Assumptions about how conservation practices will affect ecological outcomes are critical for informing and learning from conservation actions. However, when assumptions do not reflect conditions to which they are applied, they can impede achievement of targeted outcomes and hinder capacity to contribute to conservation goals. We assert that identifying and examining technical assumptions, or those that relate to abiotic or biotic systems, in conservation practice retrospectively for broad conservation strategies is crucial for advancing learning in conservation. Unlike existing proactive assumption frameworks, retroactive examination, which is often realistic for broad scale conservation, allows for honest evaluation of the contributions of those strategies toward shared goals.We propose the state, identify, focus, and think (SIFT) framework, a four-step process, to guide examination of technical assumptions by defining how assumptions interact with biological circumstances to shape outcomes. We demonstrate use of the SIFT framework with a common technical assumption in US federal private lands conservation programs-that all acres are similarly valuable for achieving wildlife conservation benefits. With the SIFT framework, we show that the benefits of these programs are likely to be applicable to mobile, generalist species with small space requirements, while many species of conservation concern are less likely to benefit.

Wildlife populations face significant threats, including habitat loss and climate change. However, the United States has faced major biodiversity crises in the past. In 1937, in response to dwindling wildlife populations, Congress passed the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, known as "Pittman-Robertson" (PR). The law helped restore wildlife populations by establishing a federal role in funding state wildlife agencies enabling states to develop the infrastructure and expertise for effective wildlife conservation. Now, the 117th Congress is considering the Recovering America's Wildlife Act (RAWA). RAWA would provide state, tribal, and territorial wildlife agencies the funding to implement their State Wildlife Action Plans for the conservation of nongame wildlife. Herein, we explore the relationship between PR and RAWA while tracing the historical roots of PR and discussing its successes and limitations. We also demonstrate how RAWA builds upon PR and could become a generational conservation accomplishment.

A decades-long decline in hunting participation jeopardizes state wildlife agency funding amid growing conservation and management challenges. College students are being recognized by states and non-governmental organizations as an important population for hunter recruitment and retention, fueling a proliferation of learn-to-hunt programs on college campuses.Nearly 3,000,000 students attend college in a state where they are not a resident and may face constraints to hunting. We analyzed hunting license residency statutes in each state to determine whether non-resident college students were addressed in statutes or policies, catalog statutory provisions that may exclude populations of students from hunting, and document how students' residency status affects the price of a deer and small game license. Nationwide, 29 states have statutes allowing non-resident college students to hunt at a resident rate. Among these states, we identified a patchwork of statutory requirements for non-resident students to be eligible for resident-rate licenses, including waiting periods, age restrictions, credit restrictions, and unclear or onerous purchasing procedures. Non-resident college students fell into a gray area of licensing policy in the 21 states without statutes addressing this group. In these states, students often needed to pay non-resident hunting license rates. Hunting licenses were substantially more expensive for non-resident college students in states without statutes addressing students, and license sales data from Montana, USA, indicated that high license prices are a constraint for student hunters. With college students becoming a focal point for hunter recruitment efforts,