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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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Right Whale
Washington, DC

SAVE Right Whales Act Passes Out of Committee

Today, the House Natural Resources Committee marked up and passed the Scientific Assistance for Very Endangered (SAVE) Right Whales Act out of committee. The legislation would support the survival and recovery of the critically imperiled North Atlantic right whale.
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Bald eagle
Washington, DC

Interior Department Needs Leadership, Not Reorganization

Jamie Rappaport Clark, president and CEO of Defenders of Wildlife, will testify before the House Natural Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations today at 10:00 a.m.
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Southern_Resident_Orca
Seattle, WA

WA Legislature Funds Key Orca-Saving Measure

With support from Governor Inslee and 43 legislators in the House and Senate, the Washington State legislature included funding in its final state budget to convene a stakeholder forum recommended last fall by the Governor’s Southern Resident Orca Recovery Task Force.
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Ocelot looking up
Tucson, AZ

Final Jaguar Plan Inadequate For Recovery of Species in U.S.

Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released their final recovery plan for the jaguar. This plan, dated in 2018 but just released today, comes over two decades after the cat was granted protection under the Endangered Species Act and does not allot enough suitable habitat for recovery in the United States.
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Ocelot
Washington, DC

Defenders of Wildlife Releases Report Detailing Consequences of Proposed Natural Gas Facilities on Ocelot Recovery

Defenders of Wildlife has published a new report, Potential Impacts of Proposed Liquified Natural Gas Facilities on Ocelot Recovery in Texas, which details the effects three proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities in the Brownsville Ship Channel would have on the future of ocelot recovery in the United States.
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