and 92 Migratory Bird Sanctuaries, primarily where key waterfowl and seabird nesting and staging habitats occur. Planning includes preparing Bird Conservation Region Plans under the North American Bird Conservation Initiative, and Recovery Strategies and Management Plans under the Species at Risk Act. Canadian Wildlife Service also leads or supports international and interprovincial agreements regarding biological diversity, alien invasive species, indigenous wildlife management boards, the Canadian Wildlife Directors Committee, and the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Canadian Wildlife Service delivers many substantial funding programs that support other Federal Departments, Provinces and non-governmental agencies to protect and restore wildlife habitats. Those funds include Habitat Joint Ventures under the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, Interdepartmental Recovery Fund for Species at Risk, Habitat Stewardship Program for Species at Risk, Aboriginal Fund for Species At Risk, National Wetland Conservation Fund, and Species at Risk Partnerships on Agricultural Lands. History CWS traces its history to the early 20th century with the decline and/or extinction of several species of migratory birds in eastern North America as a result of hunting, including the passenger pigeon. It became apparent to the federal government that the provincial responsibilities toward hunting regulation of migratory birds by various sub-national jurisdictions (provinces in Canada, states in the United States) was limited in scope. In 1916, Great Britain (for Canada) and the United States of America signed the "Migratory Birds Convention", followed by the Parliament of Canada passing the Migratory Birds Convention Act in 1917, which gave the federal government responsibility for managing migratory bird species either harmless or beneficial to man. The Convention adopted a uniform system of protection for certain species of birds which migrate between the United States and Canada, in order to assure the preservation of species including setting dates for closed seasons on migratory birds and prohibiting hunting insectivorous birds, but allowed killing of birds under permit when injurious to agriculture. The Convention was amended by the Parksville protocol (initialled by the parties in 1995) to update and improve the conservation of migratory birds and to establish a legal framework for the subsistence take of birds. Canada implemented the Protocol by enacting the revised Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994. With the federal government's reorganization of the Department of Resources and Development, the Dominion Wildlife Service (DWS), was established in November 1947. As a part of the new Lands and Development Services Branch, it was not