Ranchers, farmers and land developers can
breathe a sigh of relief; the black-tailed prairie dog won’t be
listed as an endangered species – at least not
yet.
Citing a lack of money and staff and a long
list of species in greater need, the Fish and Wildlife Service
ruled that protection for the black-tailed prairie dog was
“warranted but precluded” from listing under the Endangered Species
Act. This means the agency recognizes prairie dog numbers are
declining and that they deserve some attention, says regional Fish
and Wildlife director Ralph Morgenweck.
“It’s an
early warning sign that the prairie dog’s in trouble,” says
Morgenweck. “But it requires no action.”
The
animal’s status will be reviewed annually, but Morgenweck says the
agency will rely on states to play an active role in protecting the
prairie dog.
The National Wildlife Federation
hailed the decision for recognizing that the prairie dog is in
peril. The federation’s Rocky Mountain Natural Resource Center
director Catherine Johnson says this should encourage states to
follow through on their commitment to protect the
animal.
Last fall, eight of 11 Western states,
fearing that the animal was destined for listing, signed an
agreement to come up with plans for protecting prairie dog numbers
and habitat (HCN, 8/16/99: Standing up for the
underdog).
But Jonathan Proctor of the Predator
Conservation Alliance worries that without federal protection,
prairie dog numbers will continue to decline. The agreement among
the states has no teeth, he says, and has amounted to “absolutely
zero action on the ground.”
Proctor’s group is
challenging agencies to add some bite to their bark by ending
poisoning and recreational shooting on state and federal lands, and
to change management designation of the prairie dog from pest to
wildlife.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Dog doesn’t get its day.
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