A LICENSE TO KILL, PART 2

Too often, inadequate science hampers habitat planning

There is plenty of mystery surrounding Cave X -- an underground limestone cavern where insects have mutated over countless years, adapting to the darkness. It is the home of an extremely rare, itsy-bitsy spider -- eyeless with a creamy hue. There are only two places on Earth where the blind spider, Cicurina cueva, is known to exist, and one of them is Cave X, where the primary defense from extinction is a chain-link fence. The fence is supposed to shield the cave from intruders and suburban sprawl. But as environmentalist Bill Bunch stands there, surveying the row of two-story homes, the sprawling private school with the long asphalt driveway, the delivery trucks -- he knows the "postage stamp" preserve will fail. With all that development, how could groundwater feeding the cavern remain pure? What will happen to the foraging crickets and other animals that bring nutrients underground -- a crucial link in the food web? Scientists know little about the spiders and other subterranean creatures here. And yet the subdivisions sprouting around the scattered caves have the blessing of the federal agency responsible for protecting most endangered species....

Other articles in the series:

Lone voice challenges 'no surprises'

Idle preserves turn to eyesores

The public often has little role in the drafting of habitat plans

Montana's bull trout runs threatened

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