The California Fish and Game Commission just removed the Mojave desert tortoise from its status as an endangered species under California law. Conservation groups hope this will spur further efforts to protect them. Comments from California Wildlife Refuge Senior Representative Jeff Aerdahl (ARE-doll).
Endangered species recovery groups are applauding the California Fish and Game Commission's decision to move the Mojave Desert tortoise from endangered to endangered under state law. The normally long-lived species has declined rapidly in recent years, with an estimated loss of about 155,000 adult animals between 2004 and 2014, according to one study. Wildlife advocate Jeff Erdahl says California's reptiles are rapidly heading toward extinction.
“With so few left, the turtles will have a very difficult time finding mates, so this trend will continue to decline until eventually there are no more turtles left.” It will be.'' The turtle went away. ”
The biggest threats are development, military base expansion and training, livestock grazing, and off-highway vehicle use. Wildlife managers have documented dozens of animals crushed by OHVs in recent years, particularly in critical habitat from Ridgecrest to Barstow, north to Fort Irwin and east to the state line. ing. California attracts 2 million off-road vehicle enthusiasts each year.
Aaldahl said a coalition of groups, including wildlife advocacy groups, filed a lawsuit in 2021 to force the Bureau of Land Management to reconsider its management plan and strengthen protections for Mojave desert tortoises.
“Some closures are required during the spring period, when most turtles forage and mate on the ground, and the number of miles of routes intersecting critical habitat must be significantly reduced. ”
Land managers fenced off one particularly dangerous area around 1980. Since then, the Mojave Desert tortoise population in that area has increased six times as much as in neighboring areas used for off-roading.
Endangered species recovery groups are applauding the California Fish and Game Commission's decision to move the Mojave Desert tortoise from endangered to endangered under state law. Suzanne Potter explains why.
I'm Suzanne Potter
Contact Aardahl at 916.562.2546. Mortality data from research: https://tinyurl.com/uu92prt4 Lawsuit information: https://tinyurl.com/wcb3ckss
Disclosure: Defenders of Wildlife contributes to our foundation to report on climate change/air quality, endangered species and wildlife, energy policy, and public lands/wilderness. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.
Get more articles like this by email
The state of Washington is proposing to downgrade the gray wolf as a species from “threatened” to “species of concern.”
The final population of gray wolves in Washington state was 260, and the population has steadily increased by an average of 23 percent since 2008, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.
Colin Reynolds, senior advisor for Defenders of Wildlife's Northwest program, argued that changing the gray wolf's status could jeopardize progress. He said gray wolves are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act in the western two-thirds of the state, but in the eastern two-thirds there is no federal protection and wolves are managed by the state. Ta.
“Currently, in the eastern third of Washington state, there are penalties for illegally killing gray wolves, and there are penalties for that as well,” Reynolds explained. “If the classification changes from “endangered'' to “sensitive,'' as the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife hopes, the penalties will be slightly less severe in many situations.
Reynolds noted that gray wolf recovery efforts are based on the state's Wolf Conservation and Management Plan adopted in 2011. Since then, wolves have met recovery standards in some areas of the state, but not all, so now is not the time to change, he argued. rule.
Gray wolf populations have increased for 15 consecutive years, data models predict that population growth is likely to continue, and sufficient state-level protections are in place to keep populations sustainable. It is understandable that states would oppose reclassification since it is already in place. Mr. Reynolds disagreed.
“We fully recognize and celebrate our population growth,” Reynolds acknowledged. “But population growth is not the same as the Wolf Plan's recovery criteria. We don't meet that geographic distribution.”
Reynolds also cited recent killings of gray wolves across the West. Following the deaths of three gray wolves in Oregon, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a $50,000 reward for information regarding the incident.
Disclosure: Defenders of Wildlife contributes to funds for reporting on climate change/air quality, endangered species and wildlife, energy policy, and public lands/wilderness. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.
Get more articles like this by email
The Hawaiian Islands are on the front lines of the fight to protect endangered bird species, conservation groups say, as climate change and habitat loss make it difficult for many native species to survive.
A coalition of conservation organizations will hold the annual Manu Au Ku Festival this weekend to celebrate the island's myriad species.
John Canter, a wildlife biologist with the National Wildlife Federation, said the U.S. Migratory Bird Treaty Act helps protect many of Hawaii's invasive species.
“Funds raised for migratory birds under the federal Endangered Species Act and its various programs will benefit researchers, conservationists and people on the front lines who are trying to solve many of the problems that threaten Hawai'i's bird species. ,” he explained.
The festival, sponsored by the Hawaii Conservation Council and the National Wildlife Federation, will be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Coronation Pavilion at Iolani Palace in Honolulu.
Cantor said the Migratory Bird Treaty was established in 1918 and updated in 1936. We are working with Canada, Mexico and other countries to restrict the harvesting of certain species for commercial and game purposes. He cited wood ducks as an example, which are abundant today but were almost wiped out a century ago.
“Although that species is nearly extinct and is hunted, there are strict regulations established and enforced annually between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and each state based on bird numbers,” he said. he said. On to the next season. ”
This year's festival celebrates the manu oak (white fairy tern) as an ambassador for other native Hawaiian species. Organizers say conservation groups, educators and others will be invited to share games and activities to help people of all ages learn about manu au ku.
Disclosure: The National Wildlife Federation contributes to our foundation for reporting on climate change/air quality, endangered species and wildlife, energy policy, and water. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.
Get more articles like this by email
Environmental groups are suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the Arkansas spotted snail under the Endangered Species Act.
Mudalia are endangered freshwater snails in Arkansas and Missouri, including along the North Fork River.
Trisha Sharma, a legal researcher at the Center for Biological Diversity, stressed the need to ensure that the snails do not disappear completely. She said freshwater molluscs are the most endangered animal group in North America, and snails are the most endangered mollusk.
“We have already lost more than 70 species of freshwater snails,” Sharma pointed out. “The Endangered Species Act has a very high success rate, so if we can protect this species by listing it under the ESA, we can ensure that it survives and continues to play an important role in the ecosystems in which it lives.” It's very possible.”
Sharma pointed out that the area inhabited by the Arkansas Mudalia has declined by 90% and the main threat to the species is habitat degradation, mainly due to the construction and operation of dams along rivers.
Mr. Sharma stressed that Mudaria is also threatened by habitat loss due to grazing, logging and mining. He added that climate change is also expected to threaten the species.
“Part of what makes a species more resilient to climate impacts is its ability to disperse and essentially move to areas where it can survive when its habitat becomes unsuitable,” Sharma explained. “However, snails have very limited habitat conditions and a very limited ability to disperse.”
Sharma said freshwater snails play an important role in managing nutrients by consuming detritus and plant matter, preventing it from decaying and the associated destruction of water quality, and that snails are essential to the food web and use He said it transforms otherwise unavailable food sources into usable food sources for birds and turtles.
Get more articles like this by email
