Endangered Species Law & Policy

Today, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a decision (pdf) relating to the 2008 biological opinion (BiOp) issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) regarding the effects of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project on the delta smelt. The long-awaited decision (oral argument was held on September 10, 2012) reversed in part and affirmed in part the district court’s judgment invalidating the BiOp and remanding it to the Service. The opinion is authored by Judge Bybee, with partial concurrence and partial dissent by both Judge ...

In an article forthcoming in the Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Dr. Dennis Murphy and I examine a proposal by the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service to amend the existing regulations that implement the interagency consultation process set out in Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act by codifying their pre-existing practice of using surrogates to express the amount or extent of incidental take of listed species.  We describe the proposed rule, place the use of surrogates for conservation planning in historical context, and ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has announced the availability of a revised recovery plan for the pallid sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus), a species that is found in the Missouri and Mississippi River basins, has been described as having a "unique dinosaur-like appearance," and has been listed as endangered since 1990.  As summarized by the Service, the revised recovery plan updates the "current understanding of the species life history requirements, identifies probable threats that were not originally recognized, includes revised recovery ...

On February 26, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game petitioned (pdf) the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to remove the Central North Pacific subpopulation of humpback whales from the federal list of endangered or threatened species. In a press release, the director of Alaska’s Division of Wildlife Conservation declared the species a prime example of a recovered species that should be delisted from the Endangered Species Act (ESA) because the threat of extinction for this subpopulation is gone.

The entire North Pacific humpback whale species (Megaptera ...

 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) recently issued (pdf) a proposed rule to remove Eureka Valley evening-primrose (Oenothera avita ssp. eurekensis) and Eureka dune grass (Swallenia alexandrae) from the federal list of endangered species. The Service’s proposed rule follows its 12-month finding on the Pacific Legal Foundation’s petition to delist the species.

Eureka Valley evening-primrose and Eureka dune grass are endemic to three dune systems in the Eureka Valley, located in Inyo County, California. Eureka Valley is managed by the National Park Service (Park ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) issued a final rule (pdf) listing the Georgetown salamander (Eurycea naufragia) and the Salado salamander (Eureycea chisholmensis) as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Service also issued a proposed special rule for the Georgetown salamander under section 4(d) of the ESA, which authorizes the take of protected species in certain instances.

The primary threat to the species is habitat degradation due to declining water quality and disturbance of surface spring sites. According to the Service, urban development ...

In an article (pdf) forthcoming in the Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Dennis Murphy and I explore the potential for adaptive management through structured decision-making to improve efforts to conserve imperiled species.  We note the many impediments to effective management, which include frequent default to best professional judgment.  We then explore the potential for adaptive management to overcome these impediments if it is implemented as a step-wise, structured approach incorporating scientific information into decision-making.  We go on to identify  ...

Today, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced (pdf) a 90-day finding on a petition to list the Hector’s dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori), the Baltic Sea subpopulation of harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), the eastern Taiwan Strait subpopulation of the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin (Sousa chinensis), and the Fiordland subpopulation of the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) under the Endangered Species Act. The announcement came as a result of NMFS' determination that the petition presented substantial scientific and commercial information ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has announced a final rule listing the Georgetown salamander (Eurycea naufragia) and Salado salamander (Eureycea chisholmensis) as threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.  The final rule is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Monday.  According to an article by Claire Osborn of the Austin American-Statesman, "Williamson County officials have said the area would lose millions of dollars in development if the salamanders are listed."

In August 2008, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) issued a proposed rule to delist the Hawaiian hawk (Buteo solitarius), also referred to as the io, from the federal list of endangered or threatened species.  The proposed rule states that the proposed action is "based on a thorough review of the best available scientific data, which indicates that range-wide population estimates have been stable for at least 20 years, and the species has recovered and is not likely to become an endangered species in the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of ...

