U.S. expands its endangered species list

WASHINGTON, March 10 (UPI) -- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Wednesday the designation of 48 more Hawaiian animals and plants as endangered species.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said the announcement marks a major step forward in conserving imperiled animals and ecosystems on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.

Salazar said the Fish and Wildlife Service, which is responsible for administering the Endangered Species Act, is also designating critical habitat on the island for 47 of the species.

"Our action today reflects President Obama's determination to base conservation decisions on the best available science and to move quickly to protect our nation's wildlife and ecosystems when, like the fragile ecosystem of Kaua'i, they are at risk," Salazar said.

He said the critical habitat decision is a significant step forward from past efforts that created an overlapping patchwork which didn't maximize conservation efforts.

"The ecosystem-based approach that our scientists used to make this decision represents an efficient and innovative model for conserving imperiled species and their habitats," said Salazar. "By highlighting species that share ecosystems and common threats, we can more effectively focus conservation management efforts to address these threats and restore ecosystem function for these species and the entire ecological community."

Officials noted Hawaii has more threatened and endangered species than any other state in the nation.

A list of the newly designated endangered species -- 45 birds, two plants and an insect -- is available at: http://www.fws.gov/home/feature/2010/pdf/designatedendangeredspecieslisted2010.pdf.