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FIVE STATES WITH THE MOST ENDANGERED SPECIES
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The discrepancy between the number listed for Texas by US Fish & Wildlife
Service and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is due to several factors: FWS does not associate marine species, such as whales and some turtles, with a
specific state, and the FWS web site does not reflect the recent data on the range of certain species.
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Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Web Page
www.fws.gov/ July 2002.
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Many authorities believe the most far-reaching legislation protecting wildlife and habitat in the United
States has been the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973. Though thirty years old, this legislation remains controversial. The Act provides for a number of
activities to protect listed endangered and threatened species. The Act also provides for the protection of critical habitat and the creation of a recovery plan for each species listed. * Since the Endangered Species Act was enacted, additional federal wildlife protection
legislation has been passed. States have also enacted legislation to protect species and habitat. In 1973, the Texas Legislature enacted a state Endangered Species
Act.
In enacting the Endangered Species Act, Congress addressed the question of why we should spend dollars
to save nonhuman species. The preamble of the act states that "species of fish, wildlife and plants are of aesthetic, ecological, educational, historical,
recreational, and scientific value to the Nation and its people."*
In terms of scientific value, scientists contend that the smallest creature—even a slug—can benefit mankind by yielding
scientific knowledge, even cures for diseases. By way of illustration, they point to the fungus that produced penicillin,
the bark of the yew tree that offers a treatment for some forms of cancer, and an Asian viper's venom that is used in a
stroke-prevention medicine. Chemicals from sea sponges and some marine organisms might block arthritis
inflammation and fight cancer. Plants and small creatures also benefit agriculture: farmers use insects, plants, and
other animals as alternatives to synthetic chemicals for pest and predator control. Besides the utilitarian aspects of
wildlife and plant species,those involved in promoting biodiversity have argued that all living things are part of a
biosphere in which each living creature plays a vital role: the loss of one can be detrimental to the whole.
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FYI
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Relying on English common law, the federal Endangered Species Act has treated plant
species as different from wildlife. Plants are considered to be a part of the real estate on which they grow, and thus they are legally treated as a part of
private property. Animals, however, are part of the public trust and are not owned by the property holder. Therefore, under the Endangered Species Act, the
prohibition against a "take" (harming, destroying) of endangered or threatened plant species on private land does not apply. On federal lands, however, it is
illegal to destroy, damage, or remove federally listed endangered or threatened plants.
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While recognizing the limitations of the Endangered Species
Act, the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences concluded in a 1995 study that the Act has "prevented the extinction of some species and slowed the declines of others."*
Also, speaking to the accomplishments of the Endangered
Species Act, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's study of all the species listed between 1968 and 2000 showed that only 7 --or less than one percent --have become extinct.*
The Endangered Species Act not only specifies certain
actions that must be taken to protect species, but it also requires that a recovery plan must be created for all listed species.
- Of the 1,260 species listed on the federal endangered and threatened list in 2002, 1000 have recovery plans,
and 162 have designated critical habitats.
Under the Endangered Species Act provisions, not only can the Secretary of Interior list species as endangered or
threatened and design recovery plans, the Secretary of Interior can also designate "critical habitats," the habitats
necessary to support endangered species. "Critical habitat consists of those areas of land, water, and air space that an
endangered or threatened species needs to survive and recover. Under the Endangered Species Act, critical habitat
may be one or more large geographic areas, or just a small area depending on the needs and distribution of the species."*
U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service Critical Habitat Designations and Species Recovery Plans in Texas
- The Fish and Wildlife Service has designated critical habitats in Texas for the San Marcos salamander, the San
Marcos gambusia (a fish that is probably extinct), the fountain darter, and Texas wild rice, all found in springs in
Hays County; and the Houston toad which is found in parts of Bastrop County. In August 2002, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service proposed rules to designate 9,516 acres overlaying 57 caves in Bexar County as critical habitat for 9 endangered cave-dwellling invertebrates.
According to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's regional office in Albuquerque, which serves Texas, there are 66 species
(61 Endangered and 5 Threatened) for which the Albuquerque office has oversight. Of those 66 species, 48 have
completed recovery plans, including 5 threatened species, and 18 plans are currently underway.*
In the U.S. more than half of all listed endangered and threatened species occur on private lands and only about 25
percent occur exclusively on public lands.
Over the years much attention has been paid to the loss of individual species, but the focus has been shifting to what is
the greatest threat to biodiversity: the loss and degradation of significant ecosystems, such as forests, wetlands, riparian corridors, coral reefs.
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