No. 1325, November 27, 2025 |
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Final Protection Sought for California Spotted Owls |
The Center for Biological Diversity and allies have sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to force it to finalize Endangered Species Act protections for California spotted owls in Southern California and the Sierra Nevada — decisions more than two years overdue. “The survival of California spotted owls hangs by a thread,” said Noah Greenwald, our endangered species codirector. “For decades the Fish and Wildlife Service has dragged its feet in protecting endangered species, but the Trump administration has made this dire situation drastically worse.”
Like their famous northern cousins, California spotted owls live only in mature and old-growth forests. Logging and climate change threaten their habitat, bringing large and severe fires, lasting drought, and higher temperatures. The Center and our partners first petitioned to protect these beautiful birds 25 years ago.
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Trump Moves to Destroy the Endangered Species Act |
In a sweeping attack on imperiled wildlife, the Trump administration just proposed a suite of regulations that would dismantle the Endangered Species Act and drive hundreds of species closer to extinction, from monarch butterflies to Florida manatees. Among other assaults on the world’s most lifesaving conservation law, President Donald Trump and his backers want critical habitat designation to come to a screeching halt — and want to drastically weaken the process for protecting species.
“If these Trump proposals had been in place in the 1970s, the only place you’d find a bald eagle today is on the back of a dollar bill,” said Stephanie Kurose, deputy director of government affairs at the Center. “This plan hacks apart the Endangered Species Act and creates a blueprint for the extinction of some of America’s most beloved wildlife.” Help us fight back with an emergency gift to the Future for the Wild Fund. Do it now and your donation will be doubled. |
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A Win for Plovers Against Off-Road Vehicles |
Thanks to a Center lawsuit, a federal court just ruled that the California Department of Parks and Recreation violated the Endangered Species Act by letting off-road vehicles run rampant over western snowy plover habitat at the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area. For decades unpermitted off-roaders have been harming and killing these shy, pocket-sized shorebirds without consequences.
“The court’s ruling sends a strong message that California must finally safeguard the federally protected birds it has for so long ignored,” said the Center’s Jeff Miller. We’ll work with the state to make sure that happens. |
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Celebrate Secondhand Sunday This Weekend |
The pressure to buy more stuff is at its highest this time of year — and wildlife pay the price for all the habitat loss, greenhouse gas emissions, and pollution that go into producing holiday gifts.
One way to change the game? This Thanksgiving weekend, skip the Black Friday rush and celebrate Secondhand Sunday instead. It’s a day to support resellers and highlight the benefits of shopping secondhand — like keeping good stuff out of landfills, avoiding the destructive extraction and production of raw materials, and supporting small businesses (while saving tons of money). Plus, vintage and thrifted items can make the perfect gifts for your friends and family — and for wildlife.
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New Podcast Episode: Fresh Hope for Pangolins |
When it comes to wildlife trade, pangolins hold a dubious distinction: They’re the most trafficked mammal in the world, often sold for their meat or for medicinal purposes. But for these exceedingly cute animals — the only mammals with scales — the tide may finally be turning.
In the newest episode of our Sounds Wild podcast, host Mike Stark talks with Sarah Uhlemann, director of the Center’s International program, about what makes pangolins so unique and how their fate became so entangled with wildlife trade around the world, including in the United States.
Listen to the latest episode on our website or find it on Apple or Spotify.
(Perfect timing: Sarah is now in Uzbekistan for the 2025 global wildlife conference — defending giraffes, sea cucumbers, reptiles, and others from wildlife trade.) |
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Think We're a Great Nonprofit? Tell the World. |
If you’re looking for a quick, easy, and free way to support the Center from home, look no further. It only takes a few minutes to review us at GreatNonprofits.org, the Yelp of the nonprofit realm, where you can tell everyone why you think we’re so effective.
Friends and supporters, help us win our 2025 seal of approval and grow even stronger: Share your love for the Center and the wild world we’re fighting for.
Write us a rave review now. |
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Revelator: Are Biodegradable Plastics Help or Hype? |
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That’s Wild: Wolves Using Tools? |
On the Canadian coast of British Columbia, in Native Haíɫzaqv territory, a female wolf was caught on video performing a neat maneuver: pulling a buoy, a line, and then a crab trap out of deep water to snarf up the tasty bait. Whether this action qualifies as tool use is dubious — animal behavior experts generally define a “tool” used by a nonhuman animal as something that’s been modified by the animal to achieve a given goal. But clearly the wolves in the Haíɫzaqv Nation are highly intelligent. Watch the video. |
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Center for Biological Diversity
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