The Endangered Species Act
When residents of Florida or Louisiana spot an American Alligator, they don’t likely make a big fuss about it. These armored reptiles are fairly common throughout the southeastern United States. But that wasn’t always the case. Due to excessive hunting, American Alligators once faced extinction. The fate of the American Alligator was in great peril, but as the 1960’s ushered in an increase in public activism and environmental awareness, a range of endangered birds, mammals and fish received a lifeline. In 1967 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a list of 75 endangered species—native fish and wildlife in most dire need of conservation. Congress had just passed the Endangered Species Protection Act of 1966, the first piece of comprehensive endangered species legislation, and the list was born as a result. “The Class of 1967” as it came to be known, included the Grizzly Bear, the Bald Eagle, the Florida Manatee and of course, the American Alligator (now fully recovered).
At Nature Links, we wanted to investigate The Class of ‘67, asking ourselves where are they now? We read articles, watched videos and referenced information published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to find out whether the Endangered Species Protection Act of 1966 was fully successful. Here are a few species we learned about, and whether or not they were saved by this groundbreaking piece of federal legislation.
The Florida Manatee (population still vulnerable)
When aerial surveys began in the 1970s, this subspecies of the West Indian manatee, well-known as a symbol of Florida, was estimated at just several hundred. In 2015, the best estimate for the southeastern United States was 6,350 manatees. In 2016, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a proposal to reclassify the West Indian manatee as threatened, meaning not in immediate danger of extinction. All laws protecting the manatee remain in place, and conservation efforts are ongoing to increase the population.
The California Condor (still endangered, but population is increasing)
California condors are the largest land bird in North America. They have soared the skies since the Pleistocene era and are important to many native American cultures. They faced the threat of extinction in the 1960s when their population dwindled to only 22 birds because of poaching, lead poisoning and habitat destruction. When the condor became extinct in the wild, the remaining condors were bred at the Los Angeles Zoo. Today, the population has grown from a staggering low of 22 birds in 1982 to more than 400 birds. They are listed as “critically endangered”.
The Grizzly Bear (fully recovered)
Grizzlies historically roamed vast expanses of the American West, from the Great Plains to the Pacific Ocean. Bear populations dwindled as the west developed, however; between 1922 and 1975, about 84 percent of grizzly populations were removed in the lower 48 states. Grizzlies now reside in five areas in the western United States – including the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem – and benefit from efforts to improve habitat management, research, and education. In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the bears may soon be removed from federal protection: the population has grown from as few as 126 bears in 1975 to about 700 bears today.
The Blue Pike (extinct)
Historically, the blue pike was found in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, and the Niagara River. Between 1885 and 1962, commercial fisheries hauled over a billion pounds of blue pike from the lakes. For many years, battered and fried blue pike were popular menu items in taverns and restaurants from Michigan to Ontario, and food companies sold frozen fillets at fish markets. In a 1977 survey, the Blue Pike Recovery Team contacted all Fish and Game agencies in the U.S. in an effort to determine if blue pike existed in their waters. Unfortunately, there were no blue pike reported to exist, and the species was deemed extinct in 1983.
The Bald Eagle (fully recovered)
Some estimates say there were as many 500,000 eagles in the lower 48 states in the 18th century. Habitat destruction and degradation, illegal shooting, and the contamination of its food source, largely as a consequence of DDT, decimated the bald eagle population, and it hit an all-time low of 487 breeding pairs in 1963. Habitat protection afforded by the Endangered Species Preservation Act, the federal government's banning of DDT, and conservation actions taken by the American public have helped bald eagles make a remarkable recovery. By 2007, the bald eagle population rebounded to nearly 10,000 breeding pairs and they were removed from the federal list of endangered species.
The Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966 couldn’t save every one of the 75 species on its original list. However, its efforts were hugely successful in increasing public awareness, research, education and habitat restoration for these creatures. At Nature Links, we hope to continue our learning about endangered species by researching current lists and how recent efforts have helped protect more of our nation’s most vulnerable and crucial species.
Check out this amazing video we watched about efforts to protect the California Condor!
