WildEarth Guardians

A Force for Nature

Select Page

Current work in wildlife, rivers, public lands, and climate

Press Releases

Good News for Moby Dick At Close of International Year of Biodiversity

Date
December 31, 2010
Contact
Nicole Rosmarino 505 699-7404
In This Release
Wildlife  
#DefendCarnivores, #EndTheWarOnWildlife

Friday, December 31, 2010
Good News for Moby Dick At Close of International Year of Biodiversity

Recap of Year of Actions for Endangered Species
Contact: Nicole Rosmarino 505 699-7404

Washington, DC-Dec 31. In the final week of thefirst-ever International Year of Biodiversity (IYOB), the federal governmentissued a recovery plan for the sperm whale – after making the whale wait fornearly 40 years. The government’saction came in response to a court order obtained by WildEarth Guardians.

“We’re pleased that the sperm whale has, at longlast, a plan for recovery,” stated Dr. Nicole Rosmarino of WildEarth Guardians.“While the International Year of Biodiversity has come to a close, theextinction crisis nonetheless persists. We will continue to urge the governmentto use all means at its disposal, most notably the Endangered Species Act, toconfront this life-threatening crisis.”

In February 2010, Guardians sued the government forfailing to issue recovery plans for the sperm, fin, and sei whales. The actioncame during the final week of the group’s “BioBlitz,” in which it filedlawsuits or petitions every day for 36 consecutive days to mark both the IYOBand the 36th anniversary of the U.S. Endangered Species Act(ESA). Altogether, Guardians tookactions for 100 species during its January and February BioBlitz. Later in theyear, the group conducted a BioBlitz for several Gulf of Mexico species as partof “Gulf Week,” in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill; and celebratedHalloween with a final BioBlitz of species symbolic of the holiday: bats,rattlesnakes, the Mexican wolf, Gila monster, and tarantulas.

The group’s year-long campaign built on its decadesof effort to provide upgraded or new ESA safeguards to species across the U.S.The ESA has proven to be 99 percent effective in preventing species extinction.In addition, Guardians aimed to encourage the federal government to mark theIYOB by fully implementing the ESA, which has long been under-funded andunder-enforced to the detriment of a variety of species desperately in need ofthe shields this law provides.

Prodded by Guardians’ BioBlitzes and additionalactions by the group, the U.S. government:

  • Issued a final recovery plan for the sperm whale
  • Issued a final recovery plan for the fin whale
  • Agreed to issue a recovery plan for the sei whale
  • Issued final listing and critical habitat rules for 48 Kauai species
  • Agreed to a recovery plan determination for the jaguarundi
  • Agreed to a recovery plan determination for the thick-billed parrot
  • Proposed the sand dune lizard for ESA listing
  • Proposed the largetooth sawfish for ESA listing
  • Added two Colorado plants, the skiff and Schmoll’s milkvetches, to theESA candidate list
  • Added the Jemez Mountains salamander to the ESA candidate list
  • Added the Sprague’s pipit to the ESA candidate list
  • Added the Wright’s marsh thistle to the ESA candidate list
  • Issued a positive petition finding for the bumphead parrotfish

Working with other conservation groups, Guardiansalso compelled the U.S. government to:

  • Propose the mountain plover for ESA listing (Biodiversity ConservationAlliance was partner)
  • Add the Sonoran desert tortoise to the ESA candidate list (WesternWatersheds Project was co-petitioner)
  • Add the Gunnison sage-grouse to the ESA candidate list (a multitude ofother organizations also involved)
  • Add the Mono Basin sage-grouse to the ESA candidate list (otherorganizations were also involved)
  • Add the greater sage-grouse to the ESA candidate list (otherorganizations were also involved)
  • Add the Canada lynx in New Mexico to the ESA candidate list (otherentities, especially the Western Environmental Law Center, were involved)
  • Issue a positive petition finding for the Mexican wolf (The RewildingInstitute was co-petitioner)
  • Agree to issue ESA listing determinations for 12 parrots (Friends ofAnimals was co-plaintiff)

Despite the urgent need for prompt action to addressthe extinction crisis, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has been slow to add morespecies to the ESA list. There are now 255 species of plants and wildlife thatare formal “candidates” awaiting federal listing. Many of these specieshave been on the waiting list for protection for a decade or more. Outside ofHawaii, Salazar has listed only 4 new U.S. species under the Act since takingoffice. At the current pace, it would take a century to get through thebacklog of candidate species in the continental U.S.

WildEarth Guardians is a formal partner in theUnited Nation’s Year of Biodiversity (see here), in which “The world is invited totake action in 2010 to safeguard the variety of life on earth: biodiversity.”For background information, contact Nicole Rosmarino at nrosmarino@wildearthguardians.orgor 505-699-7404.

Other Contact
“We’re pleased that the sperm whale has, at long last, a plan for recovery,” stated Dr. Nicole Rosmarino of WildEarth Guardians. “While the International Year of Biodiversity has come to a close, the extinction crisis nonetheless persists. We will continue to urge the government to use all means at its disposal, most notably the Endangered Species Act, to confront this life-threatening crisis.”