Endangered Species Law & Policy

On January 12, 2012, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found, after completing a 90-day review, that a petition to list the Humboldt marten (Martes americana humboldtensis) as an endangered or threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act presented substantial scientific information indicating that listing may be warranted.  The Service will now conduct a comprehensive status review of the species to determine whether listing of the Humboldt marten is warranted.  The Service will be accepting comments on the Humboldt marten until March 12, 2012. 

For almost 50 years the Humboldt marten, a member of the weasel family, was considered potentially extinct.  In 1996, however, a stationary camera captured a picture of the illusive creature in Del Norte, California.  It is believed that the Humboldt marten population in California consists of fewer than 100 individuals.