wdcarrier Loc: Eureka, California

Into the 2nd half. I hope everyone sees how important these refuges are, especially since the current administration has just gutted the Endangered Species Act.

Hooded merganser


Peregrine falcon


European wigeon


Song sparrow


Green heron


Snow goose


Burrowing owl


Green-winged teal


Western grebe


Eared grebe

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

No, the current administration has not "gutted" the endangered species act. Some Grizzly populations have grown to the point that they no longer need as stringent protection as they once did. How many remote desert areas that very few people will ever visit need to be kept off limits when National security matters dictate that resource exploration in a safe and sane manner should be allowed. How many salmon fisheries should be kept in a "pristine condition" when gold mines can, "hopefully" be operated in a safe and sane manner and protect the salmon and allow gold extraction at the same time?
I'm a wildlife and landscape photographer. I love these places as much as anyone. But a balance has to be struck between living in the real world and protecting and nurturing the places we all love. Very nice photos of very important species in very important places.

globetrekker Loc: Bend, OR

Excellent shots! So tack sharp. Thanks for posting.

I do think a little more room in the direction that the birds are looking in would make these even better. A tad heavy on the crop, IMO.

Katydid Loc: Davis, CA

Beautiful photos and great variety--love them.

J-SPEIGHT Loc: Akron, Ohio

Nice set.

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

They did just gut the Endangered Species Act - or at least they are in the process of doing so. That is different than removing a recovered species from protection.

MT native Loc: Big Sky Country — Montana

Wonderful series for sure. Such a nice variety of images for our viewing enjoyment.

Blaster34 Loc: Florida Treasure Coast

Beautiful photos and I really want to visit these CA refuges soon.....Yes they are important and they seem to be doing quite well, but like climate change, the hysteria over the ESA and other environmental issues is just that, total hysteria and has become nothing but a political tool for some. Alligators, the Florida Crocodile and The Bald Eagles and other species are thriving here in Florida (1500+ nesting pairs of Eagles) and many other states, regardless of who's in the White House...Cheers...

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

Earnest Botello Loc: Hockley, Texas

Great series, Dean.

wdcarrier Loc: Eureka, California

As was pointed out by sb, the changes will have nothing to do with reducing protections on the grizzly, alligator or any other species that have shown that recovery is occurring or has occurred. Remember, the bald eagle, a species that primarily generated the passage of ESA was recovered AND de-listed in 2007 under the existing Act. The current changes allow those with wealth and political clout to determine the application and enforcement of species protection. It provides that economic costs to be a primary factor to determine protection as the federal government weighs protecting a species, whether currently listed or not. Such a change would allow the logging industry with its money and lobbyists to push to block protections for a forest-dwelling animal on economic grounds; the oil and gas industry to block protections on species affected by the increase in exploration and production through political means and inaccurate economic projections.

True, the Act has its faults and the environmental community has in some cases overplayed their hand using it for other purposes than simply species protection but, all-in-all it has worked in many cases. The recovery of the grizzly in the Yellowstone ecosystem (that you apparently refer to) is a good example. In the early 1980s, when I was a member of the Border Grizzly Technical Committee, the grizzly population there was significantly less than 200. Today there are over 600. There are currently 312 wild California condors and a total population of 488. There was less than 50 when I was on the Recovery Team in 1980; and there are now over 3,000 sea otters on the California coast, up from the remaining 50 found in the 1930’s.

As the effects of global warming continue to alter environments, more and more protection of wildlife species world-wide will be necessary. This is not a time to reduce elements of an act that has been successful in so many cases. You might check out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNrg4tXPWCA

falcnheart7 Loc: RI

Beautiful shots! Love the grebes!

PAR4DCR Loc: A Sunny Place

And anything else they can gut for the almighty $$$

Don

Blair Shaw Jr Loc: Dunnellon,Florida

Those birds are so wonderful to look at again and again......thanks Dean.

WildBill Loc: South West Florida

“Removing the phrase does not signal any difference in the basis upon which listing determinations will be made,” they wrote. “We remain committed to basing species’ classification decisions on the best available scientific and commercial data and will not consider economic or other impacts when making these decisions.” FWS