Center for Biological Diversity
[link removed]
Endangered Earth
No. 1305, July 10, 2025

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Stop More Disastrous Oil Drilling in the Arctic
The Trump administration is trying to open vast swaths of public land to fossil fuel development by rolling back critical protections for the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska — aka the Western Arctic Reserve.
The 23-million-acre reserve contains some of the most ecologically important places in the Arctic, like Teshekpuk Lake. It's home to diverse wildlife, from polar bears to caribou to ice seals — and even migratory bird species you may see in your backyard. Alaska Native communities maintain a subsistence lifestyle based on the reserve's living resources.
But President Donald Trump wants to open about 8.7 million more acres of the reserve to oil and gas leasing and gut regulations meant to minimize the harms of drilling where it's already allowed. That could transform this one-of-a-kind landscape into an industrial oil field while unleashing more climate chaos.
Speak out to protect this spectacular landscape. [[link removed]]
Close-up of an ocelot's face [[link removed]]
In Court Against Trump’s New Border Wall Waivers
The Center for Biological Diversity and Conservation CATalyst just sued the Trump administration [[link removed]] for unconstitutionally waiving dozens of environmental laws to speed border wall construction through Arizona’s San Rafael Valley.
The planned 27-mile-long, 30-foot-high border wall would block migration for dozens of imperiled species — including endangered jaguars and ocelots, plus black bears, pronghorns and mountain lions — who roam freely between Arizona and Mexico to find mates, prey, and safety. (And there’s no evidence of frequent human migration in the area.)
“Trump’s dangerous obsession with walls and militarization will slash a permanent scar across one of the most biodiverse regions on the continent,” said the Center’s Jean Su.
Give now to our Wildlife and Wild Places Fund to help us stop this reckless abuse of power. [[link removed]]
Collage of a purple wildflower and a newt underwater [[link removed]]
Suits Filed for Wetland Wildflower, Crater Lake Newt
We just took the Trump administration to court for dragging its feet on providing lifesaving protection for Oregon’s Crater Lake newts [[link removed]] . These ultra-rare amphibians have suffered a dramatic population crash — mostly due to introduced species and climate change — with as few as 13 animals left on Earth. After a 2023 Center petition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said these newts may deserve Endangered Species Act protection — but it has yet to move forward. So we sued.
A few days earlier, we sued the same agency to get federal protection for the Tecopa bird’s beak [[link removed]] , a rare desert wetland wildflower that only grows in Nevada and California. The plant, which lives in three populations in groundwater-fed wetlands, is threatened by groundwater pumping, mining, energy production, cattle grazing, off-highway vehicles, and climate change.
Mexican gray wolf Asha [[link removed]]
Demanding the Release of Asha the Wolf’s Family
The Center and allies are calling on the federal government [[link removed]] to immediately release Mexican gray wolf Asha, her mate, and their five puppies. The wolf family, called the Caldera pack, was slated for release into the New Mexico wild last month.
Wild-born Asha twice crossed north of the Southwest’s Interstate 40, entering territory where wildlife officials didn't want her to go. So they caught and paired her with a captive-born male named Arcadia, hoping she'd have pups who’d keep her from wandering again — and publicly stating they’d release her family in June.
Now the release has been delayed, and it’s likely no coincidence that the livestock industry has been lobbying to halt wolf releases. We've filed a Freedom of Information Act request to learn details.
Diamondback terrapin in the wild [[link removed]]
Terrapin Win: Virginia Advances on Turtle Protection
Thanks to a Center petition — and more than 27,000 comments by supporters like you — Virginia directed wildlife officials to research a requirement [[link removed]] on regulations mandating “bycatch-reduction devices” on recreational crab pots to save diamondback terrapins from drowning. Although the state failed to require devices on all crab pots, this is a huge step forward because recreational pots are a significant, ongoing threat to terrapins.
Diamondback terrapins [[link removed]] , the only turtles living exclusively in coastal estuaries, drown when trapped in crab pots. In Virginia, if recreational pots — placed in nearshore waters, where terrapins live — are abandoned, they become derelict “ghost” pots sullying terrapin habitat forever.
Stay tuned for more chances to help us advocate for terrapins in Virginia (and beyond).
Art depicting a person sitting on a chair surrounded by flowers and shadows [[link removed]]
The Revelator : The Land Is an Ancestor
When a mining company came knocking at a rural Arizona community’s door, people stood up and fought back.
Cartoonist Ree Artemisa has the story in The Revelator’s latest collaboration with webcomics publisher Crucial Comix. Read it to get inspired. [[link removed]]
And if you haven’t yet, subscribe to The Revelator ’s free weekly e-newsletter for more wildlife and conservation news. [[link removed]]
Close-up of a hellbender's face [[link removed]]
That’s Wild: RIP Marvin, the 45-Year-Old Hellbender
Captina Conservancy, a nonprofit land trust in Ohio, reports the passing of 45-year-old Marvin [[link removed]] , a charismatic eastern hellbender who was one of the oldest known living salamanders. She’d been an ambassador for the land trust over the past four years, educating students about her species and the importance of cool, clean, wild waters — especially on Captina Creek, where there’s a thriving hellbender population.
Marvin loved to munch on minnows, worms, and crayfish and hang out under rocks and on top of water bubblers. She even had her own TikTok account [[link removed]] . Rest in power, Marvin.
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Center for Biological Diversity
P.O. Box 710
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