United States Fish and Wildlife Service

Description

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service, or FWS, is a federal agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior. It is the only federal agency whose main job is conserving and managing fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the American people. Its origins go back to 1871, when Congress created the U.S. Fish Commission, and to a bureau of biological survey founded in 1885. The two predecessor agencies merged in 1940 to form the modern Fish and Wildlife Service.

FWS manages the National Wildlife Refuge System, which spans hundreds of refuges across all fifty states, and it runs a National Fish Hatchery System to restore native fish stocks. It shares responsibility for the Endangered Species Act with the National Marine Fisheries Service and enforces federal wildlife laws such as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Lacey Act. Its Office of Law Enforcement runs a forensic laboratory that is the only one in the world devoted to wildlife crime.

The agency also organizes the annual Federal Duck Stamp program, whose sales have funded the conservation of millions of acres of wetlands. It offers grants, permits and technical assistance to states, tribes and other partners, and trains staff and partners at its National Conservation Training Center. FWS operates across the United States, including national wildlife refuges, fish hatcheries and education centers nationwide.