A federal appeals court recently backed the Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to keep the Tucson shovel-nosed snake off the endangered species list, despite advocates’ claims the Service misinterpreted key data, grouping the subspecies with other snakes that they argue are distinct.
The Center for Biological Diversity’s Endangered Species Director Noah Greenwald said there’s no way to get an accurate count on the snakes, which bury themselves in the sand and prefer flat areas near valley floors.
But heavy development between Phoenix and Tucson is threatening their habitat.
“Interstate 11 is proposed and under consideration, and would be a massive impact to the snakes’ remaining habitat,” said Greenwald.
With a natural diet that includes scorpions, he said the tough little subspecies has an even tougher road ahead.
“Unfortunately, there's not much that's protecting its habitat in the absence of the Endangered Species Act,” Greenwald said. “And we're in the position of having to wait for new genetic information, which will hopefully be forthcoming in the next couple years.”
“If the Endangered Species Act covered the subspecies,” he said, “It would spur surveys. We would know where they are. We would know how to protect them. Hopefully Interstate 11 wouldn't happen. But if it did, at least we'd be able to try and mitigate the impacts.”
Greenwald said legal challenges are exhausted, so the focus now is on funding further research.
-
The number of monarch butterflies spending the winter in the western United States has dropped to its second-lowest mark in nearly three decades as pesticides, diminishing habitat and climate change take their toll on the beloved pollinator.
-
Fees associated with visiting some of the state parks will increase.Arizona State Parks and Trails says the rise in costs stems from several factors including inflation and the addition of new amenities.
-
A co-management plan is operating at Utah’s Bears Ears National Monument, and Kate Magargal, an anthropologist at the University of Utah, explains new research about it on The Show.
-
As one of his first in-office moves this week, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum is calling for the review and potential rollback of protections on federal lands, including national monuments.
-
More than 30 animals in Tucson have died in what appears to be intentional poisoning. Arizona Game and Fish reported the deaths of three pet dogs and at least 35 wild animals near Pantano Wash.