James Earl Kennamer, Ph.D., has been named Chief Conservation Officer for the National Wild Turkey Federation.


Kennamer has spent 28 years at the helm of the NWTF's conservation programs department working with wildlife agencies to restore wild turkey populations in the United States and Canada. Before coming to the NWTF, Kennamer was a tenured professor of wildlife biology at Auburn University.


Kennamer, who held the title of NWTF senior vice president for conservation programs, was surprised by the announcement.


“This is a tremendous honor for me and completely unexpected,” said an emotional Dr. Kennamer. “It's an honor to work with such a committed group of conservationists and volunteers at the NWTF.”