Center for Biological Diversity

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Endangered Earth

No. 1,239, April 4, 2024



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Suit Pushes for Progress on Saving Four Bee Species
The Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking final decisions from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on whether it will protect four highly vulnerable bee species under the Endangered Species Act: American bumblebees, Southern Plains bumblebees, variable cuckoo bumblebees and blue calamintha bees. We previously petitioned for all four species.
Native bees in the United States are some of the most effective pollinators because of their specialized hairs for collecting pollen and their wide-ranging foraging behavior. Many plants have such special relationships with their bee pollinators that only certain species can pollinate them. The loss of these pollinators would be catastrophic for agriculture and the environment.
“The decline of native bees is a preventable tragedy,” said Jess Tyler, the Center scientist who wrote our petitions for the bumblebee species. “We still have time to save these life-bringing pollinators.”
You can help: Tell the Service to protect American bumblebees before it's too late.


After Eight-Year Absence, Wolves Seen in Nevada
Three animals believed to be wolves were detected in northern Elko County by a helicopter crew tasked with radio-collaring moose, the Nevada Department of Wildlife announced this week. Department staff then found tracks, collected scat for DNA-testing, and set out trail cameras. It’s the first time wolves have been sighted in the state since 2016.
“I’m so happy to hear wolves are back in the Silver State where they belong,” said the Center’s Amaroq Weiss. “There’s plenty of room for them to thrive in Nevada.”
Partly thanks to the Center, wolves in Nevada and beyond are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act — but in many states they’re still persecuted and slaughtered. Help our fight for wolves with a gift to the Saving Life on Ea rth Fund .


Safeguards Sought for Salt-Loving Shorebirds
The Center just petitioned the Fish and Wildlife Service to protect Wilson’s phalaropes under the Endangered Species Act. These dainty shorebirds are best known for their spectacular congregations at large salt lakes in the U.S. West, like Great Salt Lake in Utah, which face imminent collapse due to climate change and other human-caused threats.
To catch brine flies, alkali flies, and brine shrimp, Wilson’s phalaropes like to swim in a tight, fast circle that forms a whirlpool, helping raise food from the bottom of shallow water. And in phalaropes, the typical bird sex roles are reversed: The larger, brighter-colored females pursue males, have multiple mates, and aggressively defend their nests, while males care for chicks.
Check out our video on Facebook, YouTube or Instagram to see these phalaropes in action. (Don’t forget to share it.)


Support This Sacred Swamp Cedar Grove
Since time immemorial the Newe peoples of Nevada have chosen a unique grove of Rocky Mountain juniper trees, or swamp cedars, for their gatherings and religious ceremonies.
This sacred land in eastern Nevada holds deep significance for them — so three Tribal Nations have proposed protecting all 25,000 acres as Bahsahwahbee National Monument.
Bahsahwahbee was once a large-scale site for religious gatherings, pilgrimages and celebrations, but in the 19th century the Newe were targeted and massacred there on three separate occasions. Designating a national monument on this ground will ensure the commemoration and preservation of the site, honoring the Tribes’ wishes and helping protect it under U.S. law for future generations. The Newe are calling on the National Park Service to manage these lands.
Take action: Tell U.S. lawmakers and land managers you support designating Bahsahwahbee as a national monument.


U.S. Tightens Elephant Import Rule, But Not Enough
The Fish and Wildlife Service has adopted new restrictions on U.S. imports of African elephant hunting trophies and live elephants but stopped short of a total ban on imports.
“I’m truly crushed this rule doesn’t ban trade in elephant hunting trophies to the United States, and it doesn’t even require stable elephant populations in order to allow trophy imports,” said Tanya Sanerib, our international legal director.
Tell the Biden administration to end all trade in trophies of endangered and threatened species — now.


We Loved It All, Lydia Millet's New Nature Memoir
The Center’s Deputy Creative Director Lydia Millet, an award-winning novelist, just released her first nonfiction book, We Loved It All: A Memory of Life . Terry Tempest Williams calls it an “evocative, brilliant bow to life.” Through powerful vignettes blending history, ecology and personal stories, the book explores what it means to be a human, deeply connected to the life forms and lands around us, even as we hold ourselves apart and threaten their very existence.
“We go from identifying with other animals to idolizing and competing with other people,” said Lydia in an NPR interview this week. “I think if we reclaimed that love and fascination that we have for the others — not only animals, but also trees and plants and the landscapes they live in — what if we allowed ourselves to speak the love that we have for them and grieve for them when they're lost?”
Read a review in Scientific American and buy the book for yourself.


The Revelator : Cranes in Ukraine
As the Russian invasion rages on, common gray cranes and steppe cranes make their annual migration into ancestral habitats that have become a battlefield. After building their nests, cranes will spend several months resting and eating in Ukraine before flying off for the winter.
Along with the people of Ukraine, let's hope the cranes don’t suffer too much in the coming months — and can remain a living symbol of peace.
Read more in The Revelator and subscribe to the free weekly e-newsletter for more wildlife and conservation news.
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That’s Wild: Raccoon Does a Walking Handstand
Last week Twitter’s @CameraTrapSue delighted wildlife lovers when she shared rare video of an unusual animal behavior: a racoon walking on its front legs [[link removed]] .
Naturally, everyone wants to know: Why would a raccoon do that? We consulted the scientists, and the best they can come up with is: Raccoons sometimes walk on their front legs ... because they can.
Clearly there’s more research to be done on these humble, widespread, but still-mysterious critters. (Get on it, scientists.) In the meantime, handstand-walking is just another reason to love trash pandas, who provide valuable ecosystem services such as by doing things like feeding on pest species a nd eating carrion.
For more great wildlife videos, follow @CameraTrapSue on Twitter [[link removed]] .
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Center for Biological Diversity
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