The USGS Cooperative Research Units: Ten Years of Fish and Wildlife Science

The Cooperative Research Units program was founded in 1935, and written into law by Congress in 1960, to strengthen graduate education in fisheries and wildlife science, carry out applied research on fish and wildlife, and pass technical know-how to natural resource agencies. A U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) fact sheet reviews its work over fiscal years 2015–2024.

The network

• 43 units in 41 states, at 44 host universities, with a national office at USGS headquarters in Reston, Virginia.
• Each unit is a partnership of the USGS, a host university, one or more state agencies, the Wildlife Management Institute and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
• Units are staffed by 2 to 5 USGS research scientists and grouped into three regions, each with a USGS supervisor.

Locations of the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units. There are none in North Dakota, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island or Delaware. USGS figure.

Mission

1. Support the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation through applied research — disciplinary, interdisciplinary and across borders — on natural systems and the social and ecological processes tied to them.
2. Train future natural resource managers and researchers through graduate education in wildlife and fisheries science.
3. Strengthen partners' capabilities through technical assistance with current science.

Partners speak highly of the arrangement. A research chief at the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission credited the state's long partnership with its unit for advancing conservation science in Arkansas, and called investment in students as future professionals essential. A former director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service described his Ph.D. work at the Pennsylvania unit as the springboard for a 40-year career leading three state agencies, the Service and the Wildlife Management Institute.

A threefold return

Federal funding mainly pays for federal staff, with little for operations — but the cooperative model multiplies it:

• Federal appropriations, 2015–2024: $17.3 million to $28.2 million a year.
• Research funding leveraged from cooperators and stakeholders: an average of $42.3 million a year.
• University in-kind support — facilities, tuition and reduced overhead: an average of $22.1 million a year.
• Leveraged funds supported an average of 31 non-federal positions a year at each host university — graduate students, postdoctoral researchers and technicians — creating more than 1,000 jobs a year.

Active students, research staff, graduate degrees awarded and USGS scientists, fiscal years 2015–2024. USGS figure.

Output each year (average)

• 443 scientific papers;
• 108 technical assistance actions;
• 80 university courses taught;
• 58 invited talks;
• 24 workshops or short courses for partners.

A Wisconsin fishery unit graduate student dipping fish from a fyke net. USGS photo.

Science for decisions

Unit scientists translate findings for decision makers and the public, and the program has driven significant advances in fish and wildlife management and conservation. About 700 research projects were under way in fiscal 2025, giving managers at state, regional and national levels science-based guidance on complex conservation problems. An expertise directory of unit scientists and a list of cooperators are available from the USGS.

Sources

• U.S. Geological Survey: "U.S. Geological Survey Cooperative Research Units program," Fact Sheet 2025–3010.