Center for Biological Diversity
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Endangered Earth
No. 1235, March 7, 2024
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Southwest Songbirds Keep Their Safeguards

Songbirds called southwestern willow flycatchers depend on the dwindled, dewatered and degraded streamside habitat of the U.S. Southwest, where they face a serious threat of extinction due to livestock grazing. That’s why the Center for Biological Diversity and allies won Endangered Species Act protection for these little birds in 1995.
Recently Pacific Legal Foundation, a property-rights law firm, filed suit to strip them of their protection on behalf of New Mexican cattle growers — and last week a court dismissed that suit.
“I’m so happy southwestern willow flycatchers will stay protected,” said the Center’s Meg Townsend. “What a relief the court didn’t buy the baseless arguments that were made to deprive these beautiful birds of the help they need to survive.”

Right Whale Calf Dies — Take Action to Save Others

A heartbreaking new announcement from NOAA Fisheries: The North Atlantic right whale calf seen off South Carolina’s coast in January, whose dreadful head and mouth injuries were consistent with a vessel strike, has died. The calf, born to a whale named Juno and just found off the coast of Georgia, likely endured a painful decline over the past couple of months as it struggled to nurse — which scientists believe would have been difficult or impossible.
Juno’s calf is the third North Atlantic right whale confirmed dead in 2024; only nine right whale calves were born during the 2023-2024 season.
The Center is pushing for updated vessel-speed limits to prevent more tragedies like this one. But the federal government is dragging its feet — even though collisions are among the biggest threats to North Atlantic right whales, of whom fewer than 360 remain.
Help us call for a final speed rule before more baby whales die.

State Help Sought for California Burrowing Owls

This Tuesday the Center and allies petitioned the California Fish and Game Commission to protect five imperiled populations of western burrowing owls under the California Endangered Species Act.
Burrowing owls are fascinating exceptions to the owlish norm. They’re not necessarily nocturnal, and they don’t live in trees — they’re the only owls who nest and roost underground, usually in ground squirrel burrows. Once widespread in California, they’ve been hit hard by sprawl, industrial energy projects, rodent poisons and more.
“I’ve witnessed burrowing owls disappear from much of California over the past two decades, and it pains me deeply,” said the Center’s Jeff Miller.
Help us fight for burrowing owls and other species with a gift to the Saving Life on Earth Fund.

Feds Will Restore Annual Counts of 400 Pesticides

Heeding the calls of hundreds of scientists and more than 100 groups, including the Center, the U.S. Geological Survey just committed to restoring its practice of annually tracking the use of about 400 agricultural pesticides. That’s in contrast to reporting on just 72 pesticides every five years. The agency uses a popular database to share numbers and maps that help scientists, educators and advocates study how farm pesticides hurt people and wildlife, from whooping cranes to monarch butterflies.
Did you know these destructive pesticides are also sprayed on wildlife refuges? Take action to help us get them out.

Study: Is Ship Noise Drowning Out Beluga Calls?

Alaska’s Cook Inlet beluga whales are critically endangered — in such acute peril that the Center and allies filed a petition two years ago to stop federal agencies from letting oil companies and others harm the animals in their only habitat. Cook Inlet belugas have been geographically isolated from other belugas for some 10,000 years.
Now a new study has captured — for the first time — these unique belugas’ underwater calls. It also captured noise from oil and gas activity, ship engines, and even airplanes passing overhead, adding to the argument that these endearing white whales need far more protection from industry.
Read more about it at the Alaska Beacon.

Oak Flat Update: Next Stop, SCOTUS

A federal court of appeals has ruled 6-5 that a multinational mining giant’s proposed obliteration of Oak Flat, an Apache holy place in Arizona, wouldn’t break laws protecting religious freedom.
Apache Stronghold — a longtime Center ally — will appeal the case to the Supreme Court. In destroying Oak Flat, the mine would violate Indigenous people’s First Amendment rights. It would also erase habitat for endangered species like ocelots and Arizona hedgehog cacti, suck up massive amounts of precious water, and create 1.4 billion tons of toxic waste. Two other suits over the mine’s impacts, including one of ours, have yet to be decided.
You can rally others to save Oak Flat by sharing our videos on YouTube and Facebook.
And if you live in the United States, help us call on Congress to pass a law to preserve it for good.

The Revelator : Finding Your Flock

How do we get more people to care about protecting nature? For some folks, according to the author of Birding to Change the World , it starts with finding a flock.
Head to The Revelator to learn all about building a community of activism through birding.
And if you don't already, subscribe to the free weekly e-newsletter for more conservation news.

That’s Wild: Dances With Kangaroos

No spoilers, but this year’s winner of the journal Science’ s annual “Dance Your Ph.D.” competition — academic-turned-musician Weliton Menário Costa — brings us a joyful paean to kangaroo diversity in a video the likes of which you’ve surely not seen before.
Oh, and if you find yourself yearning for even more human-kangaroo impersonation, check out this unscripted PRX podcast featuring an overgrown joey who doesn’t want to leave the pouch.

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