The 36 year old Endangered Species Act (ESA) has been a joint protection venture for both threatened and endangered species by the United States Department of Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the Commerce Department’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). It has been the task of the FWS to protect land animals and plants as well as freshwater lakes, rivers and streams. The NMFS responsibility involves the protection marine wildlife.
CITES
The ESA allowed the United States to join the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) on January 1, 1975 where it became one of nine founding nations supporting the global protection of plant and animal species. Today, there are 174 party nations participating in CITES.
Threatened and Endangered Species
Becoming a Candidate for the endangered species list is a complex procedure of scientific study and legal processes that need to be completed within a two year period. While FWS members are involved in these procedures input is actively sought from State representatives, people of native tribal affiliation, private landowners, private partners, and other Federal agencies. Together, a myriad of persons work to carry out conservation actions for targeted species to prevent further decline and possibly eliminate the need for listing.
Both threatened and endangered species are listed. Threatened species are those that are likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future. Endangered species are in danger of extinction throughout part or all of its inhabited area. Both are listed on the Threatened & Endangered Species System (TESS). Getting off the list occurs either when a species shows significant improvement and recovers or most unfortunately, becomes extinct.
Global and US ESA Lists
There are actually two lists; a global and a national list of endangered species. The global list is the product of the cooperation of party nations involved with CITES. This global list is updated daily on the FWS website. On January 14, 2009, when this article was written, there were 1,207 Records of endangered vertebrates and invertebrates in the World. There were also 747 records of endangered plant life globally. The global number of endangered species of record are 1,954.
The United States ESA list is a bit more complex in that there are more species record groups. There are currently 377 Vertebrates records accounting for mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fishes. Invertebrates records numbering 198 and are inclusive of clams, snails, insects, arachnids, and crustaceans. Conifers and cycads, ferns and allies, lichens, algae, cyanobacteria and bacteria account for 31 more records. Flowering plants make up a final 713 records and a grand total of 1,319 total records on the endangered lists.
The Endangered Species Act Today
The wheels of technology continue to turn at a frantic pace. We humans often exact a terrible cost when we fail to act responsibly in the face of nature. Every record of a threatened or endangered species is a flag of warning pointing to discontinuity between human beings and the natural world. Nature is itself threatened as it struggles to regain the equilibrium necessary for survival.
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 has undergone numerous amendments and changes during its 36 year existence. Yet it has proven to be far more than just a law or historical document. The ESA is a vital quantitative measure that raises the consciousness of the general public while empirically informing scientists of the fragility of nature.
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