Protecting endangered and threatened species and restoring them to a secure status in the wild is the primary objective of the Endangered Species Program of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Endangered Species Program works to build and maintain partnerships, promote good science, and adopt an ecosystem approach to management.

The Service’s endangered species responsibilities include the following:

- Listing, reclassifying, and delisting species under the Endangered Species Act
- Providing information and biological opinions (through the consultation process) to Federal Agencies on their activities that may affect listed species
- Enforcing species protection under the Act
- Overseeing recovery activities for listed species
- Providing for the protection of important habitat
- Providing assistance to States and others to assist with their endangered species conservation efforts