Regional News & Recovery Updates

Endangered Species Bulletin, Sept, 1998

Wildflower Show FWS Roseburg, Oregon, Field Office staff participated in the 32nd Annual Glide Wildflower Show on the weekend of April 25-26 in Glide, Oregon. The show included a display featuring the rough popcornflower (Plagiobothrys hirtus), which was proposed in November 1997 for listing as endangered. Informational handouts and color pictures of the plant were available for public distribution. Interestingly, several landowners expressed a desire to provide habitat for establishing additional populations of the plant on their property.

The Glide Wildflower Show is one of the oldest as well as the largest show of its type in the Pacific Northwest. Attendance this year was comparable to past figures of approximately 3,000. Over 300 school children toured the exhibit on April 27.

Western Snowy Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) Outdoor education specialists and plover biologists from the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon State Parks, and FWS Oregon Coastal Field Office have developed a slide show to educate beach visitors about plover conservation. With a simple script designed to be presented by a volunteer, the show provides basic information about the plover, the reasons for its decline, and keys to its recovery, particularly the contributions that can be made by beach visitors. We are hopeful that this approach will reach people effectively and improve compliance with plover protection measures.

Reported by LaRee Brosseau of the FWS Portland, Oregon, Regional Office.

Region 2

Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle (Lepidochelys kempii) More than 3,600 nests have been recorded so far this year for the world's most endangered sea turtle, the Kemp's ridley, on Mexico's Gulf Coast south of Brownsville, Texas. The total--more than 1,200 higher than last year's 2,384 nests (an increase of 50 percent)--is the highest recorded for the species since the late 1960's.

This modern-day record provides hope that the Kemp's ridley sea turtle is continuing to recover from the brink of extinction. It is also a testament to the species' tenacity and longevity, plus the work of government agencies, support from nearby residents, and participation from a variety of other partners in Mexico and the United States.

As of June 29, more than 2,250 nests had been laid at Rancho Nuevo, Mexico, the species' main nesting beach, about 230 miles (370 km) south of Brownsville, Texas. Other nesting areas, on an 80-mile (130-km) stretch of beach with Rancho Nuevo at its center, recorded the following numbers of nests so far this year: Playa Dos 450, La Pesca 41, Tepehuajes 609, Altamira 175, Miramar 11, and Lechugillas 70. A total of 13 nests have also been found this year on Padre Island, Texas, including nine on Padre Island National Seashore--a record for the United States as well.

Despite this good news, the number of juvenile Kemp's ridleys found stranded each year on coastal beaches remains high, indicating a source of mortality that could ultimately affect numbers of nesting turtles. Thus, recovery efforts for the Kemp's ridley sea turtle include continued protection of known nesting beaches and adjacent waters, plus further reductions in mortality from incidental catch and drowning of turtles during commercial shrimping operations in the U.S. and Mexico. Biologists have a goal of ensuring a nesting population of 10,000 turtles per year before considering upgrading the status of Kemp's ridley from endangered to threatened.