Although wildlife management is not a central part of EPA's mission, numerous Agency programs and initiatives support and complement efforts to conserve fish and wildlife and their habitats. Healthy populations of fish and wildlife are an integral component of healthy ecosystems. They also contribute directly to our quality of life by providing recreational opportunities, and generate economic benefits by supporting hunting, fishing, bird watching, photography, tourism, and other outdoor activities. Bird watching is one of the fastest growing recreational activities in the United States, generating sizable economic benefits. An estimated 63 million Americans feed birds at home, and more than 24 million travel to watch birds.
Birds are important ecologically as well as economically.
They are vital links in many food webs, and often serve as biological indicators of overall ecosystem health. Through activities such as wetlands protection, coastal management, protection of aquatic resources, regulation of pesticides, and international leadership in environmental protection, EPA programs contribute to bird conservation. This web site has been developed to provide an overview of bird conservation including descriptions of the major North American bird conservation initiatives, actions EPA is taking in its own programs to further bird conservation, actions that citizens can take to conserve birds, and other background information, including many useful links to other web sites. Your comments on improving the site are welcome. Statistics from Bird Conservation , Spring 1997.