SEATTLE - Monday marks the 100th anniversary of the extinction of the passenger pigeon. Folks in the bird world and the conservation world are taking notice.

In the 1800s, there were perhaps 5 billion passenger pigeons in North America, known for migrating and nesting in giant flocks that made them easy prey for hunters. They were a food source, but Trina Bayard, bird conservation director for Audubon Washington, said traveling in great numbers also made them bad news for farmers.

"They were hunted in every way imaginable," she said. "They were also caught and trapped. They were burned out of their trees. They were poisoned with whiskey-soaked corn. So, the hunting was quite intense on these birds."

For some, Bayard noted, this anniversary also is a reason to urge protection of other species that may face extinction - and for the Endangered Species Act that protects them.

"Passenger pigeons are a very powerful reminder of our ability to exhaust seemingly limitless resources," she said. "From an endangered-species perspective, they're an example of how close to the edge species that are already listed as endangered or threatened really are."

A bill making it more difficult for the public to hold agencies accountable when they fail to comply with the ESA recently passed the U.S. House. Its supporters say they want to curb the numbers of plant and animal species that qualify as "endangered."

Ya-Wei "Jake" Li, director of endangered-species conservation for the group Defenders of Wildlife, said hundreds of species across the nation could disappear if the ESA is not protected.

"There are about 1,500 species in the U.S. that are threatened or endangered with extinction," he said, "and about 95 percent of these species are threatened by habitat loss, and many of the same factors that actually caused the passenger pigeon to go extinct."

The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, on the University of Washington campus in Seattle, has one of slightly more than 1,500 specimens of passenger pigeons left in the world. This Saturday through Monday, museum visitors can take part in Fold the Flock, a worldwide event to create at least 1 million origami paper replicas of the passenger pigeon.

Monday marks the date that the last bird, named "Martha" for Martha Washington, died at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1914.

More information on the passenger pigeon is online at defendersblog.org.


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"The Creature from the Black Lagoon" is a scary story told around Halloween, but conservationists say the real danger in Georgia's swamps is how humans mistreat the wetlands.

The group Defenders of Wildlife is launching its "Real Scary Movies" campaign to show how pollution, overuse and habitat loss are the real danger to places such as the iconic Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

Christian Hunt, a senior federal lands policy analyst for Defenders of Wildlife, said while the swamp's alligators, snakes and other creatures can be scary, humans remain the wetland's biggest threat.

"The true threat is how people manage wetlands. It's through pollution, mining, or the draining and conversion of wetlands and swamps. The only horror, the only creature, if you will, is our treatment of the places we vilify," he said.

October 13 through 19 is also National Wildlife Refuge Week, a time to visit America's network of lands and waters that conserve and protect our wildlife heritage. During this time, entrance fees to many refuges will be waived.

The Okefenokee refuge is home to hundreds of species, many listed as threatened or endangered. Hunt said nearby operations such as power plants and other industries can cause damage through pollution, mining, or draining swamps.

"Frankly, many people are scared of wilderness," he explained. "They're scared of the wild, and they create villains, such as, say, the creature of the Black Lagoon, to rationalize that fear."

Hunt added groups such as Defenders of Wildlife are working to preserve refuges like the Okefenokee, and says if those lands are damaged or destroyed, they might be gone for good.

"They protect some of the last vestiges of wilderness, particularly in the Southeast. It's hard to quantify what would be lost if we were to lose these places, but the loss would certainly be immense," he contended.

Indiana is considering a limited bobcat trapping season and the Department of Natural Resources is seeking public input on the proposal.

The plan would allow trapping in about 40 southern Indiana counties starting in November 2025, with a statewide quota of 250 bobcats. Trappers would have a one-bobcat bag limit and be required to purchase a special bobcat license.

Geriann Albers, furbearer and turkey program leader for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, said the proposal includes strict monitoring, and requires trappers to report their catches within 24 hours.

"We do have a population model for bobcats," Albers explained. "We're very confident with that 250 quota that it will not negatively impact bobcat populations. What that 250 was set on was the population model we have that shows that's a sustainable level of harvest."

Opponents argued even a limited season could threaten bobcat populations. Environmental groups, including the Humane Society, said the DNR's population model may not fully account for the bobcat's slow reproductive rate and threats from habitat loss. They contended reintroducing trapping could undermine years of conservation work that helped the species recover in Indiana.

Albers noted the DNR invited public feedback on the proposal.

"On that rule-making docket page the comment button is available for people to submit comments now," Albers pointed out. "That went up pretty quickly after the meeting but the first round of comments, we haven't scheduled yet because that usually coincides with when we do a public hearing."

A public hearing, tentatively set for November, will offer both in-person and virtual participation options. The DNR said updates will be posted on its website.


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Environmental groups are slamming a Biden administration effort to remove federal protections for the endangered gray wolf.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service just appealed a 2022 court decision reinstating protections for the gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act; protections lost in the Trump era.

Derek Goldman, Northern Rockies senior field representative for the nonprofit Endangered Species Coalition, said federal officials are making contradictory moves.

"On one hand, they said earlier this summer that they want to write a national recovery plan. But then they appealed to reinstate the Trump wolf delisting rule, which would presumably mean they don't have to do a recovery plan," Goldman pointed out. "This is kind of sending a mixed message here."

In the suit, Justice Department attorneys argued the gray wolf is no longer in danger of extinction. The National Rifle Association and hunting and livestock groups also supported the Trump-era policy, which would send protections back to the states.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife said seven confirmed packs of gray wolves have made their way down from Oregon. Goldman acknowledged the wolves enjoy state-level protections but have a long way to go.

"They certainly haven't recovered throughout all the suitable habitat that's in California, like the Sierra Nevada mountain range," Goldman noted. "But without the resources provided by the Endangered Species Act, they won't fully recover."

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service set a deadline of December 2025 to produce a new federal gray wolf recovery plan.