Teaming with Wildlife

Teaming with Wildlife is a coalition of more than 5,000 organizations, agencies, and businesses working to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered by supporting increased state, federal, and private funding for wildlife conservation and related education and recreation. This coalition includes wildlife biologists and managers, conservationists, hunters, birders, and anglers, businesses, and many others who support the goal of restoring and conserving our nation's wildlife.

At the beginning of the 20th Century, America's once numerous birds, mammals, and fish were largely depleted. In the 1930s, the situation started to improve with an infusion of funding for game and fish species. Wildlife areas were created, habitat actively managed, and wildlife populations were augmented or restored with transplanted animals. Despite these successes, many other species continue to decline, as evidenced by the staggering fact that more than 1,000 species are listed under the federal Endangered Species Act. Our nation needed a program to conserve wildlife before they became endangered.

During the late 1990's, Teaming with Wildlife highlighted the critical need to invest in proactive efforts for wildlife and vital natural areas. Congress responded by creating the State Wildlife Grants Program in 2000, which provides federal money to every state for conservation aimed at preventing wildlife from becoming more rare and more costly to protect. This program has become the nation's core program for preventing wildlife from becoming endangered, leveraging more than $600 million to conserve wildlife and their habitat and receiving strong bipartisan support on Capitol Hill.

Learn more about Teaming with Wildlife

State Wildlife Action Plans

Each state was asked by Congress to develop an approach to identify species and habitats that are of greatest conservation need and to outline the steps needed to take to conserve all wildlife for future generations. These plans are referred to as State Wildlife Action Plans. For Maryland and DC, Maryland Department of Natural Resources and DC Fisheries and Wildlife Division have developed these strategic plans by working with scientists, sportsmen, conservationists, and the public. The Maryland Wildlife Diversity Conservation Plan and the District of Columbia Wildlife Action Plan assess the condition of Maryland and DC's wildlife and habitats, identify the threats to wildlife and outline the actions needed to conserve them over the long term. These plans focus on results for all wildlife. By identifying the steps that need to be taken now, these plans are cost-effective over the long run. With all 50 states and 6 territories participating our nation has a our first unified approach to keeping wildlife from becoming endangered.

Since these action plans were developed by a broad array of partners they are not Maryland Department of Natural Resources or DC Fisheries and Wildlife Division's plans to solely implement, but the states. Your organization can work to implement the plan too!

Learn more:

State Wildlife Grants Program Summary

The State Wildlife Grants 5-Year Accomplishment Report

State Wildlife Action Plans

How can you help?

You too can help the Maryland & DC Teaming with Wildlife Coaltion by joining the coalition today! Endorsing the Maryland & DC Teaming with Wildlife Coalition costs your organization nothing, but it shows support for the essential funding needed to implement these plans.

If your organization has already joined spread the word about Maryland's Wildlife Diversity Conservation Plan and DC's Wildlife Action Plan. Encourage other organizations to join Teaming with Wildlife. Learn more about the Maryland and DC's Wildlife Action Plans to see how your organization can contribute to the implementation of these plans.

View the list of 152 organizations already endorsing Maryland & DC Teaming with Wildlife.