Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s Rise Up for Research

When Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris began offering customers the option to round up their purchases for conservation, no one could have foretold just how impactful contributions from the sportsmen and women who shop at the outdoor icon would become.

Grants from the Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s Outdoor Fund support conservation projects throughout North America, with more than 250 leading conservation organizations enhancing millions of acres of wildlife habitat.

Over the years, the Outdoor Fund has provided critical support to the NWTF, fueling on-the-ground habitat enhancement in areas of greatest conservation need throughout the country. However, a new opportunity surfaced in 2022, as the NWTF began aggressively investing in wild turkey research through its National Request for Proposals Program at the 12th National Wild Turkey Symposium, with a $360k investment into seven projects.  

Johnny and the conservation leaders at Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's saw the NWTF's National Request for Proposals Program as a bridge to align their love for the wild turkey with actionable research work specifically designed to ensure the sustainability of the bird.

In 2023, a $500,000 Outdoor Fund grant was allocated to the NWTF’s National Request for Proposal, ultimately resulting in the NWTF's significant investment of $582,374 in wild turkey research. With partner support, the NWTF's 2023 investment into wild turkey research was leveraged to nearly $9 million for 10 wild turkey research projects throughout the country. You can listen to or read more about these 10 projects.

All funded projects, both in 2022 and 2023, were ranked and scored by the NWTF's conservation leadership and the NWTF Technical Committee. The cross-branch partnership among wild turkey biologists, researchers and agency leadership allows for an expert-level, non-biased approach to scoring and ranking the projects on their scientific rigor, partner engagement, secured matching funds and the applicability of each project toward NWTF's key areas of focus.

As the NWTF's RFP program looks to make its third historic investment in wild turkey research this year as a public-facing effort, it is essential to note that it would not be possible without the many people who revere this magnificent bird, from the researchers in the field to companies like Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's, who treasure the wild turkey and want to ensure the iconic gamebird is thriving on the landscape for future generations. 

"As the NWTF continues to elevate its investments in critical wild turkey research, we are thankful for partners in Johnny Morris and the Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's Outdoor Fund," NWTF co-CEO Kurt Dyroff said. "They have stepped up to the plate time and time again to pledge support for the wild turkey and our efforts to conserve this cherished bird."