USDA Bureau of Biological Survey Records

Collection

Identifier: MS0331

Staff Only

Content Description

The USDA Bureau of Biological Survey Records consist of memoranda and transcripts related to hunting regulations; water and forest conservation; wildlife control, management, research, and development; migratory habits of birds and other animals; control of rodent pests; and bureau management.

Dates

Creation: 1918-1939
Creation: Majority of material found within 1934-1939

Conditions Governing Access

Contact Special Collections for access.

Organizational History

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Bureau of Biological Survey began as the Office of Economic Ornithology in 1885, under the Division of Entomology. Its main task was to study how birds affected farm production. In its first decade, this unit evolved into the Division of Biological Survey, and its duties were expanded to include the study of distribution of birds and other animals in the wild, as well as tracking of the food and migratory habits of wildlife.

The division gained bureau status in 1905. Research was then expanded to include the economic connections between conserving wildlife and controlling species that were harmful to agriculture. The bureau also had responsibilities for enforcing wildlife laws and managing wildlife refuges. In 1939, the bureau was transferred to the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI). In 1940, it merged with the Bureau of Fisheries (also transferred to the DOI in 1939) to become the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.