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Bay-Delta longfin smelt off the hook for federal protection

Posted by: Maven on April 8, 2009 at 4:59 pm

From the Central Valley Business Times:

The Bay-Delta population of longfin smelt does not meet the legal criteria for protection as a species subpopulation under the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says.

The FWS simultaneously announced that it is seeking additional information for a broader assessment of the longfin smelt that could lead to future action, although no decision can be made before reviewing any new information.

The determination came in response to a petition seeking protection under the ESA as a “distinct population segment” for only the longfin smelt population in the Bay-Delta. Longfin smelt live in estuaries along the Pacific Coast from the Bay Area to Alaska.

The FWS says that, because some Bay-Delta longfin smelt migrate into the Pacific Ocean and can travel up the coast to breed with longfin further north, they fail to meet the criteria for protection as a distinct population segment. Under existing policy, for designation as a DPS the population segment must be “markedly separated from other populations” of the species.

Read more from the Central Valley Business Times by clicking here.

April 8, 2009 · Filed Under Wildlife & Endangered Species

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