Fight
to Save Endangered Little Bird in Florida
Posted August 20, 2012 12:50 pm | Public News Service
VERO BEACH, FL - There are more than 50 Florida animal species listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act, and several of them have seen sharp declines in recent years. The Florida panther and manatee are well-known creatures on the list, but there are dozens of lesser-known, yet vital, examples, such as the Miami blue butterfly and the Everglade snail kite.
Links:
•
US Fish & Wild Life Service - Vero Beach
•
Florida
Audubon Society
•
Florida Grasshopper Sparrow: An Endangered Species in
Free-Fall
Larry Williams, field supervisor for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Vero Beach, says helping at-risk species early is key.
"It's much more efficient to prevent the species from
getting to that point. We can help steer land uses. It's
just a lot more cost-effective."
Williams adds that it can cost millions of dollars
when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has to step in
to help prevent the extinction of a species, and his
agency never has enough money to help all of them.
Instead, they prioritize about 20 species every year to
help prevent their extinction.
The Florida grasshopper sparrow is one example of a
species that is reportedly very near extinction. In the
last ten years, experts have seen an 80 percent decrease
in its population. Paul Gray with the Florida Audubon
Society says a variety of factors could be influencing
the decline of the sparrow.
"It's been here all along and we know it's human
activity that's done it, but when you don't even know
what the problem is, it's just so frustrating and so
scary to be stewards of something that we don't know
what's wrong."
Laurie Macdonald, the Florida director of Defenders of
Wildlife, says losing a species like the Florida
grasshopper sparrow can affect many other animals.
"Every species has its niche. There's a whole cascade
effect of how one animal influences the ecosystem and
others in it."
Preventing their extinction is a complex job that
includes an investigation into what's harming the
animals, steps to provide a natural habitat, and, in the
most extreme cases, raising the species in captivity to
encourage breeding.
Photo and Links added by the Observer