A report issued by a group of independent scientists claims that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) relied on inadequate scientific evidence to support its proposal to delist the gray wolf (Canis lupus) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). As we previously reported, the Service issued a proposed rule to delist the species last June. The Service then commissioned U.C. Santa Barbara’s National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) to conduct an independent review of the science behind the proposed rule. NCEAS issued its report last month.

According ...

Members of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) Congressional Working Group recently released a final report (pdf) asserting that the ESA is not working and providing four recommendations for improvement.

The report is the result of an eight-month effort led by Republican Representatives Doc Hastings (WA) and Cynthia Lummis (WY) to examine the ESA. The group received input from hundreds of individuals on how the ESA is currently being implemented, and whether it could be updated to be more effective. The report concludes that [a]fter more than 40 years, sensible, targeted reforms ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announced (pdf) that it will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on a proposed application for an Incidental Take Permit (ITP), including a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP), under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The application concerns the lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicintus), which the Service has proposed to be listed as threatened under the ESA.

A group of stakeholders representing energy, agricultural, and conservation industries and organizations (Stakeholders) submitted the application. If ...

Yesterday, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) recommended that the California Fish and Game Commission not list the gray wolf as endangered under the California Endangered Species Act. Following a yearlong review, DFW determined that the scientific evidence does not warrant listing the species at this time. Instead, DFW recommended designating the gray wolf as a species of special concern – which affords the gray wolf some protection, including prohibiting the killing of the species – with a recommendation to consider placing the gray wolf on the ...

As recently reported in The Oregonian, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has declared the Oregon chub (Oregonichthys crameri) recovered, and will remove the species from the list of federally threatened and endangered species.  According to the report, this is the first fish ever taken off the endangered species list.  In a previous report, the Service stated that the fish's improved status was attributable to the efforts of the Oregon Chub Working Group, and "successful introduction of Oregon chub into new locations within their historical range and the discovery ...

On January 29, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announced (pdf) the reopening of the public comment period for a special rule originally proposed on May 6, 2013 that would allow for limited take of the lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus). As we previously reported, the proposed special rule was revised on December 11, 2013 to include a five-state conservation plan for the species. The proposed special rule allows for take of the lesser prairie-chicken as long as such take is incidental to activities conducted by an individual enrolled in the ...

The National Marine Fisheries Service (Service) recently announced (pdf) a proposed amendment to the regulatory language of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) listing for the Southern Resident killer whale Distinct Population Segment (DPS).  The amendment would remove the language excluding captive members of the population from ESA protection. The Service’s action comes in response to a petition submitted by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to include Lolita as a protected member of the DPS. Lolita, the sole captive member of the Southern Resident killer whale ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is seeking proposals (pdf) from states or territories for federal grants from the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (Fund) for voluntary conservation projects that benefit candidate, proposed, or listed species.

The Fund is authorized under Section 6 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and provides four different grant programs: 1) Conservation Grants, which help implement conservation projects; 2) Recovery Land Acquisition Grants, which fund the acquisition of habitat in support of approved or draft species ...

On January 17, 2014, President Obama signed into law the $1.1 trillion dollar Omnibus Spending Bill, thereby funding the federal government through October 1.  Included in the Bill was a provision directing the Secretary of the Interior to reinstate an exemption that exempted the scimitar-horned oryx (Oryx dammah), the dama gazelle (Gazella dama), and the addax antelope (Addax nasomaculatus) from the Endangered Species Act.  The rider was introduced by Representative John Carter (R-Tex).  As we recently reported, proponents of the rider believe that exempting the species will ...

In Native Fish Society v. National Marine Fisheries Service, No. 3:12-cv-00431, environmental groups challenged the operation of the Sandy Hatchery along the Columbia River in Portland, Oregon. Among other things, plaintiffs argued that operation of the hatchery violates the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by causing take of listed fish species, including the Lower Columbia River Chinook, Lower Columbia River coho, Columbia River chum, and Lower Columbia River steelhead. Plaintiffs alleged the hatchery causes take due to competition from hatchery fish, introduction of ...

