endangered species list

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Half of Migratory Species Are in Trouble: UN

New report has bad news for critters who roam the planet to feed, breed

(Newser) - Nearly half of the world's migratory species are in decline, according to a new United Nations report released Monday. Many songbirds, sea turtles, whales, sharks, and other migratory animals move to different environments with changing seasons and are imperiled by habitat loss, illegal hunting and fishing, pollution, and climate...

21 Species Off Endangered List—Because They're Extinct

US Fish and Wildlife Service pulls 10 bird species, 8 types of mussels, 2 fish, 1 fruit bat

(Newser) - Twenty-one animals have been removed from the Endangered Species Act because, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, they're not endangered—they're extinct. The majority of the species—10 types of birds, eight types of mussels, two species of fish, and one type of bat—were listed...

Activists: 'Pay to Play' Loophole Exploits Endangered Animals

Species can be traded if, in many cases, money is donated

(Newser) - It's illegal to import animals as "trophies" to the United States if they're on the endangered species list—but hunters, circuses, zoos, breeders, and theme parks can obtain permits to import, export, or sell animals on the list as long as they show that by doing so,...

Arabian 'Unicorn' Makes a Comeback

Roughly 1K Arabian Oryx living in the wild thanks to captive breeding

(Newser) - The Arabian Oryx, whose distinctive horns are widely believed to have given rise to the unicorn legend, is back from the brink of extinction in the deserts of the Arabian peninsula. About 1,000 of the creatures now exist owing to nearly three decades of successful breeding, a Swiss-based conservation...

Oil Giants Battle Over 5-Inch Lizard

Dune sagebrush lizard may be listed as endangered in New Mexico

(Newser) - To hear some politicians and lobbyists tell it, the fate of New Mexico’s oil industry rests on the fate of a five-inch lizard. The federal government is considering listing the dunes sagebrush lizard as an endangered species, the Wall Street Journal reports, and that spooks the industry, because Sceloporous ...

Tree Rat Reappears After 113 Years
 Tree Rat 
 Reappears 
 After 113 Years  
in case you missed it
May 22, 2011 6:45 AM CDT

Tree Rat Reappears After 113 Years

Red-crested tree-rat walks up to biologists

(Newser) - A rare South American rodent not seen since the Spanish-American War has turned up at the doorstep of a nature reserve in Colombia. The red-crested tree rat ambled up to a pair of amazed volunteers at the El Dorado Reserve in the Sierra Nevada, Wired reports. The last recorded sighting...

Budget-Deal Casualty: Gray Wolf

In a first, Congress removes an animal from the Endangered Species List

(Newser) - It looks like the gray wolf may be a literal casualty of the budget deal. Congress has removed the animal from the Endangered Species List—the first time it's ever done so—and critics are, predictably, howling. A rider to the budget deal states that wolves in Montana and Idaho...

20% of Species Risk Extinction

Amphibians in special danger

(Newser) - A whopping 20% of the world’s species are on the brink of extinction, according to a new study unveiled at the UN Biodiversity Summit in Japan. The Red List of Threatened Species now includes a staggering 41% of amphibians, with the heaviest losses coming from Southeast Asia, where habitats...

Yellowstone's Bears Hungry, Bloodthirsty

You might want to reconsider feeding the bears

(Newser) - Remember those admonishments not to feed the bears? Well, the grizzlies at Yellowstone are hungry this year, reports the AP, and cranky as a result—which doesn't bode so well for human visitors. Two people have already died in 2010 after encountering starving grizzlies. "Pack your bear spray: there's...

Gray Wolf to Be Protected Again

Angry Montana, Idaho blame Wyoming

(Newser) - A federal judge has put the gray wolf back on the protected list, and angry ranchers in Montana and Idaho are blaming Wyoming for the move. While Montana and Idaho have agreed to management plans with controlled wolf hunts, Wyoming allows unregulated hunting of wolves if they're not on the...

Humpback Whales May Lose Endangered Tag

Some 60K animals believed to be alive today

(Newser) - In attempt to determine whether the humpback whales still need to be saved, the government is reviewing the marine mammals' place on the endangered species list for the first time in a decade. The results look promising: “They appear to be coming back pretty strongly in most of the...

Feds Showing More Love for Uglier Endangered Species

(Newser) - When you’re an endangered species jockeying for federal funding, good looks are historically a plus. That may be changing, the Washington Post reports. In the past, researchers note, “there has been a very heavy bias toward ‘charismatic megafauna’—relatively large, well-known birds and mammals.” But...

Gray Wolf Back on Endangered List

Court overrules Bush administration's move to cross it off

(Newser) - A federal court restored gray wolves to the endangered species list in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin yesterday, again making it not OK to kill wolves that attack livestock or pets, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. In answer to a lawsuit by environmental groups, a judge said the wolves couldn’t...

Endangered Species Listings Plummeting Under Bush

Wildlife advocates sue to save animals

(Newser) - The Bush administration for years has quietly established obstacles to listing new animals and plants on the endangered species list, the Washington Post reports. A total of only 59 domestic species have made it onto the list in the past seven years, compared to 58 each year under Bush's father...

Activists Howl as Wolves Leave Endangered List

Gray wolf population threatens livestock, officials say

(Newser) - Federal officials plan to pull gray wolves from the endangered species list for the first time in more than 20 years, the AP reports. Hunters will be allowed to reduce the growing wolf population, which threatens livestock in the Northern Rockies—but activists vow lawsuits to block the plan, saying...

75% of Bear Species at Risk
75% of Bear Species at Risk
Nov 12, 2007 7:15 PM CST

75% of Bear Species at Risk

Asia's sun bear now the fifth of eight bear species endangered worldwide

(Newser) - Southeast Asia's sun bear is now the sixth of eight bear species facing extinction worldwide, the Telegraph reports. Experts admit they know little about the bear, but blame deforestation, hunting, and fearful villagers for menacing the species. "We estimate that sun bears have declined by at least 30 per...

Harry, Pal Eyed in Shooting of Rare Birds

Protected hen harriers killed on royal estate

(Newser) - Prince Harry and a pal were grilled by police after two rare birds of prey were killed last week on an estate belonging to the British royal family. The prince was out shooting when witnesses saw two hen harriers hit, a crime punishable by six months in prison or a...

'Extinction Crisis' Threatens 40% of Species

Watchdog group sees serious danger to one in four mammals

(Newser) - More than 16,000 species are in serious danger of extinction, including one in four mammals and one in three amphibians being monitored by a global conservation group. With 40% of 40,000 surveyed species facing the highest levels of threat, “We’re at code red,” a top...

Don't Think Pink: Factory Threatens Flamingo Species

Endangered lesser flamingos breed in only one lake in eastern Africa

(Newser) - An Indian company's plans to build a plant to harvest soda ash, or sodium carbonate, from Lake Natron in northern Tanzania could spell the end for the endangered lesser flamingo, the smallest of the six flamingo species. The lake is the only major breeding site, and half a million of...

Environment Agency Battles Its Own Threats

Steward of endangered species suffers government neglect

(Newser) - The bald eagle's exit from Endangered Species Act protection drew attention away from the watchdog agency that defends threatened species—and is in peril itself. The budget has been slashed, open jobs go unfilled, and the fate of hundreds of plant and animal species hangs in the balance. The LA ...

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