Recovery plans for endangered and threatened species are blueprints used by the Service, states, and other wildlife management agencies and organizations to prevent species extinction and restore imperiled plant and animal populations. They are developed by recovery teams that usually represent a wide range of expertise and interest in the species.
The Higgins eye pearly mussel was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act by the Service in 1976. Factors affecting the Higgins eye include declining water quality, navigation activities, habitat alternation, the presence of the non-native zebra mussel, legal and illegal harvest of freshwater mussels, and natural predators. The draft revised recovery plan addresses these threats to the Higgins eye and provides recommendations to preserve essential habitat, enhance abundance of the mussel, and restore populations of the Higgins eye in its historic range.
The Higgins eye occurs in the Mississippi River from Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, south to the Iowa-Missouri border. It is also found in the lower Rock River in Illinois, and the Wisconsin River downstream from Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin.
Freshwater mussels, such as the Higgins eye, are among the most imperiled of species in North America. Because they require clean water to survive and thrive, freshwater mussels are excellent indicators of the water quality they inhabit. Often, a decline in mussel populations signals a problem with the quality of water that supports other fish and wildlife, as well as humans
Copies of the draft revised recovery plan may be viewed, by appointment, during normal business hours at the following locations:
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Ecological Services Operations
Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building
1 Federal Drive
Ft. Snelling, Minnesota 55111-4056; tel. 612/713-5350
Twin Cities Field Office
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
4101 East 80th Street
Bloomington, Minnesota 55125-1665; tel. 612/725-3548
Rock Field Office
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
4469 48th Avenue Court
Rock Island, Illinois 61201; tel.309/793-5800
Winona District
Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge
51 E. 4th Street, Room 203
Winona, Minnesota 55987; tel. 507/454-7351
La Crosse District
Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge
555 Lester Avenue
Onalaska, Wisconsin 54650; tel. 608/783-8405
Savanna District
Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge
Post Office Building
Savanna, Illinois 61074; tel. 815/273-2732
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
4469 48th Avenue Court
Rock Island, Illinois 61201; tel. 309/793-5800
Additional information can be obtained from the Twin Cities and Rock Field Offices at the above addresses. Public comments on the plan are invited and must be received by August 21, 1998. Comments may be addressed to the Field Supervisor, Twin Cities Field Office, at the above address.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 530 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://midwest.fws.gov
