligently on this issue for about a decade. In 2019 we celebrated the creation of the Wildlife Corridors Action Plan. In 2025 we were successful in advocating for the money necessary to begin construction of this project and kick off the implementation of that action plan. This is super exciting stuff!

LINK IN COMMENTS: After a report showed areas in New Mexico where wildlife was in danger of getting hit by cars, the state decided to invest in building bridges to prevent those crashes. Now the state said they are making progress on those plans.

09/21/2026

Free Event. Plan to attend on Oct. 14.

Kristin Madden holds a Cooper’s hawk. She and other researchers have studied the cause of death of the hawks in Albuquerque. She will speak about their work on Oct. 14.

09/11/2026

ATTENTION HUNTERS: LUNA COUNTY COMMISSION VOTES TO CLOSE ROAD
The following is a report from Ray Trejo, southern New Mexico outreach coordinator for the NMWF and Luna county commissioner:
The Luna County Commission voted two-to-one on Thurs., Sept. 11, to grant a petition to close County Road 17 (Billings Road) permanently. This is the road that runs by the Aerostat facility, just west of the Tres Hermanas Mountains and east of the Cedar Grove Mountains.
Commissioners Collette Chandler and Christie Ann Harvey voted in favor of the petition from Luna County ranchers Steven and Kimberly Allen. Commissioner Trejo voted against it.
The county vote followed a lengthy discussion that included testimony in opposition from several members of the Luna County Rockhounds and Commissioner Fernando Clemente of the New Mexico State Wildlife Commission.
County Road 17 has provided vital public access to thousands of acres of public land enjoyed by hunters, hikers, birdwatchers, families, and countless outdoor enthusiasts.
Luna County Attorney Chuck Kretek told commissioners that maps on file with the State Land Office and available online from Google Maps, OnX and other sites incorrectly showed County Road 17 as a public road where it crosses the Allen’s property before continuing on to federal land administered by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
Kretek said the road was not public over the Allen’s property despite a long history of public use. He said a private gate on federal land had been improperly locked recently.
Trejo said after the meeting that he opposes seeing the county give up any county road access.
“It’s ironic that Thursday’s commission meeting included a presentation on the problem of youth unemployment in Luna County followed by a vote by the commission majority to reduce public access to one of our county’s greatest assets– our public lands,” Trejo said.
“Public lands across the West are being fenced off and landlocked and it’s imperative that local governments stand up for common citizens to ensure public access to every possible acre,” Trejo said. “I believe the public has established the right to continue to use that road over many years and this commission vote fails to respect that.”

09/09/2026

The NMWF is gratified that officials from the New Mexico State Land Office and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management attended Wednesday's meeting of the Catron County Commission to speak to the importance of maintaining public access to public lands.

The red arrow shows the site of a newly installed locked gate that blocks public access to thousands of acres of state and BLM land in northern Catron County.

09/08/2026

The public has an opportunity to comment about Cochiti Pueblo's application to have a parcel of land taken into trust by the federal government. Some local residents oppose the move, having fought for years to regain road access through the land after the pueblo acquired it from the state.

By Ben Neary NMWF The U.S. Department of Interior is accepting public comments on a pending application from Cochiti Pueblo asking the federal government to take a parcel of former state land into trust. Some neighboring landowners oppose the pueblo’s request, saying granting it would block their

09/04/2026

The New Mexico State Land Office has asked Catron County to reopen public access to tens of thousands of acres of public land. The county commission has set a vote for next Wednesday on the issue at its meeting in Reserve.

This map of northern Catron County shows a red dot at the point where the Great Western Ranch has blocked a road that historically allowed public access to thousands of acres of public land