2015 Archives
Service Releases 2015 List of Candidates for Endangered Species Act Protection
December 23, 2015
The Service today released the Candidate Notice of Review, a yearly status appraisal of plants and animals that are candidates for Endangered Species Act (ESA) protection. Two species were removed from the list and two changed in priority from the last review, conducted in December 2014, including the whitebark pine and Hirst Brothers' panic grass. There are now 60 species recognized by the Service as candidates for ESA protection.
News Release »
Learn More »
ESA Listing Protects Lions in Africa and India, Director's Order Strengthens Wildlife Import Restrictions for Wildlife Law Violators
Credit: Heidi Ruffler / USFWS
December 21, 2015
In response to the dramatic decline of lion populations in the wild, the Service today announced it will list two lion subspecies under the Endangered Species Act. Panthera leo leo, located in India and western and central Africa, will be listed as endangered, and Panthera leo melanochaita, located in eastern and southern Africa, will be listed as threatened. Lion populations have declined by 43 percent due to habitat loss, loss of prey base, and retaliatory killing of lions by humans. Service Director Dan Ashe also issued a Director's Order to ensure violators of wildlife laws are not subsequently granted permits for future wildlife-related activities, including the import of sport-hunted trophies.
News Release »
FAQs »
Director's Video Message:»
Learn More »
Service Removes Modoc Sucker from the Federal List of Threatened and Endangered Wildlife
December 7, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced that, thanks to decades of collaborative conservation efforts under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), it is removing the Modoc sucker from ESA protection. This marks the second-time that a fish has been 'delisted' due to recovery, the Oregon chub having been delisted earlier this year.
News Release »
Delmarva Fox Squirrel Leaps Off Endangered Species List
Delmarva Peninsula fox squirrel, successfully recovered due to efforts of stakeholders and the Endangered Species Act.
Credit: Guy Willey
November 13, 2015
Due to the successful conservation efforts of states, landowners, conservation groups and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Delmarva Peninsula fox squirrel has been recovered and will be delisted from the Endangered Species Act. The recovery was announced by Department of Interior official Michael Bean and Sen. Tom Carper (DE) today at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Milton, Delaware.
News Release »
Learn More »
Service Gives Black-footed Ferrets a Conservation Boost in Wyoming
Credit: Ryan Hagerty/USFWS
October 30, 2015
Underscoring the flexibility of the Endangered Species Act, a new rule designates the state of Wyoming as a special area for ferret reintroductions. This will make it easier for willing landowners to host black-footed ferrets, one of the most endangered mammals in North America, on their property.
News Release »
FAQs
Endangered Woodpeckers Translocated to Great Dismal Swamp After 40-Year Absence
The red-cockaded woodpecker, measuring about 7 inches in length, flouts usual woodpecker rules. They feed and nest in live trees, not dead ones, and they hang out in groups rather than flying solo.
Credit: USFWS
October 29, 2015
Four pairs of endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers took flight in their new home last Friday at Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Suffolk, Virginia, which hasn't seen the woodpecker since 1974. The goal is to establish Virginia's second population and the only population to date on public land, as well as to boost populations at the northern limit of the species' natural range in the state.
News Release »
17 Candidate Species No Longer Warrant Listing Under ESA Due to Successful Efforts of States, Federal Agencies, Landowners and Non-Profits
After the Columbia spotted frog was designated an ESA candidate species, states, federal agencies and private landowners went to work successfully conserving the frog.
Credit: Dick Daniels/Wikimedia Commons
October 7, 2015
As a result of ESA-inspired conservation efforts, 17 formerly at-risk species of plants and animals across North America will not require federal protections. Collaborations among the Service, other federal agencies, states, private landowners and non-profit organizations have fostered habitat protection and restoration efforts, reintroductions, and scientific surveys that have increased existing populations, created new ones, and led to the discovery of others that were previously unknown.
News Release »
Learn More »
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Protects Two Rare Macaw Species
Credit: Dick Daniels/Wikimedia Commons
October 1, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife today announced it is listing the military and great green macaws as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Both bird species are endemic to Central and South America. The agency found that both species are in decline, primarily due to habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation, small population size, and poaching.
News Release »
Frequently Asked Questions »
Learn More »
$900,000 to Help Wolves, Livestock Share the Land
Credit: Gary Kramer/USFWS
September 24, 2015
The Service's Wolf Livestock Demonstration Project Grant Program will distribute $900,000 in grants to assist livestock producers in undertaking proactive, non-lethal activities to reduce the risk of livestock loss from predation by wolves, and compensate producers for livestock losses caused by wolves. The grants will go to the states of Arizona, Idaho, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin, and to the White Mountain Apache Tribe.