The U.S. Senate is set to consider exempting three antelope species from protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The scimitar-horned oryx (Oryx dammah), the dama gazelle (Gazella dama), and the addax antelope (Addax nasomaculatus) - affectionately known as the Three Amigos - were exempted from 2005 until 2012, when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service relisted the species as endangered.

On January 15, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a $1.1 trillion spending bill (pdf) that would fund the federal government through the remainder of fiscal year 2014. Included in ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) recently released (pdf) its draft economic analysis (DEA) for its proposal to designate critical habitat for the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog (Rana sierrae), the northern distinct population segment of the mountain yellow-legged frog (Rana muscosa), and the Yosemite toad (Anaxyrus canorus). The proposed critical habitat designation encompasses approximately 1,831,820 acres of habitat in California.

The purpose of the DEA is to identify and analyze the potential economic impacts associated with the proposed critical ...

As we previously reported, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has proposed to list the Gunnison sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) and the Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) as endangered and threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, and to designate millions of acres of land as critical habitat for the species.  (See our prior posts on January 23, 2013 and October 29, 2013.)  Because of the controversy surrounding the proposed listings and designations, the Service has extended the comment period on the proposals to ensure that the public has ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) recently affirmed (pdf) its decision to list the White Bluffs bladderpod (Physaria douglasii subsp. tuplashensis) as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  The Service also revised its designation of critical habitat for the plant species to exclude certain private and state lands in Franklin County, Washington.

The Service previously published a final rule to list the species (pdf) and designate critical habitat (pdf) on April 23, 2013.  However, the Service delayed the effective date of these rules in order to accept ...

December 28, 2013 marked the 40th birthday of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), which was signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973. According to Sally Jewell, the Secretary of the Interior: This landmark law has helped to stop the slide toward extinction of hundreds of species. Along the way, we have strengthened partnerships among states, tribes, local communities, private landowners and other stakeholders to find conservation solutions that work for both listed species and economic development. Supporters of the Act credit it for bringing several ...

 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) recently announced (pdf) the completion of its status review (pdf) of Coleman’s coralroot (Hexalectris colemanii), a species of orchid found in southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. The Service determined that listing the orchid as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is not warranted at this time.

The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) petitioned the Service to protect Coleman’s coralroot under the ESA in September 2010. Originally thought to be part of the Chisos coralroot, the ...

Last week, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee, a panel consisting of federal, state, local, and tribal representatives, recommended that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) remove the grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) from the list of threatened and endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). If the Service agrees, it will initiate the rule-making process to delist the species. The Service is expected to make a decision next month.

The Yellowstone grizzly bear population is found in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming. When initially listed under the ...

Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ("Service") announced (pdf) the extension of the public comment period on the proposals to list and designate critical habitat for the the Bi-State Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) along the California-Nevada border under the Endangered Species Act, and also announced the designation of approximately 230 acres in San Francisco County as critical habitat for the endangered Franciscan manzanita (Arctostaphylos franciscana).  The Service also released the final ...

Last week, the House Natural Resources Committee held its fifth oversight hearing on the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Entitled ESA Decisions by Closed-Door Settlement: Short-Changing Science, Transparency, Private Property, and State & Local Economies, the hearing included over a dozen Republican witnesses, with only three Democrats.

At the hearing, critics of the ESA urged reform to ensure that the statute’s focus is on recovering species and science, rather than litigation. Referencing the landmark 2011 settlement between Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) and the ...

On December 11, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) issued a revised special rule (pdf) that would provide for a limited exception to the protections currently proposed for the lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The revised special rule incorporates a new five-state rangewide conservation plan for the species, and allows take of lesser prairie-chickens so long as such take is incidental to activities conducted by an individual enrolled in the rangewide conservation plan. Previous versions of the special ...

In Center for Biological Diversity v. Environmental Protection Agency, No. 11-cv-00293 (pdf), plaintiffs sued the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), alleging that EPA’s oversight of pesticide ingredients, including trifluralin, triggered a duty to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service about trifluralin’s possible effects on species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). EPA and defendant intervenors representing the farming industry filed Rule 12(e) motions, requesting more definite statements, and alleging the complaint was so vague ...

