FEDERAL WILDLIFE LAWS

Agriscience 381

Wildlife and Recreation Management

8983-B

TEKS: (c)(2)(C)

The early rules of regulating wildlife were simple:

• if it damages your property, destroy it;

• if its hide or carcass had value, market it; or

• if its meat was tasty, process it.

Photo by R. D. Hildebrand courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Game Legislation

Maintaining wildlife programs is not free.

With wildlife management, the majority of the funds come from those individuals who use the resources.

Photo by Pat Hagan courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

This is done largely through the use of license fees, but these fees are not enough.

Photo by F. Eugene Hester courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Five major funding acts provided financing to wildlife programs. • The Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act

(1934)

• The Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (1937) (Pittman-Robertson Act)

• The Federal Aid in Fish Restoration Act (1950) (Dingell-Johnson Act)

• The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1980 (Non-Game Act)

• The Land and Water Conservation Act (1964)

It was the Migratory Bird Conservation Act (1929) that made it possible for the government to purchase wildlife refuge land, but it lacked the necessary funding.

The Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act (1934) provided the money by requiring that people above 16 years of age must purchase a Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp to hunt waterfowl.

In 1976, the name of the stamp became the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp.

Photo courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (1937) is commonly known as the Pittman-Robertson Act.

This act provided states with up to 75 percent of total costs of wildlife restoration projects that meet federal standards and still serves as the foundation for all wildlife conservation efforts.

The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act (1980) is also known as the “Non-game” Act.

It is called this because it targets fish and wildlife not taken for sport or commercial purposes.

Short-term funding made it necessary for states to carry the expense of state programs.

The Land and Water Conservation Act (1964) provided access of outdoor recreation resources to all citizens.

The mission of this act is preserving and developing resources.

States can receive up to 50 percent of funding, but they must submit a statewide outdoor recreation plan to be eligible for funds.

Fish Legislation

The Federal Aid in Fish Restoration Act (1950) is also known as the Dingell-Johnson Act.

This act allows tax on certain fishing equipment.

Photo by George Gentry courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Sport and recreation fish species benefited the most from this act.

Some funds involve non-fish and endangered species.

Wildlife Commerce Legislation

Wildlife commerce is profiting from the sale or trade of wild species.

Photo by John and Karen Hollingsworth courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Poaching is the term used to identify unlawful taking of game.

It is punishable by fine and/or imprisonment.

The two acts that are cornerstones for regulating wildlife commerce are:

• The Lacey Act (1900), and

• The Black Bass Act (1926).

These acts prevent importing wildlife, if it could harm people, production agriculture, or the natural environment.

Threatened and Endangered Legislation

Early laws dealt with the killing of wildlife and did not include marine mammals or endangered species.

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act allows hunting of migratory birds only during open season.

Photo courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

As people became aware of the abuse of natural resources, that concern showed itself with the passage of the Endangered Species Act (1966).

Many wild plant and animal species were facing extinction.

The Endangered Species Act (1966) had three main objectives.• Protect native fish and wildlife that were threatened with extinction.

• Provide for propagation of species threatened with extinction.

• Provide protection to foreign wildlife threatened with extinction.

The Endangered Species Conservation Act (1969) supported and strengthened the 1966 Act.

The Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1973 included plants, as well as, animals.

Photo by Ivette Loredo courtesy of U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Once listed, the species receives very stringent protection.

The penalty for taking an endangered species can result in one year in prison and a $24,000 fine.

The penalty for taking a threatened species can result in six months in jail and a $10,000 fine.

In relation to threatened or endangered species, the term “take” means to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, drop, capture, or collect or attempt to engage in any such conduct.

Animal Damage Legislation

Predators are those species that destroy crops, kill livestock and poultry, and damage property.

The Animal Damage Control Act of 1931 identified eight predators, including the mountain lion, bobcat, ground squirrel, wolf, prairie dog, jackrabbit, coyote, and gopher.

Photos (top left to right) by W. L. Miller (NPS), J. & K. Hollingsworth (USFWS), unknown (NPS), J. & K. Hollingsworth (USFWS), R. Robinson (NPS), George Harrison (USFWS), & John Good (NPS).

The Act also included “other” animals that could cause harm to agriculture or humans.

The law worked to control animals that carried diseases.

The two main diseases that it targeted were rabies and tularemia.

During the early years, the role of the predator in the ecosystem was ignored.

Over-control of predators will lead to the increase of prey species.

An increase in prey species leads to an increase in the damage they cause.