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U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Memo Underscores Trump Administration’s All-Fronts War on Wildlife
Brian Nesvik, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, issued a memorandum explaining to FWS staff that the Endangered Species Act’s prohibition on unauthorized “take” applies only to affirmative acts intentionally and purposefully directed at a particular animal. This follows the Trump administration’s rescission of the regulatory definitions of “harm” under the ESA, which took effect this week.
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Court Rules Habitat Must Be Protected After FWS Attempts to Waive Protections for Less Than 40 Sierra Nevada Red Fox
Defenders of Wildlife earned a significant victory for the Endangered Species Act today when a federal district court found that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's decision to not designate critical habitat for the endangered Sierra Nevada red fox was a violation of the law.
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Construction on Gateway to Road through Izembek Continues
The Ninth Circuit today denied Defenders of Wildlife’s emergency motion to halt construction on King Cove Corp.’s 2.8-mile road segment leading to the doorstep of Izembek National Wildlife Refuge and Wilderness. Defenders’ request for immediate injunctive relief marks the latest stage in its larger effort to block a damaging and precedent-setting road from King Cove to Cold Bay, Alaska, that would plow through the heart of Izembek.
Press Releases
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Horseshoe Crab Management Proposal Could Further Imperil Threatened Red Knot Shorebird
A coalition of conservation groups has warned regional fishery managers that a proposed change to the rules governing horseshoe crab removal in Delaware Bay threatens the red knot, a declining migratory shorebird whose numbers along the bay reached a record low last spring.
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Nature's Brokers: Scientists Show Pumas Maintain Relationships with Nearly 500 Living Species, Holding America’s Ecosystems Together
Pumas maintain relationships with an astounding 485 living species and play a critical role in holding ecosystems together throughout the Western Hemisphere, according to a new study entitled Pumas as ecological brokers: a review of their biotic relationships from Defenders of Wildlife and Panthera, the global wild cat conservation organization, published today in Mammal Review.
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28 Bison Transferred from Yellowstone to Fort Peck
Twenty-eight Yellowstone bison were released today at the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, marking the sixth successful transfer from Yellowstone National Park to the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of Fort Peck since 2019.
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Defenders of Wildlife and Conservation Groups Sue Regulators, Pharmaceutical Company Over Crab Pens
South Carolina's natural resources agency and pharmaceutical giant Charles River Laboratories are facing a federal lawsuit for violating the Endangered Species Act by allowing harvesters to keep horseshoe crabs captive in manmade ponds, a practice only South Carolina permits.
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Collared Wolf Crosses Interstate-90 in Washington for First Time Ever
For the first time ever, a collaRed Wolf in Washington state successfully crossed interstate-90 into the South Cascades mountains according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW).
jcovey@defenders.org
