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Hawksbill sea turtle by NOAA/Caroline S. Rogers
Washington, DC

Defenders Statement on Biden Administration’s Final Endangered Species Act Regulations

The Biden administration today released final Endangered Species Act regulations that restore several core components of the bedrock conservation law that the previous administration sought to undercut. Defenders of Wildlife, which pursued legal challenges to the 2019 regulations, expressed both appreciation and concern with the newly released regulations.
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Students, parents and faculty from FernLeaf Community Charter School remove invasive plants and plant new growth along the bank of Cane Creek in Fletcher, N.C.
Fletcher, N.C.

Shade Your Stream Program Plants New Life Along North Carolina Creek

The banks of Cane Creek came alive Friday with hard work — much of it by small, determined hands. Students of the FernLeaf Community School
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Johanna Grasso

Defenders Secures Win for Polar Bears in Alaska's North Slope

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finding that oil and gas activities in Alaska pose

Press Releases

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A dead right whale floating about 20 miles offshore of Tybee Island, Georgia on February 14, 2024. Two sharks swim close by.

Critically Endangered Whale Dies Due to Inaction of Biden Administration

The North Atlantic right whale reported dead on Feb. 13 off the coast of Georgia was likely hit and killed by a vessel strike, NOAA
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 Adult Male Florida Panther in Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
Washington, DC

Federal Court Strikes Down EPA Approval of Florida Wetlands Program 

A federal court ruled in favor of environmental groups today, determining that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) violated
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A dead North Atlantic right whale is seen stranded at Joseph Sylvia State Beach in Edgartown, Mass. Found on Sunday, the whale is a juvenile female, a devestating loss to the population.
Washington, DC

Fishing Gear That Killed Endangered Right Whale Traced Back to Maine Fishery

NOAA Fisheries today announced that the fishing gear entangling the body of a juvenile female North Atlantic right whale that washed ashore on Martha’s Vineyard
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Piping Plover sitting on beach with chick
Washington, DC

Defenders Staunchly Opposes “ESA Flexibility Act” Which Would Gut Imperiled Species Conservation Efforts

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries today will hold a hearing on the ESA Flexibility Act, a bill that if passed would catastrophically undermine key foundational elements of the Endangered Species Act.
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2023.01.05- Right Whale Swimming with Calf-FWC-CC BY NC ND 2.0
Washington, DC

Defenders and Allies Call on Biden Administration for Overdue Right Whale Protections

Conservation groups have asked a federal court on Feb. 13 to lift a stay and allow paused litigation to proceed, in pursuit of a deadline
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
hhammer@defenders.org
(202) 772-0295
Communications Specialist
jpetrequin@defenders.org
(202) 772-0243