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Rice's Whale
WASHINGTON, D.C.

Defenders Slams Unlawful God Squad Vote to Strip Endangered Species Act Protection from Wildlife in the Gulf

Defenders of Wildlife strongly opposes today’s vote by the Endangered Species Committee, or God Squad, to condemn species to extinction in the name of a fictitious “national security emergency.”
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Merrit Island National Wildlife Refuge at sunset
Washington, D.C.

Court Victory for Florida Wetlands Protection

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled today that permits to build in wetlands should stay in the hands of
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Willet
Washington, D.C.

Sec. of Defense Invokes False “National Security” Rationale to Eviscerate Endangered Species Act Protections for Wildlife in the Gulf

In a litigation filing yesterday in federal district court, the Trump administration publicly admitted for the first time that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum scheduled a snap meeting of the Endangered Species Committee (the “God Squad”) for March 31 at the request of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

Press Releases

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Polar bears
Anchorage, AK

Emergency court order stops ConocoPhillips from moving forward on destructive Willow project

Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic, Defenders of Wildlife and four additional groups applaud a U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling yesterday that stops ConocoPhillips from doing winter road construction, gravel mining, and blasting on its Willow project in the western Arctic, on federal lands in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, while the court decides an appeal in the case.
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Williamson’s Sapsucker on a branch
Washington, DC

Legislation Introduced to Establish one of the Nation’s Largest Urban Wildlife Refuges

A recent report finds that California lost more than 1 million acres of natural area between 2001 and 2017 due to urban development, greatly affecting
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Bald Eagle
Madison, Wisconsin

Four Conservation Groups Sue to Protect Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge

Today, Defenders of Wildlife along with three conservation groups- the National Wildlife Refuge Association, Driftless Area Land Conservancy, and Wisconsin Wildlife Federation – filed a
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Franklin's bumble bee
Sacramento, CA

Conservationists and California Fish and Game Commission Pursue Appeal to Ensure Legal Protections for Imperiled Bumble Bees

Today, Center for Food Safety, Defenders of Wildlife, and the Xerces Society, represented by Stanford Environmental Law Clinic, announced they are appealing a November 2020 decision by the Sacramento County Superior Court.
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southern resident orca
Boise, Idaho

Idaho Legislative Package Kick-starts Northwest Salmon and Energy Discussions

This weekend Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) announced a comprehensive legislative package that seeks to recover salmon throughout the Pacific Northwest, update our outdated energy infrastructure, and invest in community infrastructure needs throughout Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.
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