The Service made the decision in response to a petition requesting threatened status for the bird under the Endangered Species Act and designation of critical habitat. The Service concluded that the petition did not provide substantial scientific data to justify listing the sparrow as a threatened species.
The petitioner, the Biodiversity Legal Foundation, contended that Henslows sparrow populations were declining and that this trend only could be reversed if the species is protected under the Endangered Species Act. However, the Services review of the status of this species concluded that the Henslows sparrow was not a candidate for listing.
The Endangered Species petition process requires the Service to decide within 90 days if the petition provides substantial justification for the petitioned action. The Service found that the petition did not provide any substantial new information indicating that listing may be warranted. Furthermore, during its review of the petition, the Service learned of several new populations of Henslows sparrows that were previously unknown and potential improvements in the species status in a number of other states.
The Services own concerns about the decline of Henslows sparrows prompted us to conduct an exhaustive review of this species from 1995 through 1997, said Service Regional Director Bill Hartwig. We concluded that data did not indicate that the species should be proposed for listing at the time. Reexamination of the data -- required as a result of the petition -- clearly confirms our earlier conclusion.
The Henslows sparrow nests in tallgrass prairies and similar habitats from Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska eastward into New York. Other states with breeding populations include Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
The Henslows sparrow spends winters along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts from Texas into North Carolina. In the past its numbers had steeply declined due to loss of tallgrass prairie habitat. However, populations appear to be rebounding in some areas. The Services finding notes that several areas in Indiana and Ohio now host large nesting populations that were unknown two years ago. Other previously known nesting areas in Indiana, Oklahoma, and Kansas have large populations that are stable to increasing. Additional monitoring will be required to determine if these improvements continue.
We share the concern about species like the Henslows sparrow where populations have shown declines in the past, said Hartwig. We have seen some encouraging improvements in localized areas with the Henslow, and the Service will continue to track the status of these birds to ensure their future is safeguarded.
Completed and ongoing status assessment reports, and resulting decisions, are available for the Services Region 3 states (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin) at: http://www.fws.gov/r3pao/eco_serv/endangrd/lists/concern.html
A notice announcing the Services finding on the petition to list the Henslows sparrow appears in todays Federal Register.
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
