Stories from the Home Page
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A volunteer and his dog, a newly minted B.A.R.K. Ranger, are ready to take to the trails of John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum. Credit: USFWS
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Thank You, Volunteers! ‘Working Together We Accomplish Many Things’April 10, 2019We are celebrating National Volunteer Week and our volunteers – nearly 42,000 – who give more than 1.5 million hours to help conserve the nature of America. “Volunteers are integral to Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge,” says Sarah Inouye-Leas, volunteer coordinator there. |
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A volunteer and his dog, a newly minted B.A.R.K. Ranger, are ready to take to the trails of John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum. Credit: USFWS
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USFWS special agents operated an undercover wholesale fish business in Michigan. They were so convincing that when the investigation had completed, local fishermen could not believe they were actual federal agents. Credit: USFWS
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Lake Trout Trafficking Costs Michigan Fish Dealer $1.03 Million in RestitutionApril 8, 2019John H. Cross III will serve 12 months in prison – intermittently during a five-year term of probation – and he and his company, John Cross Fisheries Inc., will pay $1.03 million in restitution for trafficking fish taken from the Great Lakes. Over two years, Cross Fisheries illegally bought and sold approximately 48,500 pounds of lake trout.
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USFWS special agents operated an undercover wholesale fish business in Michigan. They were so convincing that when the investigation had completed, local fishermen could not believe they were actual federal agents. Credit: USFWS
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Thumbnail image of the Tracking Paddlefish YouTube video. Credit: USFWS
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Progress for PaddlefishApril 8, 2019Paddlefish are arguably the oddest looking creatures swimming the waters of the Mississippi River Basin. They are certainly among the oldest. Swimming dinosaurs. This video tells how the Texas Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Tishomingo National Fish Hatchery work in concert with the Texas Parks and Wildlife to restore, and learn more about, paddlefish. |
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Thumbnail image of the Tracking Paddlefish YouTube video. Credit: USFWS
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The BIG program benefits boaters and local communities. Credit: USFWS
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$20+ Million in Grants Will Support Recreational Boating Infrastructure ProjectsApril 5, 2019The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Boating Infrastructure Grant (BIG) program continues its substantial contributions to recreational boaters and local communities and their economies through this year’s award of $20.6 million in grants to states and U.S. territories. By providing funding to support dedicated boat tie-up facilities and associated amenities, the BIG program helps Americans enjoy the nation’s waters and our cherished wildlife, natural and cultural resources. |
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The BIG program benefits boaters and local communities. Credit: USFWS
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Poacher's mounted bobcat and mountain lion (right). Credit: USFWS
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Wisconsin Poaching Scheme ExposedApril 2, 2019Four longtime hound hunters who enjoyed decades of running their dogs after bear, mountain lion, bobcat and other wildlife are now branded as poachers and have lost their hunting privileges worldwide, some for up to four years. |
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Poacher's mounted bobcat and mountain lion (right). Credit: USFWS
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Screenshot image of the YouTube video, Poachers and Protectors: The Story of Scarlet Macaws in Honduras. Click to view video. Credit: USFWS
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New Film Showcases Effort to Combat Trafficking of Scarlet MacawsApril 1, 2019In the dangerous Moskitia region of Honduras, poachers seek out the chicks and eggs of wild scarlet macaws. Their goal: sell them in the lucrative illegal pet trade. To counter the traffickers, brave community members, with the support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have united to patrol and protect the nests. Poachers and Protectors: The Story of Scarlet Macaws in Honduras puts a spotlight on the wildlife trafficking crisis in Latin America, and introduces us to some of the heroes who are willing to risk it all for these birds.
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Screenshot image of the YouTube video, Poachers and Protectors: The Story of Scarlet Macaws in Honduras. Click to view video. Credit: USFWS
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Anglers and boaters help improve fishing access through their contributions. Credit: RBFF Credit: RBFF
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States Receive More Than $1 Billion for Recreation Access, ConservationApril 1, 2019Outdoor recreationists who hunt, shoot, fish and boat are providing more than $1 billion this year to support increased outdoor access and wildlife habitat conservation across the United States. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is distributing the funds to all 50 states and U.S. territories today. The funds are generated through excise taxes on hunting, shooting and fishing equipment and boat fuel. |
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Anglers and boaters help improve fishing access through their contributions. Credit: RBFF Credit: RBFF
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Navy veteran Chad Brown, right, founder of Soul River Inc. Runs Wild, pairs vets with inner-city youth on fishing trips to promote healing. Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge near Portland, Oregon, partners with Soul River. Credit: Courtesy of Chad Brown/Soul River Inc.
