Endangered Species Act
Broader program to preserve Southwestern willow flycatcher
The Agriculture and Interior departments unveiled an eco-system-wide program to enhance habitat for threatened and endangered species in the U.S. Southwest.
Lawmakers to POTUS: “Be bold” to protect monarch butterfly
In a letter, 52 House Democrats asked President Obama to "be bold" and protect the monarch butterfly under the Endangered Species Act, "the last, best chance to save this amazing species and its incredible migration."
USDA funds $370 million in projects from dead zones to birds
Swamped by proposals, USDA selected 115 "high impact" projects to receive $370 million in funding in the initial awards through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program. The projects range from improving habitat for endangered birds to preventing a "dead zone" in Long Island Sound and reducing runoff in the lush wheat-growing Palouse regionof the Pacific Northwest. Federal funds will be matched by $400 million from "partners" that include governmental units and conservation groups such as Ducks Unlimited.
US to weigh if monarch butterfly is endangered species
The US Fish and Wildlife Service says it will conduct a status review, which typically takes a year, to determine if the monarch butterfly should be protected under the Endangered Species Act.
Warmer climate to imperil half of U.S. bird species
A National Audubon Society report says shrinking and shifting habitats due to climate change could imperil 314 species of birds, half of the species in the United States. Endangered species range from the bald eagle and the osprey to the common loon and ruffled grouse. The report is based on annual bird counts and scenarios of a warmer climate on bird ranges. The study looked at 588 North American species. "Our models indicate that 314 species will lose more than 50 percent of their current climatic range by 2080," says Audubon.
Groups ask US protection for Monarch butterfly, blame GMOs
Three groups petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the monarch butterfly under the Endangered Species Act.
‘Lord God Bird’ among 23 species declared extinct
The ivory-billed woodpecker, America's largest woodpecker, with a 31-inch wingspan, is extinct, said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, ending years of lingering hopes that the "Lord God Bird" had survived deep in southern bottomland forests. The ivory-bill was one of 23 species declared extinct on Wednesday, 11 of them birds.