News Release »
Learn More »
Unprecedented Collaboration Between Service and Partners Secures Greater Sage-Grouse Future. Species will not be listed under ESA
Click photo to play video announcement by Secretary Jewell
Credit: Theo Stein/USFWS
September 22, 2015
Thanks to one of the largest conservation efforts in U.S. history, the Service has concluded that the greater sage-grouse does not require protection under the Endangered Species Act. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, Service Director Dan Ashe, four western governors and multiple partners announced the decision today in Denver, Colorado. They celebrated the success of 11 western states, federal agencies, private landowners and industry in securing the future of the greater sage-grouse and its unique sagebrush habitat.
News Release »
Learn More »
Video announcement by Secretary Jewell »
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Announces Findings for 25 Endangered Species Act Petitions
September 17, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has completed findings for 25 petitions to list, delist or reclassify animals or plants under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Service finds that two of these petitions (for the Cahaba pebblesnail and the Stephens' kangaroo rat) did not present substantial scientific or commercial information that the petitioned actions may be warranted. The Service will not initiate a status review for these species.
Bulletin »
Secretary Jewell and Director Ashe Announce Withdrawal of New England Cottontail from ESA Candidate List
New England cottontail at Crescent Beach State Park in Maine
Credit: USFWS
September 11, 2015
Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and FWS Director Dan Ashe announced the success of diverse stakeholders, including foresters, farmers, states and federal agencies in conserving the once-imperiled New England cottontail. As a result, the rabbit will not require listing under the Endangered Species Act. At a special ceremony in New Hampshire today, Secretary Jewell, Director Ashe, U.S. Senator Shaheen (NH) and others released captive-bred cottontails and celebrated the success of the multi-state effort.
News Release »
Learn More »
Service Proposes Delisting White-haired Goldenrod, Takes Positive Step with Partners on Behalf of Kentucky Arrow Darter
White-haired goldenrod, Daniel Boone National Forest in eastern Kentucky
Credit: Michael Floyd, USFWS
August 30, 2015
At a special event at Daniel Boone National Forest in eastern Kentucky, federal and state officials celebrated two conservation milestones for the state. Following decades of collaboration between federal and state agencies and non-profit organizations, the Service proposed removing the white-haired goldenrod ? a plant unique to eastern Kentucky ? from the Endangered Species Act (ESA) due to recovery.
Also signifying the level of proactive conservation the ESA is inspiring in Kentucky, the Service signed a Candidate Conservation Agreement with the Forest Service on behalf of the Kentucky arrow darter, a small fish found in headwater streams of the Daniel Boone National Forest.
News Release »
Learn More »
Live-streaming Cameras Connect People to Rare California Condors Nesting in the Wild
Four-month-old California condor chick in wild, cliffside nest in southern California.
Credit: USFWS
August 26, 2015
Additional Comment Period Extension for Proposal to Revise the ESA Listing of the Green Sea Turtle
Green sea turtle at Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge in Florida.
Credit: Blair Witherington/USFWS
August 25, 2015
NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced an additional 30-day extension to the public comment period for a proposal to reclassify the green sea turtle under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and list turtles originating from two breeding populations currently considered endangered as threatened due to improvements in their populations.
Press Release »
State Endangered Species Conservation Efforts Receive $37.2 Million Boost Through Service Grants
An FY 2015 grant will allow the state of Michigan to acquire an 18-acre property to benefit the endangered Karner blue butterfly.
Credit: Joel Trick/USFWS
August 13, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is awarding $37.2 million in grants to 20 states to support conservation planning and acquisition of vital habitat for threatened and endangered species across the nation. The grants, awarded through the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (CESCF), will benefit numerous species ranging from the coastal California gnatcatcher to the Karner blue butterfly.
News Release »
Learn More »
FishBrain and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Partner to Create App-powered Citizen Science Engagement Opportunity Tracking Endangered Species
A two year old pallid sturgeon at Neosho National Fish Hatchery.
Credit: Katie Steiger-Meister/USFWS
August 3, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the federal government agency dedicated to the conservation of fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats, has teamed up with FishBrain – the world's largest free-to-use app and social network for anglers – to launch a new feature of the app that will help the American public identify and document threatened, endangered, and candidate species.
News Release »
FishBrain »
Service Protects Rare Hummingbird under the Endangered Species Act
Credit: Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
July 28, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will list the rare Honduran emerald as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Measuring less than four inches in length and the only endemic species to Honduras, this hummingbird is in decline due to degradation, fragmentation, and loss of its dry thorn forest habitat due to cattle grazing and agriculture. Only an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 breeding pairs of the birds remain, located in small, isolated valleys within the country, increasing its vulnerability to extinction.
