The federal government removed nearly two dozen species from the endangered list last year – because they went extinct. Environmentalists often must fight just to get a species recognized as endangered. They say knowing is half the battle, but half isn’t enough to win. Being added to the list doesn’t always guarantee the research and action necessary to restore an endangered species to sustainable population levels.
In 2023, the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that 21 species had been removed from the endangered species list. But it wasn’t happy news; those species were delisted because they had gone extinct. The list of extinct species includes one mammal – the Little Mariana fruit bat – two species of freshwater fish, 9 shellfish, and 10 species of birds that were mostly from Hawaii.
For a complete history of the Endangered Species Act, with extensive commentary about its efficacy and results, Earth911 recommends The Codex of the Endangered Species Act, Volume One (The First 50 Years) and Volume Two (The Next 50 Years)
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