Latest U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service News
Bullock an initial board member for public lands foundation
HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Former Montana Gov. Steve Bullock and former Bureau of Land Management Director Neil Kornze are two of the first four board members of a new nonprofit foundation created to help leverage public and private funds to conserve, protect and restore land managed by the Bureau of...
Yellowstone bison species decision questioned by US judge
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (AP) — A federal judge has ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to revisit part of its decision not to protect Yellowstone National Park’s bison as an endangered species. The Buffalo Field Campaign and Western Watersheds Project groups have...
Wyoming tries again to remove Yellowstone grizzly protection
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Wyoming has asked the federal government to remove grizzly bears in and around Yellowstone National Park from protection under the Endangered Species Act, a request which if approved could allow the animals to be hunted. The bears' recovery from as few as 136...
Endangered Mexican gray wolf found dead in northern Arizona
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — An endangered Mexican gray wolf that had been roaming around northern Arizona has been found dead, federal officials confirmed Friday. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said the male wolf was killed sometime last weekend. Authorities said the incident is...
Casco Bay watershed acres to be protected in Maine
YARMOUTH, Maine (AP) — Maine conservation authorities are going to use more than $450,000 in federal money to protect dozens of acres of coastal wetlands in the southern part of the state. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife has received the grant from the U.S....
Tiny pygmy owl has renewed chance at protection in Arizona
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — A tiny desert owl known for nesting in Arizona’s saguaro cactus may get some federal protection restored, according to a proposal from federal wildlife officials. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service this week formally registered a proposal to list the cactus...
California commission OKs poisoning plan for wildlife refuge
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The California Coastal Commission has approved a plan to poison invasive mice threatening rare seabirds on the Farallon Islands National Wildlife Refuge. The agency that regulates California's coastline voted 5-3 Thursday night to approve a plan to drop about...
Test feeding plan in works for starving Florida manatees
St. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Normally giving food to wild animals is considered off limits, but the dire situation in Florida with more than 1,000 manatees dying from starvation due to manmade pollution is leading officials to consider an unprecedented feeding plan. The U.S. Fish...
Montana seeks to end protections for Glacier-area grizzlies
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Montana is asking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to lift threatened species protections for grizzly bears in the northern portion of the state, including areas in and around Glacier National Park, officials said Monday. The request, if granted, would...
Feds seek to protect map turtles in 4 Gulf states, Georgia
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Monday that it is proposing threatened status for the Pearl River map turtle, seeking to grant added federal protections to an at-risk species found only in Louisiana and Mississippi. “These native...
