The Trump administration denied endangered species protection to 25 species Wednesday, including the Pacific walrus which experiencing a sharp decline in its Arctic habitat because of climate change, The Washington Post reported.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also declined protection petitions for the Florida Keys mole skink, the Bicknell's thrust songbird, the Big Blue Springs cave crayfish, the Kirkland's snake, and 14 separate species of Nevada' springsnails, the Post said.
The rejected listing also included the Barbour's map turtle, the Oregon Cascades-California population and Black Hills population of the black-backed woodpecker, the eastern population of the boreal toad, the Northern Rocky Mountains population of the fisher, Great Sand Dunes tiger beetle, and San Felipe gambusia, a statement from the FWS said.
While the FWS said that protection for the species was "not warranted at this time," it asked the public "to submit to us at any time any new information that becomes available concerning the stressors to any of the species listed above or their habitats."
Alaska's Republican Congressional delegation of U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, and U.S. Rep. Don Young, said in a statement that they were pleased with the Fish and Wildlife Service ruling on the Pacific walrus.
"I welcome this action by the USFWS, a decision that recognizes the health and stability of Alaska's walrus population and ignores the extreme political pressures often associated with new Endangered Species Act listings," Young said in a statement on his website.
Murkowski added that the Pacific walrus population is "robust and healthy" according to the "best available data and science" and the FWS made the correct decision.
"This decision will allow for the continued responsible harvest of Pacific walrus for subsistence and traditional uses by Alaska Natives," Murkowski said in the statement on Young's website.
Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center for Biological Diversity, decried the decision in a statement released by the center.
"This is a truly dark day for America's imperiled wildlife," Greenwald said. "You couldn't ask for a clearer sign that the Trump administration puts corporate profits ahead of protecting endangered species. The Pacific walrus, Florida Keys mole skink, eastern boreal toad and 22 other species are now one step closer to extinction. We're going to challenge as many of these bogus findings as we can."
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