” Due to Population Decline and Energy Development,
Sage-Grouse Listing Called for by American Bird
Conservancy

BLM Wyoming Greater Sage-Grouse Conservation Plan Deemed
Deficient

(Washington, D.C., February 22, 2010) Citing that
numbers of the Greater Sage-Grouse have dramatically
diminished in recent decades, and the continued
expansion of energy developments that threaten the
species” sagebrush habitat, the President of
American Bird Conservancy (ABC) today called on the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list the Greater
Sage-Grouse under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

“While there have been legitimate, good-faith
conservation efforts undertaken in the last couple
of years by federal, state, and private interests to
help the Greater Sage-Grouse, by the same token
there is also absolutely no mistaking that the path
we are on will lead to fewer and fewer birds. More
needs to be done. The species needs to be fully
protected, and ESA listing is the best way to
achieve that,” said George Fenwick, President of
ABC.

The Fish and Wildlife Service is reviewing the
status of the Greater Sage-Grouse, and is expected
to announce its findings at the end of February.
The numbers of Greater Sage-Grouse have dropped
precipitously ” with a loss of more than 30% in
the last 25 years, according to recent reports.

ABC is also calling attention to standards that are
proposed by state and federal agency conservation
plans. “Some standards are quite strong, such as
the state of Oregon Sage-Grouse conservation
strategy that calls for “no net loss of sagebrush
habitat”, while other plans fall short” Fenwick
said. ABC is concerned that the core area
development standards in the Bureau of Land
Management”s (BLM) Wyoming Sage Grouse Management
Plan are insufficient to ensure stable populations
over the long term. The Wyoming plan, which allows
for one drilling or wind “pad” per square mile
within the core areas, will lead to further habitat
loss, fragmentation and degradation of remaining
habitat from associated construction of roads. The
plan also fails to include a number of core
Sage-Grouse habitat areas such as parts of the
Powder River Basin.

“The Wyoming BLM issued a conservation plan on
January 4th that overlooks key scientific studies
that indicate greater protections are needed, and as
a result is unacceptable,” Fenwick added. “We
can”t possibly be satisfied with a plan that
merely slows down the loss of sage-grouse. This
simply postpones the inevitable.”

The causes for the decline of sage-grouse are
varied, and include the loss or degradation of
habitat arising from grazing and agriculture, energy
development, and fires that are escalated by
invasive vegetation such as cheat grass. Additional
threats include mosquito-borne West Nile virus, and
collisions with wire fences that the birds cannot
see.

“The general idea of protecting core areas for the
sage-grouse is sound,” said Fenwick. “To be
effective, what”s needed is a comprehensive and
region-wide management plan that will protect the
species” entire core habitat, with sufficient
buffers around the core areas. To make this happen,
and for plans and protections to be strong enough,
the Greater Sage-Grouse needs to be listed under the
ESA.”