	Volume 14 - No.3 - Summer 2004

The Endangered Habitats League is dedicated to the protection of the diverse ecosystems of Southern California and to sensitive and sustainable land use for the benefit of all the region’s inhabitants. The EHL Newsletter is published quarterly to chronicle our plans, activities, and successes.

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EHL Supports Revised California Gnatcatcher Listing

The listing of the California gnatcatcher as a threatened species in 1993 was the catalyst for regional habitat planning. In the wake of DNA information that gnatcatchers in the United States are the same species as those in Baja California, the US Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed revising the listing on the basis of “distinct populations.”

In response to requests for comments on the proposal, EHL retained the Conservation Biology Institute (CBI), a scientific organization. The San Diego office of CBI prepared comments that utilized aerial photos to show that there is little or no habitat connectivity left between populations in the United States and Mexico. They also described the ongoing threats in Mexico. We are hopeful that the Fish and Wildlife Service will follow through and revise this vitally important listing.

It is fair to say the California gnatcatcher listing came to the rescue of Southern California’s coastal sage scrub ecosystem. The listing is still needed, particularly for those areas in which a comprehensive Natural Community Conservation Plan has not been prepared.