IT鈥橲 a case of habitat well and truly lost for South Florida鈥檚 Cape Sable seaside sparrow. It can enjoy only a fraction of the homeland it was promised.
The Center for Biological Diversity in Tucson, Arizona, has found that the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) systematically ignored recommendations to increase habitats for endangered species between 2002 and 2007.
鈥淭he sparrow鈥檚 habitat is a good example,鈥� says Kieran Suckling, executive director of the centre. The sparrow鈥檚 proposed home was cut in half by the FWS.
Advertisement
of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, says FWS scientists decide what land should be a protected habitat based on a tried and tested formula and peer review. He adds, though, that proposals are almost always cut extensively by the decision-makers.
FWS officials declined to comment on the specifics of the centre鈥檚 study until a review has been performed.
