To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog:
On May 24, 2021, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) released a proposed rule to list two distinct population segments (DPS) of the lesser prairie chicken (LEPC) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). If the listing decision is finalized as currently proposed, the Southern DPS (which covers LEPC populations in West Texas and New Mexico) will be listed as endangered, and the Northern DPS (which covers populations in the Northern Panhandle of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Colorado) will be listed as threatened with a 4(d) rule prohibiting take from most activities. These listings would result in the most extensive protections yet for the species, with the most significant implications for energy development in the affected regions.