A program that supports city partners in conserving birds and their habitats and providing opportunities for community engagement in bird-related recreation, education, and conservation activities in urban and suburban areas.

What We Do

Image Details

Our Services

The Urban Bird Treaty program is a unique, collaborative effort between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and participating U.S. cities. Launched in 1999, the first treaty was signed with New Orleans and the second with Chicago in 2000. Since that time, an additional 28 cities have become Urban Bird Treaty cities, for a total of 31 spanning from Alaska to Alabama. Read about our Urban Bird Treaty cities.

The Urban Bird Treaty Program Guidebook provides a wealth of information and resources to support partners in existing Urban Bird Treaty cities and those interested in nominating their cities for Urban Bird Treaty City status.

Latest Stories and Topics

Stories
People with binoculars stand on an outdoor boardwalk looking up at the sky
Recreation
Birdwatching Takes Flight in Philly
A variety of organizations and birders are working to make birdwatching more inclusive, accessible and diverse
a group of children in a forest look and point up in the sky with awe, presumably because they're looking at a bird or other wildlife
Our Partners
Sense of wonder, not worry
For ten years, the Providence Urban Wildlife Conservation Partnership has inspired city residents with a sense of wonder with the nature in their community.
Group photo of adults and youth smiling. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service logo can be seen on a podium in the center of the photo
Our Partners
U.S. Fish and Wildlife celebrates decade of connecting people with nature in Providence
Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, elected officials and partners came together at the Roger Williams Park Botanical Center in Providence, Rhode Island, to celebrate ten years of urban conservation through the Providence Urban Wildlife Conservation Partnership.
chimney swift
Migratory Species
Chimney Swifts
Did you know that chimney swifts are among the fastest flyers in the bird world? They have been clocked at flying 60 miles per hour or more, and they can eat one-third of their body weight per day! These aerial insectivores were once a common bird but are now facing steep population declines and...
An owl on a tree limb looks at trash-filled waterway below
Migratory Species
2023 Urban Bird Treaty Program Funds Community-Based Projects in 2023
This year the Service’s Urban Bird Treaty Program is funding seven community-based conservation projects through its participation in the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant Program. For the 2023 grant funding cycle, the Service’s Migratory Bird...
Various birds perched including a black-throated green warbler (Setophaga virens), summer tanager (Piranga rubra), spotted towhee (Pipilo maculatus), and northern parula (Setophaga americana). Photo Credit: Jake Bonello/USFWS
Migratory Species
Birds and Birders Flock to Baltimore
Migratory birds and birders flock to Baltimore
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Our Services

American Oystercatchers at dawn in Jamaica Bay
Urban Bird Treaty Grant

The Urban Conservation Treaty for Migratory Birds (Urban Bird Treaty) is a program working with cities and partners to conserve migratory birds through education, hazard reductions, community science, conservation actions, and conservation and habitat improvement strategies in urban/...

Projects and Research

Yuma Ridgway's rail standing in water
Image Details
Rio Reimagined Urban Bird Coalition
About the Coalition

In 2011, through the awarding of a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Challenge Grant to Audubon Southwest, Phoenix Arizona was designated as an Urban Bird Treaty City.  In 2022, in a show of continued support for urban bird conservation, the Urban Bird Treaty was signed by dignitaries from the City of Phoenix, Audubon Southwest, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service....

Rio Reimagined Urban Bird Coalition