What exactly does it mean when a species is delisted from the Endangered Species Act?
Transcript:
For species that are listed as threatened or endangered under the ESA, they are regularly reassessed in terms of their status and survival. With that assessment, it could be determined that a species would be downlisted from endangered to a threatened status or delisted, which means it would come off the endangered species list altogether. There are a few different reasons for why that might be determined. Unfortunately, one of those is extinction. In the past year or so, the Fish and Wildlife Service determined that over 20 species, many of which were Hawaiian birds, freshwater mussels, and others that were listed under the ESA, were extinct. A species can also be delisted due to recovery. This is a major success, the ultimate win for Defenders and for biodiversity conservation. A full recovery means that with thanks to the ESA and the hard work of Defenders and other conservation partners, that those species have bounced back from the brink of extinction. Their populations and numbers are up, they have the habitat
to help them survive, and they’ve reached a place where they no longer need the protections that are afforded by the Act. Those species are delisted due to recovery and that is the ultimate conservation win.
Defenders Of Wildlife works on the ground, in the courts, and on Capitol Hill to protect and restore imperiled wildlife and habitats across North America.
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