Agency says 29 species may need federal protection
SALT LAKE CITY — Twenty-nine species in more than 20 states — from a rare beach-dwelling plant in Yellowstone National Park to a caddisfly in Nebraska — may need federal protections to avoid extinction, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The agency said Tuesday that 20 plants, six snails, two insects and a fish may warrant protection under the Endangered Species Act but in-depth studies are needed first.
The decision is a response to a 2007 petition by WildEarth Guardians, an environmental group that sought protections for more than 200 species, most of them in the West.
In February, the agency turned down protections for 165 plants and animals and delayed a decision on the remaining 38.
Among the 29 that federal officials said may need protection are the Yellowstone sand verbena, which only lives on the sandy beaches of Yellowstone Lake, several species of milkvetch in Wyoming, Utah and Colorado, and a Midwestern mollusk called the Frigid ambersnail.
Fourteen of the 29 appear in Utah, including 10 plant species and a small silvery minnow called the Northern leatherside chub.
Diane Katzenberger, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman in Denver, said each of the species will now get a detailed review, including identification of its range, distribution and threats.
Federal officials will then decide whether each needs to be protected as a threatened or endangered species.
Nicole Rosmarino, wildlife program director for Santa Fe, N.M.-based WildEarth Guardians, said she’s pleased with the decision but more needs to be done to protect other species deemed threatened by scientists.
“To catch up with the biodiversity crisis in the U.S., the service needs to be listing dozens of species at once,” she said.
The Fish and Wildlife Service defines an endangered species as one that is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. A threatened species is one that is likely to become endangered soon.
The agency said several of the 29 species being considered for protection could be affected by climate change, including the meltwater lednian stonefly that’s only been found in Montana’s Glacier National Park. The loss of glaciers in the park by 2030 — as predicted by some scientists — could jeopardize the fly’s habitat, the agency said.
Other species face threats from habitat loss, road construction, mining, livestock, energy development, off-road vehicles and water diversions, the agency said.
Nine species were denied the possibility of federal protections because there wasn’t sufficient information in the petitions.
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A look at the 29 species the US Fish and Wildlife Service says may need federal protectionAugust 18th, 2009 29 species tagged for possible federal protectionThe U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says 29 species may warrant protection under the Endangered Species Act:
PLANTS:
—Yellowstone Sand Verbena in Wyoming
—Ross' bentgrass in Wyoming
—Hamilton milkvetch in Colorado and Utah
—Isely milkvetch in Utah
—Skiff milkvetch in Colorado
—Precocious milkvetch in Wyoming
—Cisco milkvetch in Utah
—Schmoll milkvetch in Colorado
—Fremont County rockcress in Wyoming
—Boat-shaped bugseed in Colorado
—Pine springs cryptantha in Arizona, Utah
—Weber whitlowgrass in Colorado
—Brandegee's wild buckwheat in Colorado
—Frisco buckwheat in Utah
—Ostler's peppergrass in Utah
—Lesquerella navajoensis in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah
—Flowers pentemon in Utah
—Gibben's beardtongue in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming
—Pale blue-eyed grass in North Dakota, Oregon, Washington
—Frisco clover in Utah
MOLLUSKS:
—Frigid ambersnail in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin
—Bearmouth mountainsnail in Montana
—Byrne Resort mountainsnail in Montana
—Longitudinal gland pyrg in Nevada, Utah
—Hamlin Valley pyrg in Utah
—Sub-globose snake pyrg in Utah
INSECTS:
—Platte River caddis fly in Nebraska
—Meltwater lednian stonefly in Montana
FISH:
—Northern leatherside chub in Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming
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