Guardians Seeks Endangered Species Listing Protection for 80 Remaining Texas Ocelots
WildEarth Guardians has just petitioned for the listing of the Texas population of ocelot—the only existing population in the United States—under the Endangered Species Act, separate from the species as a whole. In recent years, the small population of ocelots found in Texas, estimated to be around 80 wild cats, has been separated from the larger populations in Mexico due to extensive development along stretches of the lower Rio Grande, including Trump’s border wall.
Ocelots across their range are listed as “endangered,” but the Texas population is unique, distinct, and requires specific protections—known as “distinct population segment” or DPS listing—as a separate entity in order to thwart off extinction.
“America is at risk of losing the U.S. population of this beautiful wild cat thanks to the border wall,” said Lindsay Larris, wildlife program director for WildEarth Guardians. “Separating the Texas population from other populations of ocelots in Mexico has put them in grave danger of disappearing. We need swift action from the Biden administration to not only permanently halt construction of the wall, but to tear down the existing border wall to ensure that species like the ocelot have the opportunity to recover and thrive.”
Ocelots in Texas face internal struggles for survival due to their limited numbers and habitat needs. Ocelots are found in only two places within the state: a private ranch, and the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. Thornscrub habitat, which ocelots depend on, is under siege throughout the state, with 95% of thornscrub in the Lower Rio Grande Valley lost to agriculture and urban development. What little habitat remains is fragmented by roads and road mortality is one of the most serious threats to ocelots. Listing this population separately would require the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to consult on actions that would impact the population, determine critical habitat needs, and write a Texas-specific recovery plan, among other things.
https://www.counterpunch.org/2021/02/03/guardians-seeks-endangered-species-listing-protection-for-80-remaining-texas-ocelots/
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