Time is running out for the greater sage-grouse, which is rapidly losing habitat across the West. E&E News reports that population numbers are especially bad in California, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Utah, due to a combination of drought, wildfires, and invasive plants that can overwhelm the sagebrush ecosystem.
A multi-state agreement to protect the grouse in 2015 was largely ignored by the Trump administration, and now the bird’s core remaining habitat of 26 million acres is disappearing at a rate of 1.3 million acres a year. The plummeting numbers have raised concerns that the 2015 decision to not list the grouse under the Endangered Species Act could be reversed—a move that would have massive implications for ranchers, oil and gas companies, and wildlife managers across the West.
Ed Arnett, a biologist and CEO of the Wildlife Society, told E&E, “The trends are going in the wrong direction for us to say we can somehow scientifically and legitimately support that ‘not warranted’ decision.”
Scientists are currently counting male grouse at breeding grounds, or leks, across the West. In Wyoming, which has the largest remaining grouse population, lek attendance fell 13 percent in 2021.
While 2022 numbers are still several months away, early reports are not encouraging. “It’s looking pretty ugly out there so far this spring from what I hear,” Arnett said.
Quick hits
BLM director Stone-Manning vows to ‘fight back’ on megafires
We’re always gonna have fire. The question is, are we going to have megafires that fundamentally change the ecosystem? And that’s what we’re fighting back against, and that’s why Congress is investing so much money and the president has asked for it.”
—Bureau of Land Management Director Tracy Stone-Manning Idaho Statesman
The beautiful white-faced ibis with its colorful purple, crimson, teal and gold feathers is sure to brighten your Monday morning! Photo at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in Utah courtesy of Leslie Scopes Anderson
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A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced a bill that would support mapping and protection of wildlife migration routes. Earlier this week, Senator Alex Padilla of California and Representatives Ryan Zinke of Montana and Don Beyer of Virginia introduced the “Wildlife Movement through Partnerships Act.” Among other provisions, the bill would create a new Wildlife Movement and Migration Corridor program […]
Department of the Interior officials attended a community meeting Friday to gather feedback on the proposal to designate Chuckwalla National Monument, signaling that the administration is interested in moving forward with a monument designation. Attendees included BLM Director Tracy Stone-Manning and Acting Deputy Interior Secretary Laura Daniel-Davis. An estimated 700 people attended the meeting, and […]
This is an automatically generated transcript. Please excuse grammatical errors and typos. Aaron: Welcome to the Landscape, your show about America’s parks and public lands. I’m Aaron Weiss with the Center for Western Priorities. Having a great week here in Denver. Kate: And I’m Kate Groetzinger in Salt Lake City. We’ve got two folks from […]
Kate and Aaron are joined by author Betsy Gaines Quammen to talk about public lands and extremism. Betsy has written two books about extremism in the West. Her first, American Zion, looks at the connection between Mormonism and extremism. Her second book, True West, which came out last year, digs into the myths that define […]
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service announced the creation of the Everglades to Gulf Conservation Area, a four million-acre conservation area that extends across twelve counties in western Florida. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland made the announcement on Monday at Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge in Florida during a celebration commemorating the 121st anniversary of the National Wildlife Refuge System, a collection of […]
We’re always gonna have fire. The question is, are we going to have megafires that fundamentally change the ecosystem? And that’s what we’re fighting back against, and that’s why Congress is investing so much money and the president has asked for it.”