Partners are valuable allies to the the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and play a vital role in meeting the Service's conservation goals. We team up with private conservation organizations, state and federal agencies and tribes. Together, with the landowner, this collective shares funding, materials, equipment, labor and expertise to meet restoration goals and our conservation mission.

Partnership Categories

Great things happen when partners are matched with the right opportunities. That's why we work with many types of partners at FWS from local businesses and conservation groups to veterans and large industry partners. Here are just a few of the Partner Categories working with FWS today.

We frequently partner with academia to further the conservation of and research into the stewardship of many species.

We often partner with non-governmental conservation organizations on conservation projects, whether it's to conserve identified species such as the monarch butterfly or to advise on land acquisition for conservation so that it has the greatest benefit for species.

We partner with these groups to help them conduct their commercial activities in a way that best promotes conservation.

We work with other federal agencies to help them meet their legal responsibilities as well as their mission.

Friends groups are organizations of community members committed to helping national wildlife refuges and national fish hatcheries meet conservation goals that would otherwise be out of reach. 

Our Partners

Here are just a few of our national partners.  You can view the full list of FWS partners, along with the regions and areas of focus our work together entails.

Latest Stories About Our Partners

A dark grey salamander with light blue spots on a bed of green moss
Our Partners
Red Coats and blue-spotted salamanders 
USFWS partners with Hanscom Air Force Base to survey for a rare salamander in a Revolutionary War landscape  
Sierra Mountains
Surveys in the Sierra
The morning felt as though the still air had frozen. In my small backpacking tent, cold air swirled to the roof as I let out the first few breaths of the day. Not a sound was to be heard as morning began in the Sierra Nevada.
Heavy equipment on a dirt landscape with green vegetation and blue skies above
Habitat Restoration
Final Environmental Assessment for the Kootenai Floodplain Reconnection Project
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service released a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the Kootenai Floodplain Reconnection Project.
A crumpled shipping container in the Cane River.
Endangered Species Act
Hellbent On Survival
Hurricane Helene, in September 2024, killed 106 people and destroyed more than 1,000 homes across a wide swath of western North Carolina. But there was serious damage, too, below the water lines to the fish, mussels, salamanders and other animals that live largely out of sight.
small fish and a rush of water exit a pipe being supported by someone
Wildlife Management
Lake trout restoration in Lake Champlain a success
Thanks to a successful, decades-long effort by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, lake trout have been restored to Lake Champlain. As a result, the wild population no longer needs to be augmented by...
Snow geese on the water
For Parents and Educators
2025 Alaska Junior Duck Stamp Contest
Savannah Stout's painting of snow geese took top honors at the 2025 Alaska Junior Duck Stamp Contest.

Partnership Services

Through our partnerships we are able to expand our capabilities through the inclusion of services in areas such as:

  • Grant opportunities
  • Sponsorship of grants
  • Cooperative Agreements

To find out more about how our partner provides services view our partner services below.