Wildlife
Animals need access to the full range of their habitats.
Wild animals enjoy few legal protections under either state or local laws.
At both the state and federal level, the key laws protecting wildlife are those governing when and where hunting is permitted. Some states have also begun also to prosecute people who commit acts of cruelty against wild animals.
A handful of other federal wildlife laws are in effect. These include the Endangered Species Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. But these laws protect only a small number of animals, and even for these animals the protections are not robust.
Wild animals experience pain and pleasure just the same as the dogs and cats who share our homes, and who enjoy far more expansive legal protections. Wild animals also play a key role in our environment and ecosystem. And they are affected by all facets of human behavior: where we build, and what we do on developed land.
Factory farming not only affects the lives of the 9 billion animals a year who are raised for food, but also the wild animals who drink from bodies of water and live on the land polluted by these agricultural activities.
The Animal Legal Defense Fund is dedicated to pursuing better legal protection for wildlife.
Wildlife Services killed more than 2.3 million animals in 2017.
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
End Wildlife Services’ War on Wildlife
Millions of native wild animals, including coyotes, mountain lions, and bears, are targeted and killed by Wildlife Services. Tell Wildlife Services to stop using your tax dollars to slaughter animals by signing our petition.
Related Cases
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Enforcing Legislation That Protects Wildlife Near the Mexican Border
Defenders of Wildlife v Elaine Duke
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Protecting Our Constitutional Right to Liberty
Animal Legal Defense Fund v. United States of America
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Justice for Cecil the Lion
Filed Complaint with the Minnesota Board of Dentistry
Looking for case and legal resources? View Resources
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Reward of $5,000 Offered in Case of Bear Cubs Separated from Mother
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Protect California’s Wildlife, AB 1788, the California Ecosystems Protection Act
We need your help getting an important bill, AB 1788, the California Ecosystems Protection Act, over the next hurdle – the Water, Parks, and Wildlife Committee. Last week, the bill passed its first committee, but your voice is needed to make this bill law. -
New Jersey Appellate Court Upholds Bear Hunt Ban on State Lands
In 2003, after a 33-year hiatus, the New Jersey Fish and Game Council reauthorized the hunting of black bears. In the years since, the bear hunt has frequently been the subject of litigation, and has been halted by some governors and reinstated by others.February 28, 2019 Animal Law Update