News Release »
Comment Period Extended for Proposal to Revise the ESA Listing of the Green Sea Turtle
Green sea turtle at Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge in Florida.
Credit: Blair Witherington/USFWS
July 27, 2015
NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a 30-day extension to the public comment period for a proposal to reclassify the green sea turtle under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and list turtles originating from two breeding populations currently considered endangered as threatened due to improvements in their populations.
News Release »
Extension Notice »
Learn More »
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA Extend Comment Period for Proposed Petition Regulation Revisions
Whooping cranes in flight at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.
Credit: Steve Hillebrand/USFWS
July 16, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service (the Services) announced a 60-day extension to the public comment period for proposed revisions to Endangered Species Act (ESA) petition regulations. The proposed revisions were announced in May and are designed to improve the inclusiveness and transparency of the ESA petitioning processes. The comment period is being extended to allow for additional public comment.
Bulletin »
Learn More »
Service Announces Finding on Gray Wolf Petition
Gary Kramer / USFWS
June 30, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that a petition to reclassify all gray wolves in the conterminous United States, except for the Mexican wolf in the Southwest, as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) does not present substantial information indicating that reclassification may be warranted. The Service's review concluded that the petition did not provide information to indicate that the population petitioned for listing, which does not correspond to any currently listed gray wolf population, may qualify as a listable entity under the ESA.
Bulletin »
Learn More »
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Finalizes Rule Listing All Chimpanzees as Endangered under the Endangered Species Act
Flo carries infant Flint on her back in Gombe Stream Reserve, Tanganyika.
Credit: © the Jane Goodall Institute
June 12, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a final rule to classify all chimpanzees, both wild and captive, as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Until this change, only wild chimpanzees were listed as endangered while captive chimpanzees were listed as threatened. The decision responds to growing threats to the species and aligns the chimpanzee's status with existing legal requirements.
News Release »
Learn More »
Fish and Wildlife Service and Partners Celebrate 20th Anniversary of First Safe Harbor Agreement
A Red-cockaded woodpecker flies from its natural nest cavity on the Francis Marion National Forest.
Martjan Lammertink/U.S. Forest Service
June 11, 2015
Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and its partners celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first-ever Safe Harbor Agreement, created in 1995 to protect the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker. That first agreement not only helped turn around the fortunes of the red-cockaded woodpecker in North Carolina and other states, but also heralded in an era of proactive collaboration between private landowners, states and federal agencies under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to conserve America's most imperiled wildlife.
News Release »
Learn More »
Safe Harbors: 20 Years Later »
Article »
Conserving Amphibians:
What the Amphibians are Telling Us and Why We Should Listen
|
|
|
Northern leopard frog with
missing limb.
Steve Mierzykowski/USFWS |
May 28, 2015
A new study suggests that increases in water temperature and copper pollution may increase mortality and abnormalities in frogs. This research, conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Pacific University, and the University of California at Davis, and recently published in the journal Ecosphere, follows previous studies of amphibian abnormalities and shows how pollution and climate change may contribute to amphibian decline.
Learn more »
Service Announces Proposed Delisting of the Louisiana Black Bear Due to Recovery
Louisiana black bear on Avery Island, La.
Credit: Pam McIlhenny
May 20, 2015
The Service today proposed removing the Louisiana black bear from the list of species protected under the Endangered Species Act, due to its recovery. The announcement follows more than 20 years of successful collaborations between the Service, Louisiana Department of Wildlife, private landowners and other stakeholder groups working together to address threats facing the bear, such as loss of habitat.
News Release »
Learn More »
FWS, NOAA Propose Actions to Build on Successes of Endangered Species Act
Whooping Cranes, in flight at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge near Austwell, Texas.
Credit: Steve Hillebrand
May 18, 2015
Today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service announced a set of proposed actions designed to improve the effectiveness of the nation's premier law for imperiled wildlife, the Endangered Species Act. Through both the set of revisions submitted to the Federal Register today and additional ones over the coming year FWS will better engage state wildlife agencies in ESA listing processes, promote the use of the best available science, improve scientific transparency, and incentivize voluntary conservation. Together, these efforts will focus limited resources where they can do the most good.
News Release »
Learn More »
Service Invites Submissions for Wolf-Livestock Demonstration Project Grants
Credit: Gary Kramer/USFWS
May 7, 2015
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service invites eligible states and Native American tribes to apply for demonstration projects intended to reduce and address the impact of wolves on livestock operations. The Service will award approximately $900,000 in two categories: Prevention Grants that assist livestock producers in undertaking proactive, non-lethal activities to reduce the risk of livestock loss due to predation by wolves, and Compensation Grants that reimburse livestock producers for livestock losses caused by wolves.
