In the late 1990s the government of Guatemala began to allocate lands within the Maya Biosphere Reserve (MBR) to local and indigenous communities. These community concessions were established to devolve authority for management of forest resources to local people. To create tangible economic incentives for local communities to protect their forests within the MBR, WCS has been supporting the operation of several natural resource-based enterprises including sustainable logging, and the sustainable harvest of Xate palm fronds which are used for flower arrangements in the US and Europe. In 2001, WCS started working with the communities of Uaxactun and Carmelita to establish an ocellated turkey trophy hunting operation as an alternative to the unsustainable harvest of wild turkeys sold as food.Demand from U.S. sport hunters is strong, and they have been willing to pay $1,000 to $1,500 to hunt a single male. Importantly, harvesting “excess” males after breeding season has had no adverse impact on the health of the turkey population. U.S. turkey hunters were keen to come to Guatemala rather than Mexico to hunt because they knew that the trophy fees and other payments would go primarily to local communities. The communities were equally keen to engage because revenue from trophy hunters far exceeds the $5 per turkey they would earn by selling the birds in local food markets. Prior to the launch of the trophy hunting operation, the communities of Uaxactun and Carmelita agreed to set aside at least 25,000 hectares (3 times the area of Manhattan) of their total concessions, which are 83,558 hectares and 53,797 hectares respectively, as exclusive turkey management zones. The communities provide hunters with four days of paid-for hunt services (transport, accommodation, foods, guides, trophy skinning and taxidermy preparation) and the right to harvest one adult-male turkey for a standard fee of $1450.