WASHINGTON (AP) — After 34 years on the endangered species list, a tiny Midwestern bird is ready to fly free of federal protection. Once diminished by hunting for feathers for hats and hurt by the damming of major rivers like the Missouri, the interior least tern population has increased tenfold since 1985, to more than 18,000. The number of colonies has jumped from 48 to 480, said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which on Wednesday proposed taking the bird off the list. The delisting started six years after the service first suggested that the species has recovered and after computer modeling showed the population will be stable. Even conservationists and advocacy groups that often battle the Trump administration over what goes on and off the endangered list hailed the migrating bird’s recovery as an environmental success story. “Delisting is reasonable,” Center for Biological Diversity endangered species director Noah Greenwald said. “It shows that when we actually pay attention and care, we can help species and reverse damage we’ve done in the past. We can undo part of the damage we’ve done to these rivers.” American Bird Conservancy president Michael Parr said: “All around it’s a pretty good news […]
Tiny Midwestern bird ready to fly off the endangered species list
Latest Articles
Coffee waste can supercharge the growth of new forests
What happens when you dump 30 trucks full of coffee waste on land set aside for reforestation? Well, the forest recovers a heck...
Students design skateboard wheels made from chewing gum
Chewing gum: it’s a type of plastic pollution that we’re just not talking about enough. Most modern chewing gums are made from synthetic...
Kiribati Floating Houses address rising waters and land limitations
Architectural design takes all forms, with a focus from the ground up. But UOOU, an Amsterdam- and London-based design practice, came up with...
Once Imperiled, America’s Bald Eagle Populations Are Soaring
U.S. bald eagle populations have more than quadrupled in the lower 48 states since 2009, according to a new survey from the U.S....
Indigenous peoples by far the best guardians of forests – UN report
The embattled indigenous peoples of Latin America are by far the best guardians of the regions’ forests, according to a UN report, with...
Has Eugene, Oregon, found a ‘superpower’ for climate action?
Organizer Dylan Plummer addresses the crowd during a March protest outside the offices of Northwest Natural, the Eugene, Oregon, gas utility. Activists are...
