What We Do
The South Carolina Field Office is heavily focused on imperiled-species conservation, while also supporting the conservation of other species for which the federal government has jurisdiction Our office’s work can be divided into three broad categories:
Endangered species
Our office coordinates and supports the recovery of federally threatened and endangered species, and species being considered for Endangered Species Act protection. This includes activities like supporting research, habitat restoration, captive propagation, and providing information to the public. It also includes grants and technical assistance for private landowners who want to improve habitat on their land. We compile and analyze data used when deciding what plants and animals receive Endangered Species Act protection.
Project planning and review
We work with other federal agencies to reduce or eliminate impacts to plants, fish, and wildlife from projects they fund or authorize. Good examples of our collaboration on projects include highway construction or maintenance, logging on national forests, or reservoir management by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Partnering Programs
Biologists for Coastal and Partners for Fish and Wildlife Programs provide technical and financial assistance to enhance and/or improve habitats for threatened, endangered, or at-risk species. The Coastal Program works with state natural resource agencies and private landowners where Partners for Fish and Wildlife work solely with private landowners.
Our Services
The field office provides services to private citizens, community groups, local governments, schools, conservation partners, and other federal and state agencies. Partnerships are fundamental to how we work, advancing rare species conservation and/or working to minimize impacts to imperiled species.
Our Projects and Research
Working with others is at the core of how we operate, and through those partnerships, we develop a number of conservation projects across South Carolina, from conserving mussels in the upstate, to protecting our coast. Learn more about some of the key efforts we have underway.
Laws and Regulations
Under several federal laws, Congress has directed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be stewards of our nation's plant, fish, and wildlife resources - particularly animals like birds and fishes that cross state and even international borders; federal threatened and endangered species; and the National Wildlife Refuge system - the system of federal lands dedicated to wildlife conservation. Congress has similarly directed the Fish and Wildlife Service to work with other federal agencies to minimize or eliminate negative impacts to plants, fishes, and wildlife from projects they fund or authorize. Learn more about the laws that direct our work.