Feds Find Gunnison Sage Grouse Imperiled, But Deny Endangered Species Act Protection

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today that the Gunnison sage grouse warrants Endangered Species Act protection, but that listing is precluded by higher priority actions and lack of resources to finalize a listing rule. The grouse will now become a candidate species under the Act, offering it no formal protection. The decision continues an unfortunate trend by the Obama administration of failing to list species its own biologists have determined to be imperiled. “Here we go again,” said Mark Salvo, director of the Sagebrush Sea Campaign for WildEarth Guardians. “The government has now determined that greater sage grouse, Mono Basin sage grouse, the Columbia Basin population and now Gunnison sage grouse all warrant protection under the ESA, but hasn’t listed any of them.” The Fish and Wildlife Service previously decided that Gunnison sage grouse were not warranted for listing under the Endangered Species Act in April 2006. However, upon further review, the agency agreed to promulgate a new listing decision today. Historic and current population trends and threats support listing the bird under the Act...Press Release