Full Announcement »
Learn More »
Services Finalize Revisions to ESA Regulations Governing Incidental Take Statements
Bay checkerspot butterfly.
Credit: USFWS
April 21, 2015
As part of their ongoing efforts to improve implementation of the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service are finalizing the regulations governing Incidental Take Statements for endangered and threatened species under section 7. These changes will clarify and codify the current policy of the Services.
News Bulletin »
Learn More »
Questions and Answers »
Unprecedented Conservation Partnership Keeps Bi-State Sage-Grouse Off Endangered Species list
Male greater sage-grouse struts for female at a mating ground or "lek" near Bodie, California.
Credit: Jeannie Stafford / USFS
April 21, 2015
Thanks to the successful efforts of local, state and federal stakeholders, today Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced that the Bi-State population of greater sage-grouse in Nevada and California has a bright future and does not require listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
News Release »
Learn More »
Questions and Answers »
Winners Announced for 2015 Saving Endangered Species Youth Art Contest
This year's Saving Endangered Species Youth Art Contest grand prize winner, Kentucky arrow darter, by David Starovoytov.
April 20, 2015
Art of a Kentucky arrow darter by a sixth-grader from California received the Grand Prize in the 2015 Saving Endangered Species Youth Art Contest. The contest engages school children grades K-12 in expressing their appreciation for our nation's most imperiled wildlife, and is an integral part of the 10th annual national Endangered Species Day.
News Release »
Learn More »
Wolf Population in Northern Rocky Mountains Holds Steady
Gary Kramer/USFWS
April 3, 2015
As of December 31, 2014, there were at least 1,657 wolves in 282 packs (including 85 breeding pairs) in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming. An additional 145 wolves in 31 packs (including 13 breeding pairs) were estimated in Oregon and Washington. Wolf numbers continue to be robust, stable and self-sustaining in the Northern Rocky Mountains. The annual population report is conducted as part of the Service's work to monitor the wolf population to ensure that it continues to exceed recovery goals under professional state management.
News Release »
Learn More »
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Protects Northern Long-eared Bat Under ESA, also Issues Interim Special 4(d) Rule
Photo Credit: Jill Utrup/USFWS
April 1, 2015
The Service announced today it is protecting the northern long-eared bat as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, primarily due to the threat posed by white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that has devastated many bat populations. At the same time, the Service issued an interim 4(d) rule that eliminates unnecessary regulatory requirements for landowners, land managers, government agencies and others in the range of the northern long-eared bat.
News Release »
Learn More»
Successful Conservation Efforts Along Florida, Pacific Coasts Recognized in Revised ESA Listing of the Green Sea Turtle
Green sea turtle at Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge in Florida
Photo Credit: Blair Witherington/USFWS
March 20, 2015
Today NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed reclassifying the green sea turtle under the Endangered Species Act.The proposal involves reclassifying green sea turtles into 11 Distinct Population Segments globally. This will ensure continued protections for all green sea turtles, while providing a more tailored approach for managers in addressing the specific threats that face each population. Following years of coordinated efforts in Florida and along the Pacific Coast in Mexico, nesting green sea turtle numbers have increased, leading to a recommended threatened status instead of endangered for those populations.
News Release »
Learn More»
Oregon Chub Becomes First Fish Delisted Due to Recovery
An Oregon chub swims at Finley National Wildlife Refuge, Corvallis, Oregon.
Photo Credit:Rick Swart / Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
February 18, 2015
The small but significant Oregon chub has become the first fish ever to be removed from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Animals due to recovery. The chub, listed as endangered in 1993 and reclassified as threatened in 2010, is a minnow found only in the Willamette River Basin in floodplain habitats with little or no water flow. Threats to the chub have been reduced through restoration and acquisition of habitat, promotion of natural river flows, and the reintroduction of the fish into historical habitat.
News Release »
Service Announces Annual Endangered Species Youth Art Contest
Last year's grand prize winner, Southern Sea Otter.
Photo Credit:Credit: Amy Feng
January 30, 2015
Youth across the nation are encouraged to apply to the 2015 Saving Endangered Species Youth Art Contest. The contest encourages kids to express their knowledge and support of conservation efforts through creative and original artwork. The contest also promotes national awareness of the importance of saving endangered species while recognizing conservation initiatives across the country. The deadline for entries is March 1st.
Bulletin »
Learn More »
Blog: Saving Species with Art »
Last updated:
January 6, 2016