Endangered Species Act

Seven former leaders of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA Fisheries have sent a letter to Interior Secretary Douglas Burgum and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urging the administration to withdraw its recent rollback of the Endangered Species Act’s definition of “harm.”

From 3-inch fireworms to 6-foot nurse sharks, these reefs are alive.
That statement is subjectively true, but what does it mean for a reef to be alive in today’s world?

Throughout my career as a conservationist, I’ve often been asked some version of the same question:
“Where do you find the motivation? How do you keep from losing hope?”

As Congress considers H.R. 9436, a bill that would further delay protections for the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale, opposition is clear from constituents and conservation leaders across the East Coast.

Texans Push Back as Offshore Drilling Advances Without Endangered Species Act Safeguards

For generations, fireflies have turned ordinary summer evenings into something magical. Their tiny flashes drift through backyards, fields, forests, and wetlands, creating a natural wonder cherished around the world. For many of us, they are woven into childhood memories, symbols of warm nights, healthy landscapes, and the simple joy of being outside after sunset.

But today, that familiar glow is under threat.

Our federal lands and wildlife belong to us. Our public tax dollars should be going towards our shared natural resources and ensuring their protection for generations to come. However, the Trump administration’s proposed 2027 federal budget fails our wildlife and us by cutting endangered species program funding by 22%.

Florida’s staghorn and elkhorn corals once helped build the living reefs that protect coastlines, support fisheries, shelter marine life, and define Florida’s ocean heritage. Their functional extinction is a heartbreaking warning about what happens when climate change, pollution, and underfunded conservation collide. But this moment must also be a call to action: with fully funded coral recovery programs, science-based protections, and renewed commitment to the Endangered Species Act, Florida’s reefs can still have a fighting chance.

How many whales does it take to save a species? For the Rice’s whale, the answer may be all of them. Found only in the Gulf of Mexico, this newly recognized species is already on the edge of extinction, with just 51 estimated to remain. By studying individual whales, scientists have uncovered critical insights about how Rice’s whales feed, rest, travel, and survive in one of the most industrialized marine environments in the world. Their stories are a reminder that science, not politics, must guide decisions about endangered wildlife, and that every protection matters when extinction is this close.

Black-footed ferrets are considered one of the most endangered species in the United States, with just under 500 left in the wild.