Celebrating 50 Years of Success in Wildlife Conservation | U.S. Department of the Interior (2024)

FAQs

What is the 50 year Endangered Species Act? ›

Dec. 28, 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the enactment of the Endangered Species Act, one of the most important wildlife conservation laws in the United States.

Tiger Conservation is the most significant wildlife project of India. Govt. of India provides all the financial and technical support through the Project Tiger. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF) provides all the important decisions and funding support through 'Project Tiger'.

The bald eagle was once on the brink of extinction due to habitat loss and the use of pesticides such as DDT. In 1963 there were less than 500 breeding pairs in the lower 48 states. The bald eagle has recovered very well in the years following the ban on domestic use of DDT in 1972.

The goal of wildlife conservation is to ensure the wise use and management of renewable resources without wasting them. Preservation saves natural resources with no consumptive use of them. Both are necessary to sustain resources for future generations.

In June 2022, NMFS and FWS issued a final a rule rescinding the Trump administration's 2020 changes to the definition of “habitat” for the purpose of designating critical habitat. In July 2022, the FWS finalized a rule that will rescind Trump-era changes to how the FWS designates and excludes critical habitat.

The Endangered Species Act of 1973 provides a framework to conserve and protect endangered and threatened species and their habitats both domestically and abroad.

Big 5 Conservation Programs. Volunteer with the Big Five and work to protect the lion, the leopard, the rhino, the elephant, and the buffalo. This name was given to this group because they are the hardest animals to hunt on foot.

Wildlife conservation efforts focused on protecting vulnerable species and preserving their habitats can help ensure their survival and maintain ecosystem balance. This, in turn, benefits humans by safeguarding the essential ecosystem services that these species provide.

What animal went extinct and came back? ›

Sea Otter. The return of these adorable aquatic animals is one of the greatest comebacks in history. The species, which had a population of only 2,000 in 1911 has now rebounded to about 100,000 globally. They used to be extensively hunted for their fur, resulting in their near extinction.

Habitat loss—due to destruction, fragmentation, or degradation of habitat—is the primary threat to the survival of wildlife in the United States.

Conservationists can help threatened bird and butterfly populations by protecting habitat along major migratory flyways—pathways used by migratory birds and insects. Birds tend to take predictable routes to get from the winter feeding grounds to the summer breeding grounds and back.

Minimize threats to wildlife in the best wild places on Earth so that their populations are stable or increasing, ensure that hunting and fishing is sustainable, and that conflicts between people and wildlife are resolved.

The Endangered Species Act (Section 18) requires the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to submit to Congress (through the Secretary of the Interior) an annual report of a cost analysis of expenditures that were made for the conservation of threatened and endangered species.

Since it was passed by Congress in 1973 (on the heels of a 1967 precursor law), the Act has built up a stellar success rate, saving 99% of species it protects from extinction. The Endangered Species Act turns 50 years old in 2023.

The Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969 improved upon the 1966 Act, providing better protection to species habitats and considered species in danger of worldwide extinction. Still not satisfied with the protections the 1969 Act provided domestic species, Congress passed the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA).