Photo by iStockphoto.com/svehlik
Endangered Species Day is a celebratory day to spotlight the importance of the Endangered Species Act and animal conservation. The Endangered Species Act was passed in 1973 by the United States Congress and since that time has been responsible for the recovery of many iconic species, including the gray whale, which was declared recovered in 1994, and the bald eagle, which was declared recovered in 2007. In recent years the Endangered Species Act has been under assault as industry, manufacturing, oil, and gas, want key changes that would weaken the Act and prevent the recover of species.
We know that the Endangered Species Act is 99% effective in preventing species extinction, and that when species are listed they receive the necessary support and habitat management needed to allow for recovery. We also know that sound science should be the guiding factor in determining whether species, both flora and fauna, are listed as endangered or removed from the endangered species list -- “delisted.” And we know what happens when those decisions are influenced by politics: misguided proposals like delisting of the grizzly bear in the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem and the gray wolf in the lower 48 states.
Let's look at the grizzly bear for a moment. The bear itself used to have a large range in the continental United States. Yet currently, the grizzly can be found only in Greater Yellowstone, the Selkirk/Yaak area, and the Northern Continental Divide ecosystem, with a total estimated population of about 1,700. While the numbers are higher than they were prior to listing, a lack of habitat, issues of habitat fragmentation, shifting food sources as a result of climate change, as well as human-bear conflicts, have hindered the bear's ability to recover. When delisting decisions are made, they should look at the totality of what is necessary to claim recovery which includes access to food and habitat, the ability to be connected and thrive genetically, and unimpeded migration.
The gray wolf is another example of an apex predator species that, were it to go extinct, would have a huge effect. In the lower 48, wolves used to roam from the Great Lakes through 29 eastern states and throughout the west. They are now confined to mostly the Midwest and the Rocky Mountains. This past March, the US Fish and Wildlife Service issued a rule that would delist the gray wolf across the lower 48 states. The rule comes despite a court ruling that wolves in the Midwest have not fully recovered and that large parts of the wolf’s historic range have no wolves at all. USFWS’s rule does not show the necessary proof that wolves are fully recovered in the lower 48 nor that they could survive the many things that would cause wolf mortality. There is currently a public comment period that ends on July 15, allowing for people to comment on the wolf and why it should continue to be listed.
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As we think about climate change and the impact of the extinction of key species, we should also think about how we can aid in the conservation of wildlife, habitats, and plant species. We are all interconnected and need each other for survival. On this Endangered Species Day, let's think about what a world would be like if no species were endangered and we had populations of both humans and wildlife.