Montana News
US Fish and Wildlife Service to reevaluate Arctic Graylings’ protected status
A federal judge in Montana Tuesday ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to re-evaluate the protected status of Arctic Grayling in the Big Hole River. MTPR's John Hooks has more. The court's ruling gives the Fish and Wildlife Service one year to conduct a new review over whether the Big Hole Grayling population warrants a position on the endangered species list. But the service is ordered not to consider landowner-led voluntary conservation efforts. The Fish and Wildlife Service initially recommended the Grayling for protection in 1994, before reversing course in 2014. They claimed voluntary conservation efforts along the Big Hole were enough to stabilize the population. For decades, landowners on the river have worked to restore fish habitat and improve flows. They fear an ESA listing would increase regulatory burdens in the region. Arctic Grayling are native to Montana's upper Missouri watershed, but increased temperatures and lower water flows have contributed to habitat loss. Litigation early last year by a number of environmental groups argued voluntary conservation was not a sufficient regulatory protection. A spokesperson for the Fish and Wildlife Service declined MTPR's request for comment. In Butte, I'm John Hooks. For more Montana News, weather information, wildfire information, children's programming, podcasts and more, you can visit our website at mtpr.org. Or you can tune in to listen to the Montana Public Radio news podcast. I'm Eleanor Smith and you're listening to all things considered on Montana Public Radio.