Measuring recovery success

Most people agree that removing a listed species from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants due to recovery is a sign of success. The recent delistings of the bald eagle, Eggert's sunflower, and the species mentioned below are excellent examples. However, recovery related delistings currently represent only about one percent of the species currently listed. Some people believe that this means the Endangered Species Act is not succeeding.

But counting only the number of recovery related delistings does not give a true measure of the Act's success. By the end of Fiscal Year 2006, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had the lead for conserving 1,269 listed species throughout all 50 states and other lands under U.S. jurisdiction. Given this large number of species, and the limited staffing and financial resources available to the Service for their recovery, the following statistics provide another measure of recovery success:

* Three species have been delisted this year due to recovery: the bald eagle, Western Great Lakes distinct population segment (DPS) of the gray wolf, and Yellowstone DPS of the grizzly bear. The Service also proposed this year to delist two other species due to recovery: the West Virginia northern flying squirrel and the Northern Rocky Mountain DPS of the gray wolf. We are making significant progress in recovery-related delistings.

* The most recent data available indicate that 522 listed species are now stable or improving in status. Forty-one percent of the species are doing better since they have gained protection under the Act.

* Most (1,084) species listed for 2.5 years or longer now have final recovery plans, 43 species have draft recovery plans, and 134 species have recovery plans under revision. (Another 12 species are exempt from needing recovery plans.) This means that 90 percent of listed species now have a recovery plan in place or do not require one.

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But the story is not all about the numbers. There are numerous challenges to recovering listed species. For example, a species' decline often occurs over decades or even centuries, and the road to its recovery can be a long one as well. Addressing threats that have occurred over long periods typically requires substantial time and resources. Some species also face new threats even after receiving protection under the Act. Many bird populations, for example, have been decimated by the introduced West Nile virus. Other animals and plants face danger posed by such invasive, nonnative species as the brown tree snake or the zebra mussel. In the face of these continuing challenges, we should remind ourselves that success is measured in the day-to-day milestones achieved instead of only the ultimate goal of delisting.

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Every time a rare species expands its range, a breeding pair produces offspring, a private landowner joins in a new conservation partnership, a research project gains vital information about a species' life history, or a missing plant arises from a seed bank is a time worthy of celebration. All of these, and more, are cumulative steps that eventually lead to recovery. And if we can take action to benefit a listing candidate or other imperiled species before it needs Endangered Species Act protection, so much the better!

From stories about habitat needs for the Page springsnail (a listing candidate), to land purchased by The Nature Conservancy to protect several at-risk and listed species, to habitat clean-ups, and other efforts, the following articles are wonderful examples of recovery milestones, both small and large. The tennis champion Arthur Ashe once said, "Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome." When it comes to the conservation and recovery of listed and imperiled species alike, "the doing" is as "important as the outcome."

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Krishna Gifford is a biologist with the Washington Office Endangered Species Program, Branch of Recovery and Delisting, and can be reached at krishna_gifford@fws.gov.

COPYRIGHT 2007 U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning