Stories from the Home Page
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Wetland area at Green River National Wildlife Refuge in Kentucky. Credit: USFWS
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Service Unveils New National Wildlife Refuge in KentuckyDecember 22, 2019Today, U.S. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt, along with U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Service Principal Deputy Director Margaret Everson, Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources and other officials, announced the establishment of the Green River National Wildlife Refuge near the confluence of the Ohio and Green rivers in Henderson, Kentucky. This is the 568th refuge in the National Wildlife Refuge System. |
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Wetland area at Green River National Wildlife Refuge in Kentucky. Credit: USFWS
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Aurelia Skipwith visits Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: USFWS
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Senate Confirms Aurelia Skipwith as Director of U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceDecember 12, 2019Today, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Aurelia Skipwith as Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Skipwith has served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks at the Department of the Interior since April 19, 2017. "I am truly honored to serve the American people under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Bernhardt," says Service Director Skipwith. |
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Aurelia Skipwith visits Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: USFWS
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The veteran's hunt is just one example of the work by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to promote outdoor opportunities of all types, including hunting, fishing and recreational opportunities on public lands. Credit: Brent Lawrence/USFWS
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Veterans Discover Tranquility in NatureDecember 10, 2019"Being injured, I didn't know how I was going to go about living my life besides raising my kids and being at home. Being introduced to the outdoor sports is incredible. ... Being outdoors, I believe, is the best therapy you can get," says U.S. Army veteran Sal Trujillo. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and partners from the Washington Waterfowl Association's Lower Columbia Chapter and The Fallen Outdoors introduced 20 new and notice veterans to waterfowl hunting at the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge Veterans Hunt. |
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The veteran's hunt is just one example of the work by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to promote outdoor opportunities of all types, including hunting, fishing and recreational opportunities on public lands. Credit: Brent Lawrence/USFWS
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Two toms vie for hens' attention at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge in Illinois. Credit: Jim Osborn
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Wild Facts About Wild TurkeysNovember 26, 2019Amuse your guests this Thanksgiving with these offbeat wild turkey facts. |
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Two toms vie for hens' attention at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge in Illinois. Credit: Jim Osborn
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Northern pintails in flight Credit: J. Kelly/USFWS
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Service Improves Permit Application SystemNovember 25, 2019In an effort to simplify, expedite and improve the permit application process, the public can now apply, and pay for, certain U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permits online. Prior to developing an electronic permitting system, applicants had to apply for permits through mail with paper checks. The new system will allow users to apply, and pay for, certain international affairs and migratory birds permits through a user-friendly database and pay.gov, a secure electronic payment system. |
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Northern pintails in flight Credit: J. Kelly/USFWS
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Brown-belted bumble bee on prairie clover. Credit: Tom Koerner/USFWS
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Beyond Monarchs: A Pollinator PrimerNovember 21, 2019We at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are continually learning about pollinators. We know their populations are changing. We are still in the process of researching them, but because they are often small and solitary, they are difficult to study. But you don’t have to be a pollinator expert to save butterflies and bees. Here are some of the basics about these vital species. |
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Brown-belted bumble bee on prairie clover. Credit: Tom Koerner/USFWS
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Karen Little is a botanist and the environmental laboratory manager for specialty gardens and greenhouses at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas. Credit: Al Barrus/USFWS
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Fish and Wildlife Service, Partners Strike at Cactus Black MarketNovember 14, 2019After years of investigation, four cactus traffickers have been sentenced to a combined total of nine years of probation and more for their role in the illegal harvest, sale and/or transportation of the protected living rock, a thornless cactus. There are several more defendants in this case, and the fight to protect the cactus is ongoing. It’s a felony to export the wild plant outside United States. |
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Karen Little is a botanist and the environmental laboratory manager for specialty gardens and greenhouses at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas. Credit: Al Barrus/USFWS
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Roseate spoonbill at Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Credit: Larry A. Woodward/USFWS
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Why I Took These ShotsNovember 14, 2019“Wildlife photography has become a passion of mine that I have shared with my special-needs daughter, Roland,” says Larry Woodward, deputy manager and wildlife biologist at Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge and Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. “On a weekly basis, we are together, both with camera in hand, photographing wildlife.” |
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Roseate spoonbill at Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Credit: Larry A. Woodward/USFWS
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Biologists at the Saratoga National Fish Hatchery in Wyoming hopped at the chance to raise the endangered Wyoming toad. Credit: USFWS
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National Fish Hatcheries No Longer Just About FishNovember 6, 2019Mussels, birds, turtles: These creatures, and more, are living at national fish hatcheries across the nation. The hatcheries, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, host 30 non-fish species — shelled, feathered, hopping — as well as growing more than 100 species of fish. |
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Biologists at the Saratoga National Fish Hatchery in Wyoming hopped at the chance to raise the endangered Wyoming toad. Credit: USFWS
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A hawksbill turtle is among the creatures a diver might see near Desecheo National Wildlife Refuge in Puerto Rico. Credit: Credit: © Jan P. Zegarra
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Dive Into Puerto Rico's Blissful WatersNovember 1, 2019"I grew up here," says Jan P. Zegarra, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist who has been diving off Puerto Rico since he was a teenager. "We're surrounded by the ocean on all sides, so it feels almost natural to be in the water here." Join Zegarra in exploring great diving opportunities off the coasts of three national wildlife refuges in Puerto Rico. |
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A hawksbill turtle is among the creatures a diver might see near Desecheo National Wildlife Refuge in Puerto Rico. Credit: Credit: © Jan P. Zegarra
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Tri-colored bat with visible symptoms of white-nose syndrome at Cloudland Canyon State Park in Georgia. Credit: Pete Pattavina/USFWS
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Service Announces Funding to Spur Innovation to Save America's BatsOctober 30, 2019The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service launched a $100,000 challenge to help combat white-nose syndrome, a disease that has killed millions of hibernating bats in North America. Funds will be awarded to individuals and teams who identify innovative ways to permanently eradicate, weaken or disarm the fungus that causes the disease. The deadline to submit ideas to the White-nose Syndrome Challenge is Dec. 31, 2019, by 11:59 p.m. ET. |
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Tri-colored bat with visible symptoms of white-nose syndrome at Cloudland Canyon State Park in Georgia. Credit: Pete Pattavina/USFWS
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Visitors enjoying a morning bike ride at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Utah. Credit: J. Barney
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U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Announces Guidance for Electric Bicycle Use On National Wildlife RefugesOctober 22, 2019The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Wildlife Refuge System announced today a Director’s Order to allow the use of low-speed electric bicycles (e-bikes) at national wildlife refuges that permit traditional bicycling, expanding recreational opportunities and access. E-bike use is now permitted at any refuge where biking is deemed to be consistent with the site’s statutory purpose. |
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Visitors enjoying a morning bike ride at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Utah. Credit: J. Barney
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The Tualatin River at Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuges. Credit: USFWS
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The Tualatin River Runs Through ItOctober 16, 2019The Tualatin River in Oregon brings together cities, partners and the public with Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge and Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Both urban refuges are in the middle of extensive projects that will provide habitat for fish, wildlife and plants and improve quality drinking water for 400,000 humans. The projects are also strengthening long-term relationships with local cities and partners. As we celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week, why not check out what’s happening at a refuge near you? |
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The Tualatin River at Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuges. Credit: USFWS
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Thumbnail image of a still shot from the These Are Your National Wildlife Refuges video. Click image to view the video. Credit: USFWS
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National Wildlife Refuges Make Life BetterOctober 16, 2019Mid-October brings much to savor: crisp air, turning leaves and the sprouting of Halloween goblins on lawns. Here’s something else that belongs on your things-to-celebrate-this-fall list: national wildlife refuges. This week—National Wildlife Refuge Week — is a great time to reflect on how much we all owe these wondrous lands and waters. |
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Thumbnail image of a still shot from the These Are Your National Wildlife Refuges video. Click image to view the video. Credit: USFWS
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Principal Deputy Director Margaret Everson and Iowa Department of Natural Resources Director Kayla Lyon work with kids at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Iowa. Credit: Melissa A. Clark/USFWS
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Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge Celebrates Expansion of Hunting and Fishing AccessOctober 11, 2019As the nation heads into National Wildlife Refuge Week, Principal Deputy Director Margaret Everson welcomed members of the conservation community to Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Iowa. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was highlighting work to expand hunting and fishing opportunities and make it easier for all Americans to access their public lands. |
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Principal Deputy Director Margaret Everson and Iowa Department of Natural Resources Director Kayla Lyon work with kids at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Iowa. Credit: Melissa A. Clark/USFWS
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