Posted on 04/15/2006 7:39:38 PM PDT by new yorker 77
A tiny desert owl is set to be taken off the federal government's endangered species list, drawing praise from developers but protests from environmentalists.
The cactus ferruginous pygmy owl is only about 6 inches long and weighs in at less than 3 ounces, but has been at the center of a battle between environmentalists and developers for more than a decade.
Environmental groups successfully sued to have it placed on the endangered list in the early 1990s. Developers countersued in 2001, opposing restrictions placed on land use to protect the bird. An appeals court ordered the government to reconsider the listing and the habitat designation.
The owl is set to be removed from the endangered species list next month, a move that also will rescind critical habitat designation for 1.2 million acres in Arizona.
The Fish and Wildlife Service determined the bird was not a distinct subspecies and therefore not worthy of protection. The decision is expected to go into effect May 15.
The bird is native to the Sonoran desert and its population has dropped below 30 at last count.
The decision is likely to be fought by the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity.
"We might end up having to take it right into the courts," said Daniel Patterson, a desert ecologist with the environmental group. He said the move was a political decision that ignores years of research.
"It's anti-science, it's anti-conservation and it's anti-public interest," Patterson said.
The Southern Arizona Home Builders Association said the federal decision ends the fight.
"Now that the federal government has made its final ruling, we consider this issue to be over and will direct our attention to other development policy issues in southern Arizona," he said.
The decision won't mean much in Pima County because the county's Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan protects sensitive habitats for all species, said County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry. Some of the pygmy owl's prime habitat is in Pima County.
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Information from: Tucson Citizen, http://www.tucsoncitizen.com
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Information from: Tucson Citizen, http://www.tucsoncitizen.com
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Patterson needs a trip out behind the schoolhouse for a lesson in reality.
There are hidden contradictions in the minds of people who "love Nature" while deploring the "artificialities" with which "Man has spoiled 'Nature'". The obvious contradiction lies in their choice of words, which imply that Man and his artifacts are not part of "Nature" -- but beavers and their dams are. But the contradictions go deeper than this prima-facie absurdity. In declaring his love for a beaver dam (erected by beavers for beavers' purposes) and his hatred for dams erected by men (for the purposes of men) the "Naturist" reveals his hatred for his own race -- i.e., his own self-hatred.
In the case of "Naturists" such self-hatred is understandable; they are such a sorry lot. But hatred is too strong an emotion to feel toward them; pity and contempt are the most they rate.
As for me, willy-nilly I am a man, not a beaver, and H. sapiens is the only race I have or can have. Fortunately for me, I like being part of a race made up of men and women -- it strikes me as a fine arrangement and perfectly "natural".
ROBERT HEINLEIN
And in its place on the list will be "real" conservative congressmen and senators.
Put me on the endangered species list and notify me of the location of my vast spread of habitat. 30 owls get a million acres. Me too.
I love the name of that organization. Perhaps they should work on introducing elephants and polar bears to the Southwest. That would certainly increase the biological diversity of the region.
No NO No! The Owls are best serviced on Toast with Hollandaise Sauce. Use pure butter to brown and complete. Yummie!
Wine: Cabernet Sauvignon (I perfer Fetzer's Valley Oaks but the you can accompany the owls with what you perfer!)
He who hoots the loudest gets the most. :)
Libertarian ping! To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here.
a href="http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1331856/posts">Jumping Mouse Loses Federal Protection (It never really existed!)</a>
Shoot.
Shovel.
Shut up.
Who gives a hoot?
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