The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service has reviewed a petition to reclassify the Utah prairie dog from threatened to endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and concluded the petition does not contain substantial scientific data indicating reclassification is warranted.
The Service made this finding in response to a petition received in February 2003 from Forest Guardians, Center for Native Ecosystems, and others. In February 2006, the petitioners filed a complaint against the Service for failure to issue a timely finding on the petition. According to a settlement agreement, the Service agreed to make a petition finding by February 17, 2007.
The Utah prairie dog was listed as an endangered species in 1973. In 1979, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources petitioned the Service to remove the Utah prairie dog from protection under the ESA. The Service found that the petition provided substantial information regarding the status of the species and down-listed it from endangered to threatened in 1984.
The Utah prairie dog is currently found in three designated recovery areas in southwestern Utah: the Awapa Plateau; the Paunsaugunt region along the east fork and main stem of the Sevier River; and the West Desert region of eastern Iron county, with a few isolated colonies existing in mountain and desert valleys in eastern Iron and Beaver counties.
fter a review of the information provided, the Service does not believe that present or threatened destruction or modification of habitat warrants reclassifying the Utah prairie dog from threatened to endangered. Utah prairie dog numbers continue to be stable and within the range of historic fluctuations. Many of the factors cited by the petitioners constitute small, localized impacts on specific Utah prairie dog colonies.
The petition contends that continuing loss and degradation of habitat are threatening the continued existence of the species.
The Utah prairie dog is a rodent within the squirrel family and its species range is limited to the southwestern quarter of Utah. The species? historic range extended across the desert almost to the Utah-Nevada state line.
1. By the 1960s, distribution of the Utah prairie dog was greatly reduced due to disease, poisoning, drought, and human-related habitat alteration resulting from cultivation and poor grazing practices. By 1972, it was estimated that there were 3,300 Utah prairie dogs in 37 separate prairie dog colonies. Spring range-wide counts (which estimate approximately 50 percent of the adult population) are currently stable, ranging from 3,961 to 5,920 over the past 10 years.The ESA provides for citizens to petition the Service to take listing actions, including adding species to the lists of threatened and endangered wildlife and plants as well as removing species from the lists. The Service is required to make a finding on whether the petition presents substantial information that the petitioned action may be warranted.
oday's finding is published in the Federal Register. For more information, please visit the Service's web site at: http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/species/mammals/utprairiedog.
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 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 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 and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
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Visit the Mountain Prairie website at http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov
