America's Great Outdoors: Salazar Announces Establishment of Everglades Headwaters NWR and Conservation AreaExemplifies Administration’s Successful Approach to Working Landscape ConservationJanuary 18, 2012 
Central Florida landscape. Photo: © Carlton Ward, Jr. / CarltonWard.com KISSIMMEE, Fla. – As part of President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today accepted a 10-acre donation of land in south-central Florida to officially establish the Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area – conserving one of the last remaining grassland and longleaf pine savanna landscapes in eastern North America. The new refuge and conservation area – the 556th unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System – is being established through a land donation from the Nature Conservancy of Florida with the support of local ranchers and landowners who have worked cooperatively with Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to conserve their lands while retaining their right to raise cattle or crops, an approach championed by the Obama administration.
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Salazar Announces Ban on Importation and Interstate Transportation of Four Giant Snakes that Threaten EvergladesJanuary 17, 2012 
Yellow anacondas, like the one above, are one of the species that will not be allowed into the U.S. Photo: Patrick Jean. WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has finalized a rule that would ban the importation and interstate transportation of four nonnative constrictor snakes that threaten the Everglades and other sensitive ecosystems across the United States, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced today. The final rule – which incorporates public comments, economic analysis, and environmental assessment – lists the Burmese python, the yellow anaconda, and the northern and southern African pythons as injurious wildlife under the Lacey Act in order to restrict their spread in the wild in the United States. It is expected to publish in the Federal Register in the coming days.
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Ultra-light-led Migration of Whooping Cranes on Hold in AlabamaJanuary 6, 2012 
Photo: Operation Migration. The 2011-2012 ultra-light led migration of whooping cranes in the eastern population is currently on hold in Alabama. The Service’s partner managing this portion of the effort, Operation Migration, is cooperating with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to resolve regulatory issues about the flight. The group has applied for a waiver to exempt them from the FAA regulation that prohibits compensating pilots of this category of aircraft. This waiver, if approved, would allow the flight to continue.
One of World’s Rarest Birds Spotted in Western North CarolinaDecember 20, 2011 
A whooping crane flies through the sky. Photo: Operation Migration. Biologists recently confirmed the presence of a pair of whooping cranes outside Hayesville, North Carolina, marking the first time the birds have been documented wintering in Western North Carolina. The Western North Carolina sighting of whooping cranes was reported through the BringBacktheCranes.org website on December 9, 2011 by Paul Hudson, of Hayesville, N.C. After the initial report, Jennifer Davis, of the International Crane Foundation, joined Hudson and confirmed his sighting upon finding the birds foraging in a soybean field.
Salazar Lauds Proposed Early Restoration Projects Under Deepwater Horizon National Resource Damage AssessmentEight projects – first set to come of $1 billion agreement with BP to fund early restoration - expected to help restore Gulf Coast’s environment and strengthen economy
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Candidate Conservation Agreements
2011 Floods and Fires in the Southeast
Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area
Recovering from the Deepwater Horizon Oil SpillLast updated:
January 18, 2012
