WildEarth Guardians

Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Group Files Suit to Usher Six Imperiled Mussels Aboard the 'Western Ark'

Mussels' Endangerment Signals Decline of River Ecosystems
Contact: Nicole Rosmarino (505) 699-7404

HOUSTON - WildEarth Guardians filed suit today against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) over the agency’s failure to issue Endangered Species Act findings for six mussels, found in Texas and neighboring states in the southern U.S., under a legally mandated deadline.

“These mussels are important indicators of river health. Their imperilment signals the collapse of some of our nation’s most precious waterways,” stated Nicole Rosmarino, WildEarth Guardians’ Wildlife Program Director. “They deserve a place on the legal Ark the Endangered Species Act provides.”

The six mussels are part of WildEarth Guardians’ “Western Ark” project launched last October to call attention to the wide variety of endangered species not yet protected under the Endangered Species Act and to gain federal protection for those species.

WildEarth Guardians suit filed today challenges the Service’s failure to provide a finding within 90-days of receiving the group’s petition, as is required by the Endangered Species Act. The group filed its case in federal district court in Texas. The six mussels are the southern hickorynut (Obovaria jacksoniana), smooth pimpleback (Quadrula houstonensis), Texas pimpleback (Quadrula petrina), false spike (Quincuncina mitchelli), Mexican fawnsfoot (Truncilla cognata), and Texas fawnsfoot (Truncilla macrodon).

Other species WildEarth Guardians petitioned in October as part of its Western Ark project included:

Chihuahua scurfpea, a plant with two current populations containing a total of 300 individuals, located in New Mexico and Arizona. Threatened by herbicide in the U.S., it appears to be gone from Mexico. It was historically used as medicine;

Wright’s marsh thistle, which now occurs only in New Mexico because its wetland habitat is threatened by water diversion and agriculture. While the Wright’s marsh thistle is native, it can also be harmed by herbicides aimed at non-native thistles;

Jemez Mountains salamander, which is restricted to the Jemez Mountains in northern New Mexico. The Jemez Mountains are ranked as the most vulnerable area in New Mexico to climate change, with this salamander identified as a likely victim;

White-sided jackrabbit, occurring in just one small area in New Mexico but historically ranging through southern Mexico. Its numbers have sharply declined in past decades, with the most recent estimates for the U.S. at 150 or fewer jackrabbits. This jackrabbit depends on rare desert grasslands;

New Mexico meadow jumping mouse, which exists in Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico, but is gone from 74% of the places it historically occurred;

Sonoran desert tortoise, ranging across southern Arizona and Sonora, Mexico and has declined by 51% since 1987; and

Sprague’s pipit, a bird that ranges over 700 million acres of grassland in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico but has declined by 80%.

So far, the Service has issued findings for the jackrabbit and salamander; in both cases, the agency agreed with WildEarth Guardians that these species merit a full review to determine whether they warrant federal protection. The Service designated the jumping mouse as a candidate for federal protection. A finding is expected for the Sonoran desert tortoise later this week, under court order, and findings for the two plants are due later this year. WildEarth Guardians took the Service to court last week over its failure to issue a finding for the Sprague’s pipit.

Like the mussels, the Western Ark species are threatened by habitat destruction and, in many cases, climate change. “From mussels to polar bears to people, we are all the same boat when it comes to climate change. We must use every tool in the toolshed to fight the climate crisis, including the Endangered Species Act,” stated Rosmarino.

WildEarth Guardians is represented in today’s lawsuit by Misty Ewegen, Esq. of Denver, Colorado, and Peter Thompson and Steven S. Reilley of Thompson & Reilley, P.C. of Houston, Texas.

All of the Western Ark petitions are in-depth and detailed. To obtain the six mussels petition, other Western Ark petitions, photos, and other information, contact Nicole Rosmarino at nrosmarino@wildearthguardians.org.