skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, June 20, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Trump's new two-week negotiating window sets off scramble to restart stalled Iran talks; Public lands supporters to rally during Santa Fe governors' meeting; ASU launches initiative to build 'stronger news ecosystem'; 'Dr. Beetle': Local biology teacher uses art to pique curiosity about bugs.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

White House says decision on Iran strikes will come in two weeks. Conservatives in Congress demand answers on former President Biden's mental acuity, and a new lawsuit could change Maryland's primary election process.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Giant data centers powering artificial intelligence want cheap rural land but some communities are pushing back, Hurricane Helene mobilized a North Carolina town in unexpected ways, and Cherokee potters make ceramics that honor multiple generations.

Colorado celebrates Endangered Species Day

play audio
Play

Friday, May 16, 2025   

Today is Endangered Species Day and people in Colorado and across the nation are celebrating successful efforts to save bald eagles, brown pelicans, peregrine falcons and other species from extinction.

Michael Saul, Rockies and Plains program director for the nonprofit conservation group Defenders of Wildlife, noted the bipartisan 1973 law is still at work in Colorado, protecting a number of species, including the Gunnison sage-grouse.

Saul said the bird is renowned for its unique mating rituals, where males dance to impress the ladies every spring.

"They puff up their white chest feathers and then expand repeatedly these yellow air sacks in their chest," Saul explained. "It creates a weird popping sound."

Critics of the Endangered Species Act claimed it slows development and hurts the economy. The Trump administration recently issued an executive order to clear the way for drilling, logging and mining by changing the law. Harming or killing endangered animals would still be prohibited but the habitats species rely on would lose protections.

Saul pointed to data showing most development can go forward under the Endangered Species Act, as long as companies take the minimum steps necessary to avoid pushing a species over the brink into extinction. He believes Trump's executive order will not hold up in court.

"If somehow this executive order survives the courts, it would do a lot of damage to our ability to keep species like the Gunnison Sage Grouse or the Canada Lynx away from extinction," Saul cautioned.

Colorado has used the Endangered Species Act to bring back black-footed ferrets, river otters and gray wolves. A new state law opens the door to bring wolverines back to the southern Rocky Mountains.

Saul noted the back molars of the tenacious and elusive scavenger are rotated 90 degrees, which enables them to tear through the frozen carcass of a moose and crush bones.

"Those impressive skills aren't enough to save them from the threat of losing their snowpack habitat due to climate change," Saul stressed. "They need our help, and they need us to bring them back to Colorado."

Disclosure: Defenders of Wildlife contributes to our fund for reporting on Climate Change/Air Quality, Endangered Species & Wildlife, Energy Policy, and Public Lands/Wilderness. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A parklet is an elevated public space, usually converted from a parking space and used to enhance community experience and support local businesses. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Eight Wisconsin cities, including four rural communities, will receive improvements to help make their communities more livable. Eleven grantees …


Social Issues

play sound

A bill prohibiting credit reporting on Oregonians' medical debt has been signed into law by Gov. Tina Kotek. Hailed as a significant victory for …

Environment

play sound

June is World Oceans Month, and advocates are warning that industrial shipping pollution hurts both oceans and port communities. At least 31 …


Flowers and notes are placed outside the Brooklyn Park home of state Rep. Melissa Hortman after the Minnesota lawmaker and her husband were fatally shot in what police say was a politically motivated attack. (Mike Moen/PNS)

Social Issues

play sound

Minnesotans gathered at the state Capitol last night for a candlelight vigil for Rep. Melissa Hortman, D-Brooklyn Park, after she was assassinated …

Social Issues

play sound

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday released an opinion that allows Tennessee to keep in place a ban on gender-affirming care for minors. While seen …

More than 500 Ohio children were reported sleeping in county government offices over a one-year period due to a lack of foster care placements. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Ohio child welfare advocates are urging lawmakers to restore more than $60 million in funding to address the state's ongoing foster care placement cri…

Social Issues

play sound

A Pennsylvania literacy organization is commemorating the Juneteenth holiday by highlighting the history and contributions of Black people in the Unit…

Environment

play sound

Forest fires have broken out in parts of New Mexico that state forecasters had already warned would see an elevated wildfire risk this summer due to h…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021