On March 15, 2013, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) wrapped up its 16th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP16).

The meeting brought together representatives from more than 150 countries to discuss current issues in wildlife trade. As a Party (member country) to CITES, the United States submitted several proposals to increase protections for native and foreign species as well as multiple resolutions to streamline and strengthen the implementation of CITES.

Scalloped Hammerhead. (Photo: NOAA)

CoP16 was an overwhelming success with many U.S. priority issues receiving attention. Here are some exciting highlights of progress made at CoP16:

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They’re not dragons, and they’re not flies.

But they boast a swelling fan base.

You might call dragonflies the stunt pilots of the insect world. They wear flashy colors, dart at speeds of up to 30 miles per hour, boast ancestors that predate dinosaurs ... and they even mate in mid-air.

Green darner dragonflies at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. (Photo: J.N. Stuart/Creative Commons)

These are just some of the reasons that the insects are gaining attention, both on and off national wildlife refuges. Dragonfly festivals are popping up across the country and a crop of new field guides are making the rounds around American towns and cities.

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While this rare rabbit looks a lot like the ones you’ve seen outdoors, the New England cottontail is found only in the thick tangles and vines of just five spots across New England and New York.

Baby rabbits snuggle together at the captive breeding program at the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Rhode Island. (Photo: Lou Perrotti/Roger Williams Park Zoo)

Cottontails depend on a special type of habitat -- young forest and shrublands -- which also provides food, shelter and places to raise young for a variety of other animals.

They've lost 86 percent of their historic range since the 1960s, and they're even a candidate for protection under the Endangered Species Act.

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By Brynn Walling, USFWS

What can you see more of in Wisconsin than any other state?

Snow? Green Bay Packers? Cheese curds?

What about ... butterflies?

Of the seven states where Karner blue butterflies are found, Wisconsin boasts the most.

The Karner Blue is highly coveted by some collectors. (Photo: Paul Labus/USFWS)

The Karner Blue butterfly was listed as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act in 1992 due to habitat loss and collection.

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As we welcome spring across the country, we bring you the perfect treat – a fitting story about rabbit reintroduction!

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Eastern Washington Field Office, in cooperation with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and numerous other cooperating agencies, recently captured 32 pygmy rabbits from populations in Oregon and Wyoming to support ongoing reintroduction efforts in the Columbia Basin of central Washington.

WDFW Biologist Penny Becker with rabbit traps in sagebrush country, Oregon (Photo: USFWS)

After undergoing veterinary examinations and being transported from their home states, the new animals were placed in large (5 to 11 acre) enclosures at the state-managed Sagebrush Flat Wildlife Area and will be allowed to breed with resident, inter-crossed Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits.

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By Rachel Penrod, USFWS

What’s a biodiversity hotspot? It’s an area of the earth that is literally ‘teeming with life,’ where a huge diversity of species can be found. 

Why’s a hotspot important? Because so many species depend on them for survival. Plus they have amazing resources and they can help us find the best areas to protect for wildlife.

The Puerto Rican Woodpecker is just one of the myriad of species that thrives in hotspots. (@Alfredo Colon)

So how do you protect hotspots? Now that’s a good question. Turns out, one great way is to gather together the largest alliance of conservation organizations in the world and set the best scientists to monitor and conserve a hotspot network, a group of interconnected hotspot sites.

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What kind of mark have American women made on wildlife conservation?

A profound one.

First, meet some of the many talented women who manage refuges today. These include Shannon Smith, at Kaua'i National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Hawaii; Susan Silander, at the Caribbean Refuge Complex; Susan White, at the Pacific Reefs Refuge Complex; and Raye Nilius, at South Carolina’s Low Country Refuge Complex.

The pioneer era isn’t over. Just ask Heather Bartlett, not yet 30, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s only female pilot/law enforcement officer, assigned to the Arctic Refuge.

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By Ken Warren, USFWS

You wouldn’t know it when you first meet her, but Emily Bauer enjoys slogging around in the bogs of south Florida.

She doesn’t do it just for fun, although she enjoys the work. She does it because she’s seeking apple snails.

Yep. You read that correctly.

Emily Bauer enjoys slogging around in the bogs of south Florida. (Photo: USFWS)

Bauer is fully committed to the ultimate goal of finding out if levels of copper in apple snails are potentially harmful to the endangered Everglade snail kite, a bird that relies on the snails as their primary food source.

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By Brynn Walling, USFWS

Want to win an ‘upstream battle?’ Follow the Oregon Chub!

The Oregon Chub is part of the minnow family and is unique to the Willamette River Valley of western Oregon. The small minnow, only growing to be approximately 3.5 inches long, has a beautiful olivey-silver color. They like weedy, swampy river bottoms and only live to be about 5 years old.

Big things are happening for this little fish, seen here with a VIE tag. (Photo: USFWS)

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By Judy Gordon, USFWS

Why did I choose my current career path? One name: Jacques-Yves Cousteau, the oceanographer and marine conservationist.

Growing up I probably watched every one of his TV specials about his adventures aboard the research vessel Calypso. I knew by the time I was eleven years old that I wanted a career in a marine biological science so I could be near the water and study biology.

My parents were fully engaged and encouraged me to head to college.They always wanted me to have a choice when it came to my career, which was something they didn't have as children of the Great Depression.

Sampling fall chum on the Yukon River in Alaska (Photo: USFWS)

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