Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program
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The Wildlife Habitats Shown in the Rotating Photos

Wetlands -- A high portion of out Nation's wetlands have been lost to agriculture and urban development. Even today the United States is continuing to lose wetlands although progress has been made in reducing the loss rate. Wetland environments are valuable because they protect against flooding, help maintain water quality and provide habitat for a variety of wildlife. The Partners Program restored these wetland sites in Virginia and California. For more information about wetlands you may want to visit the National Wetlands Inventory site.

Grasslands/prairie --Very little native grassland/prairie habitat is left in North America. This prairie habitat in Wisconsin is home to a variety of wildflowers (spiderwort in bloom) and may provide a home for grassland-dependent birds like meadowlarks and bobolinks. There is also an example of a restored Californian grassland.

Streams and rivers -- In-stream and streamside restoration together improve the quality of aquatic habitats for fish and other aquatic life. Another component of restoring streams can be removing barriers to fish migration. The riparian habitat shown is in Missouri.

Forests -- Restoring forests can be a long-term process. This well-established forest in Maine provides habitat for understory plant species including this lady's slipper. The bottomland hardwood forest is in Mississippi and also counts as a wetland habitat.

Scrub/Forest -- Florida scrub vegetation is a rare and vanishing ecosystem. It is characterized by open pinelands with understory oaks and palmettos. The area pictured was restored through the Partners Program.
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All of these pictures are U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service photos.

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Last updated February 3, 2003.