Rare Dolphins and Guitarfish Proposed for Endangered Species Act Protections

Imperiled Marine Species Threatened by Fishing, Bycatch and Habitat Loss

Washington, DC— In response to a petition by WildEarth Guardians, today the National Marine Fisheries Service (Fisheries Service) proposed listing two subspecies of Hector’s dolphin (Maui’s dolphin, Cephalorhynchus hectori maui, and South Island Hector’s dolphin, C. hectori hectori) and two species of guitarfish (common guitarfish, Rhinobatos rhinobatos, and blackchin guitarfish, Rhinobatos cemiculus) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Fisheries Service proposed listing the Maui’s dolphin as “endangered,” the South Island Hector’s dolphin as “threatened,” and both species of guitarfish as “threatened.”

“As overfishing and pollution devastate our oceans, we have a responsibility to step up and protect impacted species,” said Taylor Jones, endangered species advocate for WildEarth Guardians.

“Protecting these declining species is an important step in taking responsibility for the declining health of marine ecosystems.”

Hector’s dolphin is endemic to New Zealand, with the second most limited range of any cetacean. These rare dolphins are found in shallow coastal waters. Accidental entanglement in fishing nets and gear is the most serious threat to the dolphins. Blackchin guitarfish are found in marine and brackish waters from the northern coast of Portugal to Angola, and throughout coastal Mediterranean waters. Substantial fishing pressure has already led to population declines and extirpation from some areas. Existing regulations do not protect the species. Common guitarfish are found in the Atlantic from the southern Bay of Biscay southward to Angola, and in the southern and eastern waters of the Mediterranean. They are threatened by fishing and habitat degradation in their nursery grounds.

WildEarth Guardians submitted a petition to list 81 marine species and subpopulations—including the Hector’s dolphin and guitarfish—under the ESA in July of 2013 due to significant threats to our oceans. More than half of all marine species may be at risk of extinction by 2100 without significant conservation efforts. Despite this grave situation, the U.S. largely fails to protect marine species under the ESA. Only about six percent of the over 2,000 species protected under the Endangered Species Act are marine species.

“It is well past time our government addresses the grave impacts human activity is having on rare marine species,” said Stuart Wilcox, staff attorney for WildEarth Guardians and author of the listing petition. “We call on the Fisheries Service to quickly finalize protections for the dolphins and guitarfish and steer U.S. resources to help recover these imperiled species.”

Today’s finding was over two years overdue and came after WildEarth Guardians filed suit to enforce the Endangered Species Act’s legally binging deadlines. The Fisheries Service now has 12-months to make final listing decisions for the four rare species.

Recognizing the decline of ocean health, on July 22, 2010, President Obama issued an Executive Order requiring agencies, including the Fisheries Service, to “protect, maintain, and restore the health and biological diversity of ocean… ecosystems,” and to “use the best available science and knowledge to inform decisions affecting the ocean.” Unfortunately, the Fisheries Services is not yet living up to this mandate.

Protection under the ESA is an effective safety net for imperiled species: more than 99 percent of plants and animals protected by the law exist today. The law is especially important as a defense against the current extinction crisis; species are disappearing at a rate much higher than the natural rate of extinction due to human activities. Scientists estimate that 227 species would have gone extinct by 2006 if not for ESA protections. Listing species with global distribution can help focus U.S. resources toward enforcement of international regulation and recovery of the species.


 

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