U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Small Wetlands Program: A Half Century of Conserving Prairie Habitat

Fifty years ago an amendment to the Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act of 1934 (also known as the Duck Stamp Act) authorized the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to acquire wetlands and surrounding areas for the benefit of migratory waterfowl. A half century later, the Services Small Wetlands Program, created to stem the rapid loss of important prairie habitat, has developed into one of the most successful conservation efforts in the United States.

Since its inception, the Small Wetlands Program has protected nearly 3 million acres of prairie habitat in the United States.