Previous Story
Nine NMI species candidates on endangered list
|
Posted on May 29 2005
Nine species found in the Commonwealth are on the list of Pacific islands endangered species candidates, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Hawaii, often referred to as the endangered species capital of the world, currently leads the nation in the number of plant and animal species proposed as candidates for listing as endangered or threatened.
The NMI list includes two mammals, three snails, two insects, and two ferns. One not found on the list, though, is the Mariana fruit bat, which was removed because it was already listed as threatened.
No new candidate species were added to the list, however, the listing priority for several species was raised due to imminent threats. Candidate species are assigned a listing priority number of 1-12 depending on the magnitude of threats and the imminence of threats.
Among those on the list from the NMI include two Pacific sneath-tailed bats—Emballonura semicaundata rotensis and Emballonura semicaundata semicaudata.
Others include the fragile tree snail, humped tree snail, and Langford’s tree snail in the snail category; Mariana eight-spot butterfly in the insect category; Wawaeiole and another one with no common name but scientifically known as Doryopteris takeuchii. The mentioned species are also found on Guam.
The complete list of endangered species candidates is available at http://pacificislands.fws.gov. The service will accept comments on the candidate notice.
The service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats, managing the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas.
