dgibson
New member
From the NAHC Weekly News: <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Once plentiful across the state, New England cottontails are today limited to a handful of sites in Maine, and scientists are recognizing the signs of a species in trouble, says Wally Jakubas, a biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.
The cottontail's traditional habitat--brushy, shrubby forests north of New York and east of the Appalachian Mountains--has declined by 75 percent since the 1960s.
This month, the New England office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) will decide whether to begin a year of research to determine whether the New England cottontail should be protected as an endangered species.
In 2000 a coalition of environmental groups petitioned the federal government for the New England cottontail to be considered for endangered status, but funds to pursue new listings weren't available because of a backlog of endangered-species lawsuits, said Diane Lynch of the USFWS.
But the USFWS is now in the midst of a 90-day review of cottontail data and expects to announce soon whether it will begin the year-long endangered species listing process.
The cottontail is believed to be a victim of two major environmental problems: urban sprawl and invasive species. Hunting isn't thought to be a factor in the cottontail population's decline because the rabbits are so few and so elusive that hunters rarely shoot them, Jakubas said.
Biologists say they're considering plans to recolonize portions of the Maine coast with New England cottontails in an attempt to boost the breeding population. They say, for instance, that part of the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge near Saco could be managed for rabbit habitat.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>MY OPINION: What a crappy place to be where cottontail rabbits are endangered. Wonder if there'll be a big movement against cottontail reintroduction?
The cottontail's traditional habitat--brushy, shrubby forests north of New York and east of the Appalachian Mountains--has declined by 75 percent since the 1960s.
This month, the New England office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) will decide whether to begin a year of research to determine whether the New England cottontail should be protected as an endangered species.
In 2000 a coalition of environmental groups petitioned the federal government for the New England cottontail to be considered for endangered status, but funds to pursue new listings weren't available because of a backlog of endangered-species lawsuits, said Diane Lynch of the USFWS.
But the USFWS is now in the midst of a 90-day review of cottontail data and expects to announce soon whether it will begin the year-long endangered species listing process.
The cottontail is believed to be a victim of two major environmental problems: urban sprawl and invasive species. Hunting isn't thought to be a factor in the cottontail population's decline because the rabbits are so few and so elusive that hunters rarely shoot them, Jakubas said.
Biologists say they're considering plans to recolonize portions of the Maine coast with New England cottontails in an attempt to boost the breeding population. They say, for instance, that part of the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge near Saco could be managed for rabbit habitat.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>MY OPINION: What a crappy place to be where cottontail rabbits are endangered. Wonder if there'll be a big movement against cottontail reintroduction?
