546,335 Acres in 9 Western States Proposed as Critical Habitat for Yellow-billed Cuckoos

“This is an important victory not just for yellow-billed cuckoos but for rivers and streams across the West,” said Michael Robinson, a conservation advocate at the Center, which first petitioned for the cuckoo’s protection in 1998.

The cuckoo was identified as being in need of federal protection in 1986. It once thrived along nearly every water body in the West, but its population has been devastated by dams, livestock grazing, water withdrawals, river channelization and other factors. Today it survives in scattered locations in very small numbers, including portions of the Sacramento, Eel and Kern rivers in California; the Colorado, Gila, Verde and San Pedro rivers in Arizona; the Gila and Rio Grande rivers in New Mexico; and scattered locations in Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Texas, Wyoming and Utah. Historically it was common from the shores of Lake Washington in Seattle to the mouth of the Colorado River.

The bird’s Endangered Species Act protection is expected to be finalized in October, and today’s proposed critical habitat designation should be finalized in October 2015. Critical habitat protection will require any federally funded or permitted projects that could harm the cuckoo’s habitat to consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service to ensure that the habitat is not harmed. Species with protected critical habitat are more than twice as likely to be recovering compared to those without.

The cuckoo is a visually striking bird with a long tail with flashy white markings. It is also referred to as the “rain crow” for its habit of singing right before storms. It breeds in streamside gallery forests of cottonwood and willow. The cuckoo is one of the few species that can eat spiny caterpillars, such as tent caterpillars.

“The cuckoo’s decline is representative of the poor job we’ve done caring for our waterways, so this proposal is a big step toward being better stewards of our rivers and streams,” said Robinson. “Protecting these streamside habitats will also protect healthy water quality for people.”

Under the landmark 2011 agreement between the Center and the Service to speed review of species awaiting Endangered Species Act decisions, 128 species have gained protection to date, and another 15 have been proposed for protection, including the cuckoo.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 775,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

Photo: Seabamirum / Flickr Commons


August 14, 2014
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2014/yellow-billed-cuckoo-08-14-2014.html


Center for Biological Diversity
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/