Cactus Ferruginous Pygmy Owl Reinstated to Threatened Species List

[UngulateNerd92]

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl will be relisted as a threatened species, after being taken off for 17 years. The relisting was triggered by a Defenders of Wildlife petition in 2007 and a lawsuit in 2012. The Service challenged listing the subspecies as threatened or endangered until 2011 following a court-ordered redo of its initial 2007 species assessment.

“Today’s action is a long overdue step in the right direction for this little owl that has been bereft of the protections of the Endangered Species Act for nearly two decades.” said Bryan Bird, Defenders of Wildlife Southwest program director. “Habitat loss, the border wall and climate change all present grave threats to this bird, and the listing recognizes this reality.”

Cactus Ferruginous Pygmy Owl Reinstated to Threatened Species List

 

[birdsandbats]

Finally, why was it ever delisted?

 

[UngulateNerd92]

Finally, why was it ever delisted?

That is a good question... It should never have been regardless...

 

[Chlidonias]

Finally, why was it ever delisted?

That is a good question... It should never have been regardless...

It says why in the article linked in the original post: "The pygmy owl was protected as an endangered species from 1997 to 2006, before a home builders’ lawsuit stripped its protections for development and halted monitoring efforts. The 2006 decision was not based on improvement to the pygmy owl’s population but rather on the flawed argument that the Sonoran Desert population was insignificant."


Linked below is an earlier popular article (rather than linking to a more heavy population assessment or similar) which explains a bit more and also includes a handy map of the species' full distribution showing how little of its range is in the USA and how much is in Mexico. Basically developers wanted the land and made an ultimately-successful case by saying that because the population in the USA was so low it could have no value to the species as a whole.
"The re-listing proposal comes after years of litigation and political tensions surrounding the owl. A population decline first prompted the FWS to list it as endangered in 1997. That year, a survey in the bird’s historical range in Arizona detected just a dozen sightings. The listing was a blow to developers, since it made it more challenging to build in habitat designated critical for the owl’s recovery. The National Association of Home Builders sued, arguing that, given its low numbers, Arizona’s owl population did not contribute significantly to the survival of the subspecies."
https://www.audubon.org/news/this-tiny-desert-raptor-could-soon-regain-federal-protection