The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Interior with a mission "to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people."

FWS "manages the 93 million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System of more than 520 National Wildlife Refuges and thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. Under the Fisheries program it also operates 66 National Fish Hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations." The National Wildlife Refuge System has a long history beginning with President Theodore Roosevelt giving an executive order on March 14, 1903 to establish the Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge along Florida's central Atlantic coast, it was the first unit of the present National Wildlife Refuge System.

FWS employs approximately 7,500 people at facilities across the U.S. at seven geographic regional offices, and nearly 700 field units and headquarters in Washington, DC. Its budget is approximately $2.1 billion.

Environmental Laws

The Fish and Wildlife Service plays a major role in implementing and enforcing many U.S. federal laws, including:

Duck Stamp

FWS runs the * Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act, commonly known as the Federal Duck Stamp Program as a fund raising tool for the National Wildlife Refuge System. The stamps, created since 1934 and currently $15, are not used for postage, but rather as hunting licenses and entrance passes for the National Wildlife Refuge System as well as collectors items.

History

One FWS's most famous employees was Rachel Carson (1907-1964), author of the book Silent Spring (1962) which led to the banning of the pesticide DDT and is considered a landmark in the advent of the modern environmental movement.

Further Reading

• United Sates Fish and Wildlife Service Home Page