The Three-Minute Outdoorsman: Wild Science from Magnetic Deer to Mumbling Carp

40. Species Conservation at the State Level

t h e t h r e e - m i n u t e o u t d o o r s m a n 152 pear, if they develop a taste for eggs. In fact, Rockwell remarked to me, “I was gratified this spring to find a fat subadult male standing amidst thirty to forty empty Snow Goose nest bowls—he has obviously read our work, came ashore early, and was feasting!” He also mentioned that in some areas, seal-hunting bears come ashore for an “egg break” and then go back to hunting seals. The unfolding saga of the consequences of global warming is well illustrated by the interactions between polar bears and Snow Geese. Even the extreme global-warming doubter has trouble explaining why sea ice is melting earlier and earlier, as shown in the graph (not the same as explaining what’s causing global warming , be it humans or natural factors). This is pretty basic stuff—ice melts in warm water. Clearly, the goose and bear are entering into a new era of interactions. Perhaps Snow Geese should nest earlier, although they might already be nesting as early as possible. Polar bears may not survive if all they have to eat are Snow Goose eggs. Some scientists in fact predict the extinction of the polar bear. Rockwell recalled a quote from an old Inuk hunter, who said something like, “Things are changing, and the bears will change too. Some will die, and some will be skinnier. But just like the Inuit, they will still be around a long time from now.” Rockwell says he’s betting on the bears to survive. Time will tell, but I hope he’s right. 40 species conservation at the state level a fish-eye view Most people have heard of the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA), federal legislation passed by Congress in 1973, which extends protection to species, subspecies, and distinct population segments (of vertebrates only). Recognizing that our natural envi- I N T H E W A T E R 153 ronment provides “esthetic, ecological, educational, recreational, and scientific value to our Nation and its people,” the ESA is designed to “protect and recover imperiled species and the ecosystems upon which they depend.” A species can be designated as “endangered” or “threatened” depending on whether its entire range or only a portion is at risk. There are just under fourteen hundred listings in the United States. Perhaps less well known is the fact that legal protection can be extended to species at the state level. As an example, Minnesota defines “endangered” as a species threatened with extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range within Minnesota . “Threatened” means a species is likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range within the state. The Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) web page states that “a person may not take, import, transport, or sell any portion of an endangered or threatened species.” However, there are some exceptions, such as if an herbicide applied to agricultural crops accidentally kills an endangered or threatened plant. A species is listed as “special concern” if it is extremely uncommon in Minnesota or has unique or highly specific habitat requirements and deserves careful monitoring of its status. Special concern species are not protected by the same rules that apply to threatened or endangered species, although habitat modifications or regulations can be proposed to protect the species from current threats. The Minnesota DNR has been very proactive in surveying and evaluating the population status of many species in the state. They just proposed over three hundred changes to the status of species on the list, which includes birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles, fish, mollusks, caddis flies, jumping spiders, vascular plants, mosses and liverworts, fungi, tiger beetles, moths and butterflies , leafhoppers, and dragonflies. Much of our information on these groups has come from the Minnesota Biological Survey. In a sense, the list of threatened species provides an index to the environmental health of the state. t h e t h r e e - m i n u t e o u t d o o r s m a n 154 I went through each list to see how Minnesota is doing, and counted the number of species that were given a higher rating of concern (e.g., moved from threatened to endangered, or from...