All Topics  
United States Fish and Wildlife Service

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

United States Fish and Wildlife Service
 
 
  Topics United States Fish and Wildlife Service Topic Home

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is the unit of the U.S. Department of the Interior dedicated to the management and preservation of wildlife.

Units within the FWS include:
U.S. FWS originated in 1871 as the U.S. Commission on Fish and Fisheries, created by Congress with the purpose of studying and recommending solutions to a decline in food fish.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'United States Fish and Wildlife Service'
Start a new discussion about 'United States Fish and Wildlife Service'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Recent Posts

Game Warden Budget and Hiring








Encyclopedia


The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is the unit of the U.S. Department of the Interior dedicated to the management and preservation of wildlife.

Units within the FWS include:
  • National Wildlife Refuge
    National Wildlife Refuge

    National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service....
     System
  • Federal Duck Stamp
    Federal Duck Stamp

    Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act , as amended – The "Duck Stamp Act," as this March 16, 1934, authority is commonly called, requires each waterfowl hunter 16 years of age or older to possess a valid Federal hunting stamp....
  • National Fish Hatchery System
    National Fish Hatchery System

    The National Fish Hatchery System was established by the Congress of the United States in 1871 through the creation of a U.S. Commissioner for Fish and Fisheries....
  • Endangered Species program

History

The U.S. FWS originated in 1871 as the U.S. Commission on Fish and Fisheries, created by Congress with the purpose of studying and recommending solutions to a decline in food fish. Spencer Fullerton Baird was appointed its first commissioner.In 1885, the Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammalogy was established in the Department of Agriculture. Its early work focused on the effect of birds in controlling agricultural pests and mapping the geographical distribution of plants and animals in the United States. Jay Norwood Darling was appointed Chief of the new Bureau of Biological Survey in 1934; under his guidance, the Bureau began an ongoing legacy of protecting vital natural habitat throughout the country. The Fish and Wildlife Service was finally created in 1940, when the Bureaus of Fisheries and Biological Survey were combined after being moved to the Department of the Interior. Today, the Service consists of a central administrative office with eight regional offices and nearly 700 field offices distributed throughout the United States.

The Service is a bureau within the Department of Interior. Its mission is, working with others, to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages 548 National Wildlife Refuges and 66 National Fish Hatcheries.

Pursuant to the eagle feather law
Eagle feather law

In the United States, there are a number of federal wildlife laws pertaining to eagles and their feathers , however the"eagle feather law" in its most common usage refers to Title 50 Part 22 of the United States Code of Federal Regulations , the federal law governing the use and possession of eagles and their body parts, including feathers,...
, Title 50 Part 22 of the Code of Federal Regulations
Code of Federal Regulations

File:Codeoffederalregulations.jpgThe Code of Federal Regulations is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government of the United States....
 (50 CFR 22), and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act
Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act

The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act , enacted in 1940, and amended several times since then, prohibits anyone, without a permit issued by the United States Secretary of the Interior, from "taking" bald eagles, including their parts, nests, or eggs....
, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service administers the National Eagle Repository
National Eagle Repository

The National Eagle Repository in Denver, Colorado, is a central location for the receipt, storage, and distribution of Bald and Golden eagles that have been found dead....
 and the permit system for Native American religious use of eagle feathers.

The Service governs two National Monuments
U.S. National Monument

A National Monument in the United States is a protected area that is similar to a United States Park Service except that the President of the United States can quickly declare an area of the United States to be a National Monument without the approval of United States Congress....
, Hanford Reach National Monument
Hanford Reach National Monument

The Hanford Reach National Monument is a U.S. National Monument in the U.S. State of Washington. It was created in 2000 from what used to be the security buffer surrounding the Hanford Nuclear Reservation....
 in Washington
Washington

Washington is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory which had been ceded by Britain in 1846 by the Oregon Treaty as settlement of the Oregon Boundary Dispute....
 State and Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, a huge maritime area northwest of Hawaii
Hawaii

File:Pahoehoe and Aa flows at Hawaii.jpgThe State of Hawaii is a U.S. state in the United States, located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of Australia....
 (jointly with NOAA
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the Earth's atmosphere....
).

See also


Related governmental agencies

  • National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory
    National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory

    The National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory is located in Ashland, Oregon, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1988 and run by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the forensic science laboratory is the only such laboratory in the world devoted to wildlife law enforcement agency....
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office for Law Enforcement
    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office for Law Enforcement

    The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement is a federal police part of the National Marine Fisheries Service of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland....
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

    The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the Earth's atmosphere....
  • United States Coast Guard
    United States Coast Guard

    The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the Military of the United States and one of seven Uniformed services of the United States. In addition to being a military branch at all times, it is unique among the armed forces in that it is also a Admiralty law agency and a Federal government of the United States regulatory agency....

Regulatory matters

  • Coastal Barrier Resources Act
    Coastal Barrier Resources Act

    The Coastal Barrier Resources Act of the United States was enacted October 18, 1982. Congress passed this Act in order to address the many problems associated with coastal barrier development....
  • Endangered Species Act
    Endangered Species Act

    The Endangered Species Act of 1973 or ESA is the most wide-ranging of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s....
  • Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act
    Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act

    The Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act of the United States was enacted March 10, 1934 to protect fish and wildlife when federal actions result in the control or modification of a natural stream or body of water....
  • Marine Mammal Protection Act
    Marine Mammal Protection Act

    The Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 was the first article of legislation to call specifically for an ecosystem approach to natural resource management and conservation....
  • Migratory Bird Treaty Act
  • National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966
    National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966

    The provided guidelines and directives for administration and management of all areas in National Wildlife Refuge system including "wildlife refuges, areas for the protection and conservation of fish and wildlife that are threatened with extinction, wildlife ranges, game ranges, wildlife management areas, and waterfowl production areas."...
  • Wild Bird Conservation Act of 1992
  • National Wetlands Inventory
  • Sikes Act
  • Listing priority number
    Listing priority number

    A listing priority number is a United States Fish and Wildlife Service way of designating the relative priority of candidate species. Candidate species are species that the FWS believes should be listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act, but due to funding concerns, cannot be listed immediately....

Wildlife management

  • Timeline of environmental events
    Timeline of environmental events

    The timeline of environmental events is a historical account of events that have shaped humanity's perspective on the environment. This timeline includes some major natural events, human induced disasters, environmentalists that have had a positive influence, and environmental legislation....
  • United States Fish and Wildlife Service list of endangered species
    United States Fish and Wildlife Service list of endangered species

    This list contains only the bird and mammal species described as endangered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. It contains species not only in the U.S....
  • International Migratory Bird Day
  • Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research
    Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research

    Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research, Inc. is a nonprofit conservation organization located in Newark, Delaware, dedicated to indigenous wild bird rehabilitation, especially rehabilitation efforts related to oil spills....


External links

  • of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Meeting Notices and Rule Changes] from The Federal Register
  • Arizona Game and Fish Department
    Arizona Game and Fish Department

    The Arizona Game and Fish Department is tasked with conserving, enhancing, and restoring Arizona's diverse wildlife resources and habitats through aggressive protection and management programs....