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gray wolf walking with paw raised and looking at camera
Olympia, WA

Washington State 2025 Wolf Count Increases, Depredations Decrease

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife today released the state’s 2025 minimum count for gray wolves at 270 individuals, a 17% increase from 2024
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gray wolf
Salem, OR

Oregon Releases 2025 Annual Wolf Count, Numbers Up

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife today issued its 2025 gray wolf annual report, announcing an increase in the wolf population for a new
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Offshore Oil Rig
Washington D.C.

Defenders of Wildlife Challenges Unprecedented “God Squad” Exemption Allowing Unchecked Gulf Oil Drilling

Defenders of Wildlife today announced it is taking legal action to overturn an unprecedented and unlawful decision by the Endangered Species Committee, known as the “God Squad,” to exempt federal authorizations of oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico through a blanket exemption from the Endangered Species Act’s protections.

Press Releases

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Greater sage grouse, Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge, Wyoming
Washington, DC

Administration’s Proposed Greater Sage-Grouse Proposal Falls Short, Must be Stronger to Reverse Declines

The Biden Administration today released a draft amendment to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land use plans covering much of the land intended to protect the greater sage-grouse, an imperiled species that has experienced an 80% population decline since 1965 and faces serious challenges from prolonged habitat loss and climate change. The proposed amendment, which updates BLM’s 2015 greater sage-grouse conservation strategy, affects 69 million acres across 10 states, almost half of the greater sage-grouse’s remaining habitat.
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Ocelot Mascots - Ocelot Festival 2023 - Texas - DOW.jpg
BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS

Ocelot Conservation Day Returns to Brownsville

Ocelot Conservation Festival, hosted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Friends of the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, and Defenders of Wildlife, returns
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U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and Assistant Secretary of the Interior Shannon Estenoz are joined by other Department of the Interior staff on Monday to add a plank commemorating the designation of the Everglades to Gulf Conservation Area at the boardwalk of Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge in Vero Beach, Florida.
Vero Beach, Fla.

New Refuge System Designation Expands Florida Wildlife Protections

Defenders of Wildlife joined today with conservation groups and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to celebrate the official designation of the Everglades to Gulf
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Spawning Coho Salmon - Lagunitas Creek - California - Martha Ture.JPG
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA

Environmental and Fishing Groups Raise Alarm About Ongoing Killing of Federally Protected Fish by the Central Valley Project and State Water Project

On March 6, a coalition of environmental and fishing groups reiterated their request that a federal court modify federal agencies’ proposed interim plan for operating
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Louisiana Black Bear
St. Petersburg, Fl.

Defenders Calls on Governor to Veto Killing of Bears Act

Defenders of Wildlife is calling on Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to veto a proposed bill that would allow residents to shoot and kill black bears
Senior Vice President, External Affairs
lsheehan@defenders.org
(202) 772-3244
Communications Director
mdewane@defenders.org
(202) 772-0217
Communications Specialist
jcovey@defenders.org
Communications Specialist
kirby@defenders.org
(202) 772-3268