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11 Ways Wildlife Refuges Make Life BetterMarch 21, 2019Even if you’ve never set foot on one of the country’s 567 national wildlife refuges, you’ve probably benefited from its existence. |
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Navy veteran Chad Brown, right, founder of Soul River Inc. Runs Wild, pairs vets with inner-city youth on fishing trips to promote healing. Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge near Portland, Oregon, partners with Soul River. Credit: Courtesy of Chad Brown/Soul River Inc.
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Allowing adjacent landowners to use district lands is a way we could help our neighbors and protect the cattle they depend on,” says Brad Krohn, project leader for the Rainwater Basin Waterfowl Management District. Credit: Brad Krohn/USFWS
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After Flooding, Service Staff Make Room for Neighbors’ CattleMarch 21, 2019Recent flooding in Nebraska left fields used for winter pasture full of mud too deep for cattle to walk through. Staff at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Rainwater Basin Wetland Management District have been helping two neighboring ranchers with emergency grazing, welcoming more than 400 animals onto waterfowl production areas on higher ground. |
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Allowing adjacent landowners to use district lands is a way we could help our neighbors and protect the cattle they depend on,” says Brad Krohn, project leader for the Rainwater Basin Waterfowl Management District. Credit: Brad Krohn/USFWS
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Turtles were smuggled using a variety of methods. Here they are concealed inside athletic socks and surrounded by food packages. Credit: USFWS
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Turtle Smuggler Gets Stiff SentenceMarch 20, 2019Four South Carolina men were sentenced for smuggling endangered or protected turtles to and from the United States. One defendant was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and ordered to forfeit more than $263,000 from illicit proceeds. |
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Turtles were smuggled using a variety of methods. Here they are concealed inside athletic socks and surrounded by food packages. Credit: USFWS
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The White House. Credit: The White House
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President Requests $1.3B for Service in FY 2020March 18, 2019President Donald Trump has proposed a budget of $1.3 billion in Fiscal Year 2020 to fund the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s principal resource management and conservation programs. An additional $1.5 billion in permanent funding is administered to states through grants that support state wildlife and sport fish conservation, recreational boating and related programs. The President’s Budget invests in outdoor recreational opportunities, improvements to the permitting processes and infrastructure, and work to recover species listed under the Endangered Species Act. |
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The White House. Credit: The White House
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The gray wolf. Credit: Gary Kramer/USFWS
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Department of the Interior Celebrates Recovery of the Gray Wolf with Proposal to Return Management to States, TribesMarch 14, 2019The gray wolf, an iconic species of the American West, had all but disappeared from the landscape in the lower 48 states by the early 20th century. Now it roams free in nine states and is stable and healthy throughout its current range. This constitutes one of the greatest comebacks for an animal in U.S. conservation history. The Service is re-affirming the success of this recovery with a proposal to remove all gray wolves from protection under Endangered Species Act. |
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The gray wolf. Credit: Gary Kramer/USFWS
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P is for this pinniped – in this case, a seal at Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: Ian Shive/Tandem
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Refuge Animals From A to ZMarch 6, 2019The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conserves land and water on national wildlife refuges for more than 700 species of birds, 220 species of mammals, 250 reptile and amphibian species, and more than 1,000 species of fish. |
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P is for this pinniped – in this case, a seal at Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: Ian Shive/Tandem
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Jackie Ferrier, 2019 Refuge Manager of the Year and project leader of Willapa National Wildlife Refuge Complex. Credit: USFWS
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Herstory: First Woman Named Refuge Manager of the YearMarch 4, 2019History is not just about the past. It is about real people making real achievements every day. Jackie Ferrier, project leader of the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Washington state, is one of those people. During Women’s History Month, we want to acknowledge Ferrier, who last month was named 2019 Refuge Manager of the Year by the National Wildlife Refuge Association. This marks the first time in the award’s 25-year history that a woman has received the honor. |
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Jackie Ferrier, 2019 Refuge Manager of the Year and project leader of Willapa National Wildlife Refuge Complex. Credit: USFWS
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Fostering institutions care for young northern red-bellied cooters until they are larger than the palm of a hand. Credit: Bridget Macdonald/USFWS
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In Massachusetts, Turtles Get a Head Start in SchoolMarch 1, 2019In the 1980s, scientists were concerned about the decline of northern red-bellied cooters in Massachusetts. They had estimated there were only 200 of the turtles left in the state, all in 12 ponds in Plymouth County. So they sent them to school. Since the initiation of the student-led program to raise turtles, 4,334 head-started cooters have been released into 33 sites in eastern Massachusetts. |
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Fostering institutions care for young northern red-bellied cooters until they are larger than the palm of a hand. Credit: Bridget Macdonald/USFWS
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