Whereas the United States Fish and Wildlife Service administers the National Wildlife Refuge System to conserve, manage, and, where appropriate, restore fish, wildlife, and plant resources and their habitats within the United States for the benefit of current and future generations; Whereas in 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt established the first national wildlife refuge on Pelican Island in Florida; Whereas in 2023, the National Wildlife Refuge System has grown to include 568 national wildlife refuges, 38 wetland management districts, and 5 marine national monuments, with units located in every State and territory of the United States; Whereas the National Wildlife Refuge System contains many different kinds of ecosystems, including tropical and boreal forests, wetlands, deserts, grasslands, arctic tundra, remote islands, and marine areas, and spans 12 time zones from the United States Virgin Islands to Guam; Whereas national wildlife refuges support nearly 800 species of birds, 220 species of mammals, 250 species of reptiles and amphibians, and 1,100 species of fish; Whereas national wildlife refuges provide protection to more than 380 threatened and endangered species; Whereas 65 national wildlife refuges were established to conserve federally threatened or endangered species such as the American crocodile, California condor, Devil’s Hole pupfish, and Antioch Dunes evening-primrose; Whereas national wildlife refuges are the primary Federal lands that support waterfowl habitat; Whereas, since 1934, the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund has generated more than $2,000,000,000 and enabled the conservation of more than 6,300,000 acres of habitat for waterfowl and numerous other species in the National Wildlife Refuge System; Whereas more than 180 national wildlife refuges conserve marine, coastal, and Great Lakes habitats, helping to protect communities by reducing the risk of storm-surge flooding, especially in low-lying floodplain and coastal areas