On Thursday, December 12, 2013, the House Natural Resources Committee (Committee) will hold a full committee oversight hearing (pdf) titled ESA Decisions by Closed-Door Settlement: Short-Changing Science, Transparency, Private Property, and State & Local Economies. This hearing is part of a series of hearings announced by the Committee to review the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and conduct an assessment of the law’s strengths and weaknesses.

As we previously reported, in 2011, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) developed a six-year work plan that would allow it to ...

Last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announced (pdf) that it will begin a status review of the upper Missouri River distinct population segment (DPS) of the Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus). The status review will allow the Service to determine whether the DPS should be listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The Arctic grayling is found primarily in the Arctic and Pacific oceans, although some populations are river-dwelling. The fish has a long, thin body with a forked tail and can grow up to 13 inches long. The DPS that is the ...

A bill (pdf) to amend the Endangered Species Act (ESA)—entitled the Endangered Species Management Self-Determination Act (Bill)—has been introduced in the United States Senate. The Bill, authored by Senators Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) and by Representative Mark Amodei (R-Nev.), seeks to make two fundamental changes to the ESA: to alter the balance of power between states and the federal government, and to provide new property rights to landowners impacted by the ESA.

First, the Bill would tip the balance of authority to manage protected ...

 The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) today issued (pdf) a draft Oregon Greater Sage-Grouse Land Use Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement (LUP Amendment/EIS) for the Oregon Sub-Region.  Once finalized, the LUP Amendment/EIS will cover over 10 million acres of sage-grouse habitat in the species’ Oregon range.

The draft LUP Amendment/EIS is one of fifteen separate planning efforts being undertaken as part of the National Greater Sage-Grouse Planning Strategy.  As we previously reported, BLM has already issued the draft LUP Amendment/EIS for the Nevada and Northeast ...

On November 20, 2013, the United States District Court for the Southern District of California rejected a challenge by various plaintiffs and upheld the biological opinion and incidental take statement issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) for the Ocotillo Wind Energy Facility Project (Project) located in the Sonoran Desert in Imperial County, California.  See The Protect Our Communities Foundation v. Ashe, No. 12-cv-2212 (S.D. Cal. Nov. 20, 2013) (pdf).  The proposed Project, a utility-scale wind power project, would be comprised of 112 wind turbines ...

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) published a 90-day finding (pdf) on two petitions to list the pinto abalone (Haliotis kamtschatkana) as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and designating critical habitat for the species. According to NMFS, there is substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that listing the species under the ESA may be warranted.

The pinto abalone is a marine gastropod mollusk found in the Pacific Ocean. Its range extends from Sitka Island, Alaska, to Baja California, Mexico, though it is mostly found ...

Last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) published in the Federal Register a notice of its Record of Decision on an Incidental Take Permit authorizing NiSource, Inc. (NiSource) to "take 10 federally listed species over a 50-year period."  NiSource is engaged in natural gas transmission, storage, and distribution, as well as electric generation, transmission, and distribution.  In 2009, NiSource applied for authorization under Section 10 of the Endangered Species Act to take 10 federally listed species "in the course of engaging in otherwise lawful gas ...

On November 14, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) determined that Gunnison’s prairie dog (Cynomys gunnisonidoes) does not warrant listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  According to the Service, the species’ populations are stable and there are no threats causing or projected to cause the species to be at risk of extinction.  The Service also removed Gunnison’s prairie dog from the candidate list of threatened or endangered species. 

Gunnison’s prairie dog includes two subspecies that occupy areas of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah.  ...

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced (pdf) that it will not list the Gulf of Mexico population of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) as an endangered or threatened distinct population segment (DPS) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Sperm whales were originally listed as endangered under the precursor to the ESA—the Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969—and remained on the list of threatened and endangered species after the passage of the ESA in 1973. In December 2011, NMFS received a petition to list the Gulf of Mexico population as a ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) recently announced (pdf) the reopening of the public comment periods for its January 11, 2013 proposed rules to list the Gunnison sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and to designate approximately 1.7 million acres of critical habitat for the species in Colorado and Utah. The Service also announced that it was rescheduling two public information sessions and public hearings for the proposed rules, as well as adding a third public informational session and public hearing. These ...

On November 4, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) published a proposed rule (pdf) to remove the Inyo California towhee (Pipilo crissalis eremophilus) from the list of threatened and endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Service concluded that delisting the Inyo California towhee is warranted because substantial threats to the species have been ameliorated or reduced since listing, and the species no longer meets the definition of a threatened species under the ESA. 

According to the Service, the total rangewide population of the towhees ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) recently announced that it has proposed listing two butterfly species under the Endangered Species Act because of "steep population declines."  The two species are the Poweshiek skipperling (Oarisma poweshiek) and the Dakota skipper (Hesperia dacotae).  The notice issued by the Service states that "[b]oth butterfly species use prairie habitat and are threatened by degradation or changes to their habitat."  The Dakota skipper, which is proposed to be listed as a threatened species, is found in Minnesota ...

On November 4, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California approved a settlement agreement between the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Service) and the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) regarding the impacts of seven pesticides on the California red-legged frog (Rana draytonii), which is listed under the Endangered Species Act. Pursuant to the settlement, the Service is required to consult with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regarding whether the use of glyphosate, malathion, simazine, pendimethalin, permethrin, methomyl and ...

On November 1, 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), as lead agency, and the U.S. Forest Service (Service), as cooperating agency, issued the Nevada and Northeast California Greater Sage-Grouse Draft Land Use Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).  The EIS evaluates six alternatives for land use plan management amendments (LUPA) focusing on conservation measures covering approximately 17.7 million acres of land administered by BLM and the Service in Nevada and northeast California spanning 16 Nevada counties, four California counties, and one ...

This week, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Service) listed (pdf) 15 species on the island of Hawaii as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Among the species protected are the anchialine pool shrimp (Vetericaris chaceorum), an extremely rare species of shrimp of which only five individuals have ever been observed, and the picture-wing fly (Drosophila digressa). In addition, the Service listed 13 species of plants, including sunflowers, asters, shrubs, and other small trees. Specifically, the haha (Cyanea marksii), aku (Cyanea tritomantha), and ...

On October 28, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) published a proposed rule (pdf) to list the California and Nevada populations of the greater sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). According to the Service, this bi-state population is genetically distinct and geographically isolated from other greater sage grouse populations, and warrants protection under the ESA.

Primary threats to the species include degradation of habitat by livestock grazing and invasive plant species, fragmentation of habitat ...

Yesterday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued two proposed rules for the Vandenberg monkeyflower (Diplacus vandenbergensis), a small annual herb only known to occur at nine locations in western Santa Barbara County.   The first rule proposes to designate the Vandenberg monkeyflower as an endangered species under the federal Endangered Species Act.  The second rule proposes to designate approximately 5,785 acres of critical habitat in Santa Barbara County, California for the Vandenberg monkeyflower.  In a notice, the Service states that the "primary threat to the ...

Last week, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) issued a final rule (pdf) delisting the eastern distinct population segment (DPS) of the Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) from the list of threatened and endangered species. NMFS concluded that delisting is warranted because the species has met the recovery criteria outlined in its 2008 recovery plan and no longer meets the definition of a threatened or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

According to NMFS, the eastern DPS Steller sea lion population has increased from an estimated 18,040 ...

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has begun the process of updating California’s Wildlife Action Plan, a guidance document that sets goals for improving the state’s wildlife resources. CDFW is holding a series of scoping meetings through November 13 of this year at various locations throughout the state.

To be eligible to receive federal funds under the State Wildlife Grants Program, each state must have a State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), and update its SWAP every 10 years. The intent of ...