Fish and Wildlife Service

The Service employs 379 people in Minnesota, and about half of those are at the Regional Office at Ft. Snelling.
The Fiscal Year 2008 Resource Management budget for Service activities in Minnesota totaled $48.7 million
13 National Wildlife Refuges totaling more than 216,000 acres
Eight Wetland Management Districts totaling more than
273,000 acres
In 2008, more than 1.5 million people visited national wildlife refuges and wetland districts in Minnesota to hunt, fi sh, participate in interpretive programs and view
wildlife

Federal Assistance to State Fish and Wildlife Programs

In 2006 Minnesota received:

$12.8 million for sport fish restoration
$7 million for wildlife restoration and hunter education

Wetland Management Districts

Detroit Lakes Wetland Management District
218-847-4431

Fergus Falls Wetland Management District
218-739-2291

Litchfield Wetland Management District
320-693-2849

Morris Wetland Management District
320-589-1001

Windom Wetland Management District
507-831-2220

Wetland Acquisition Offices

Fergus Falls Wetland Acquisition Office
218-736-0625

Litchfield Wetland Acquisition Office
320-693-2849

Ecological Services

Twin Cities Ecological Services Field Office
612-725-3548

Law Enforcement

Duluth Law Enforcement Office
218-720-5357

Minneapolis Airport Wildlife Inspection Office
612-726-6302

St. Paul Law Enforcement Office
651-778-8360

Other Programs/Offices

Federal Aid
Migratory Bird Conservation
North American Waterfowl Management Plan
Private Lands Office
Realty
Region 3 - Regional Office

Waterfowl Production Areas

Incorporated into the refuge system in 1966, nearly 95 percent of waterfowl production areas are located in the prairie wetlands or “ potholes” of the Dakotas, Minnesota, Montana and Wisconsin. If wetlands in this vast prairie pothole region were not saved from drainage, hundreds of species of migratory birds would have been seriously threatened or become extinct.

Although waterfowl production areas, easements, and National Wildlife Refuges account for less than 2 percent of the landscape in the prairie pothole region states, they are responsible for producing nearly 23 percent of this area’s waterfowl. That is why working with private landowners through voluntary partnerships to enhance wetlands is so critical to protecting waterfowl.

By law, waterfowl production areas are open to hunting, fishing, and trapping. Other important wildlife-dependent uses include wildlife observation, photography, and environmental education.

Protecting Endangered Species The Twin Cities Ecological Services

Field Office works to conserve and protect the 16 federally listed endangered, threatened or candidate species in Minnesota. Actions to save these species from extinction result in improved water quality, preservation and restoration of natural areas, clean up of contaminants, and restoration of degraded rivers and streams.

The Service leads recovery work for the winged mapleleaf, an endangered species considered to be one of the rarest freshwater mussels in North America. The Twin Cities Ecological Services Field Office works with researchers from the University of Minnesota, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, USGS, the La Crosse Fishery Resource Office, and National Park Service. Recent accomplishments include identifying channel catfish and blue catfish as suitable hosts, undertaking river studies to ensure artificial propagation and reintroduction follows the mussels’ natural cycle, and monitoring range expansion of invasive zebra mussels.

Last updated: June 22, 2009

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, One Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, MN 55111-4056
612-713-5360
E-mail: MidwestNews@fws.gov