Latest news with #FishAndWildlifeService
E&E News
2 days ago
- General
- E&E News
Feds schedule open-mic month on ESA habitat conservation plans
The Fish and Wildlife Service is inviting fresh ideas for administering habitat conservation plans and other agreements intended to resolve Endangered Species Act issues. The agency is billing the move as a big opportunity for developers, loggers, the energy industry and environmental advocates to help update how the ESA works. A 30-day public comment period starting Monday will open up for consideration Section 10(a) of the landmark environmental law. The section authorizes the issuance of permits that allow for the unintentional killing or harming — called incidental take — of species listed as threatened or endangered under the ESA. Advertisement 'The Service is dedicated to strengthening the section 10(a) program to more effectively support conservation efforts while addressing the needs of landowners, industry and local communities — ultimately improving the program's overall efficiency and impact,' the agency stated Friday.
E&E News
4 days ago
- General
- E&E News
Spooked by poachers, feds seek ESA support for ghost orchids
The Fish and Wildlife Service proposed Endangered Species Act protections Wednesday for the ghost orchid, a swamp-dwelling plant put at risk by its own allure. Urged on by a petition followed by a lawsuit, the federal agency announced its determination that the species warrants designation as endangered. 'Illegal collection or poaching is one of the primary, ongoing threats to ghost orchid populations throughout its range,' FWS stated, adding that 'the ghost orchid is one of the most desirable species for collection due to its rarity, unusual growth form, and overall stunning appearance.' Advertisement The agency estimates the ghost orchid's U.S. population has fallen to fewer than 1,000 plants, found in eight isolated locations in southwestern Florida. The orchid also inhabits one part of a Cuban national park.
CBS News
4 days ago
- Health
- CBS News
With fewer than 1,000 remaining, orchid found in Florida eyed for endangered status
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will seek endangered species status for the ghost orchid, a swamp-dwelling, flowering plant found in Florida's Hendry and Collier counties and in Cuba, the agency said Wednesday. "It is one of the most famous flowers in Florida, but its population has declined to fewer than 1,000 plants in the United States," the Fish and Wildlife Service said in a news release. "Less than half of those are mature enough to reproduce. Poaching is the main threat to the orchid, but wetland loss and degradation have also put the orchid at risk throughout its range." The agency will publish the proposal Thursday in the Federal Register, opening a 60-day comment period.
E&E News
6 days ago
- General
- E&E News
Feds stick with ‘threatened' status for key scarlet macaw population
The Fish and Wildlife Service said Monday that it's sticking with the current Endangered Species Act status of the scarlet macaw, a foreign bird with a colorful plumage and a complicated history. Capping a review compelled by prior litigation, the federal agency announced it will retain the northern distinct population segment of the southern subspecies of scarlet macaw as a threatened species under the ESA. The decision reaffirms a 2019 listing. 'The scarlet macaw's historical range and population have been reduced and fragmented over the last several decades primarily because of habitat destruction and collection of wild birds for the pet trade,' the Fish and Wildlife Service stated. Advertisement The agency's decision not to increase the scarlet macaw's ESA protection level was decried by Jennifer Best, wildlife law program director of Friends of Animals.
E&E News
28-05-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Greens sue for ESA action on a Nevada toad
Environmentalists on Wednesday stepped up the legal pressure on the Fish and Wildlife Service to decide whether to protect a Nevada toad that's potentially vulnerable to the region's energy boom. The federal lawsuit filed in the state of Arizona by the Center for Biological Diversity challenges the Fish and Wildlife's Service's alleged failure to meet an Endangered Species Act deadline for the Railroad Valley toad. The agency said in January 2024 that the toads may warrant ESA protection but has yet to take the next step of either proposing to list the species or not. 'This lawsuit is a final lifeline for Nevada's embattled Railroad Valley toad,' said Megan Ortiz, staff attorney at the center, adding that the Trump administration's 'reckless push to 'drill, baby, drill,' could wipe these little toads off the face of the Earth.' Advertisement The group petitioned the Fish and Wildlife Service to list the toad as threatened or endangered in April 2022. In its initial finding issued in January 2024, the agency said the toad may warrant listing based on the petition's 'substantial scientific or commercial information' concerning potential threats from lithium production and oil and gas extraction via hydraulic fracturing.
