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The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is the single most important wildlife conservation law ever enacted.  Thanks to the protection it has provided and the recovery plans mandated under the ESA, dozens of American species have come back from the brink of extinction.

I am old enough to remember the 1960s, when animals like the bald eagle, peregrine falcon, American alligator, grey wolf and gray whale were down to record low numbers and falling fast.  But thanks to the Endangered Species Act and its implementation by the US Fish & Wildlife Service, these species are all thriving again.  And hundreds of other endangered American plant and animal species have benefited from protection under the ESA as well.

The Endangered Species Act has never been a stop sign for development or resource exploration but serves as a caution sign, where needed, to make sure America is making conscious, thoughtful decisions as we grow.  In fact, the greatest economic growth in history has occurred over the last half century while under the rules of the ESA.

The early victories of the ESA like the comeback of the eagles and wolves were pretty straightforward.  By cleaning up our rivers, banning DDT and stopping over hunting, nature could heal herself.  But most endangered species recovery plans are complex and principally entail habitat protection. This is a win/win, not just for the spotted salamanders and Alleghany woodrats that share SW Ohio with us, but for people as well.  That’s because biodiversity and natural wildlands hold the world steady.

Saving habitat equals saving wildlife.  And what’s good for wildlife is good for people because we all share the same air and water and depend on nature for all our resources.  Conservation is not a blue state issue or a red state issue; it’s an everybody issue.  Conservation is practical because being thoughtful about the use of our natural resources makes sense.

That’s why here at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden we celebrate the great success of the Endangered Species Act over the last 52 years and encourage everybody to hold it up and keep it as strong as ever.

Act Now to protect endangered species and the Endangered Species Act?

Leave a comment on the Federal Docket requesting that USFWS maintain habitat protection as part of the Endangered Species Act. A sample message can be found below, or feel free to write your own!  Note: Commenting period ends May 19, 2025.

Sample comment:

As someone who cares deeply about wildlife and the future of our planet, I urge you to withdraw the proposed rule that would change the definition of “harm” under the Endangered Species Act. This change would go against decades of conservation progress and weaken one of our nation’s most important environmental laws.

It is critical to protect not just individual animals but the habitats they need to survive. Removing habitat destruction from the definition of “harm” would strip away essential protections and allow more species to slip toward extinction. Habitat loss and fragmentation is already the number one driver of species decline, and this rule would make it even harder to protect vulnerable wildlife.

The Endangered Species Act was designed to prevent extinction by protecting both species and the ecosystems they rely on. I urge you to uphold that mission and keep the current definition of “harm” in place. Our wildlife, wild places, and future generations are counting on it.