Funded primarily by grants from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) as provided by the Pittsman-Roberts Act, the Section's activities include feral ungulate control (goats) on Anatahan Island, monitoring Nightengale Reed-warbler, enhancing the reproductive success of cave-dwelling Swiftlets, and describing natural resources within protected areas. The Section also helps landowners reduce habitat loss by providing technical assistance and permit review for minor site developments such as housing construction and homesteads.

The Section recieves funds from the U.S. Navy for habitat assessement and recieves technical support to monitor bird populations on Farallon de Medinilla (FDM). This small, 2.5 hectacre island is located 75 miles north of Saipan and serves the military as the only live fire target range for fighter jets in the western Pacific. Monitoring of a colony of brown boobies, a migratory shorebird that nests on the northern end of the island, helps assess the impact of bombing on the species population stability.

Through competitive Section 6 grants provided by the USFWS, the Wildlife Section is helping landowners benefit from their property while simultaneously protecting endangered species and conserving habitat. For example, Habitat Conservation Plans or HCPs are being developed for the Mariana Crow on the island of Rota. An HCP is a tool that permits private landowners to develop their property while conserving habitat that is critical to the survival, reproduction, and/or life history of a Federally-protected endangered species. To learn more about the benefits of HCPs visit the USFWS website or click here.

To Section also actively works to prevent the introduction of Brown Tree Snakes (BTS) to the islands. The BTS Program conducts cargo inspections, trapping and monitoring, and has a highly visible public education and awareness campaign to assist in preventing this species from establishing a population.