2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation Released; Survey Shows More Americans Getting Outdoors

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today released the complete 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation. The report serves as the baseline for examining how Americans are spending their time and money outdoors.

The National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation has been conducted every five years since 1955 and is one of the nations most important wildlife-related recreation databases. It is considered to be the definitive source of information concerning participation and expenditures associated with hunting, fishing and other forms of wildlife-related recreation nationwide. The 2006 survey shows that 87.5 million U.S. residents 16 years and older participated in wildlife-related recreation – a 6 percent increase from 2001. The number of hunters and anglers fell from 37.8 million in 2001 to 33.9 million in 2006. The most recent survey also showed an 8 percent increase in the number of wildlife-watchers since 2001 but little change in total expenditures for that activity. This report provides a broader and more in-depth look at the data than the Preliminary Findings report issued in May 2007. The full survey – and additional reports and earlier surveys – can be downloaded at: http://federalasst.fws.gov/surveys/surveys.html The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 97-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 547 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.

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