No. 1333, January 22, 2026

In Court for Fishers in the Southern Sierra

Continuing a decades-long fight to save Pacific fishers from extinction, the Center for Biological Diversity just sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for failing to protect the species’ habitat in the southern Sierra Nevada.

We’ve been in and out of court defending these shy, plush-furred weasel cousins all along the West Coast since 2000, when we first petitioned to protect them under the Endangered Species Act. In 2020 the Service finally protected fishers in the southern Sierra, a unique and extra-imperiled population — but still hasn’t designated critical habitat to help conserve their old-growth forest home.

“By protecting the places these adorable mammals live, we can help them recover while also safeguarding California’s cherished wild landscapes,” said Andrea Zaccardi, legal director of the Center’s Carnivore Conservation program. Her team is still working to protect fishers along the rest of the West Coast.

Suit Aims to Save Florida Panthers From Sprawl

The Center and allies just warned two federal agencies that we’ll sue if they don’t take steps to ensure that a massive new development — and others in the region — won’t drive Florida panthers toward extinction.

Called Rural Lands West, the 10,264-acre residential and commercial project is planned for crucial Florida panther breeding habitat in Collier County. In approving the project, the Fish and Wildlife Service failed to assess how it could have tragic consequences for panthers’ ability to recover in the wild — a blatant violation of the Endangered Species Act.

“Relentless development is chipping away at the last remaining panther habitat in southwest Florida,” said Center attorney Jason Totoiu. “We won’t sit idly by and watch the Service allow this iconic species to suffer death by a thousand cuts.”

Help stand up for panthers with a gift to our Future for the Wild Fund.

Ocelots Spotted in Arizona Mountains

Two endangered ocelots have been spotted through remote cameras in southern Arizona in recent months — and one was in the Santa Rita Mountains near Tucson, the first time an ocelot has been detected there since 2014.

Based on the Santa Rita cat’s distinctive spots, researchers at the University of Arizona’s Wild Cat Research and Conservation Center believe it was an animal who’s been seen before — including by the Center’s own trail camera in the Whetstone Mountains in 2024.

The other ocelot, whose image was captured on a remote camera by wildlife photographer Jason Miller in the Huachuca Mountains, seems to be a newcomer. As the Center’s Russ McSpadden told reporters, that’s wonderful news; now we have to work hard to protect these wide-ranging felines by keeping their paths free of cruel border walls and massive mines.

If you haven’t seen it yet, watch the Center’s 2024 ocelot video.

Op-Ed: Trump’s No Good, Very Bad Offshore Oil Plan

Oil companies have treated the Gulf of Mexico like a dumping ground, writes the Center’s Lindsay Reeves in an opinion piece for the Louisiana Illuminator. And with its five-year offshore oil plan, the Trump administration is inviting them to repeat the pattern in Alaska and off the California coast.

Louisianans have seen the destruction up close, writes Lindsay, who’s based in New Orleans. Much has already been sacrificed, but it’s still possible to sink even further — marine wildlife from gulf sturgeon to Rice’s whales will be devastated if Trump’s “drill, baby, drill” dreams are realized in the Gulf. Rather than wreaking havoc in the oceans of Alaska and California, oil companies should clean up the mess they’ve made down South.

Suing to Protect Appalachian Salamanders

Last week the Center sued the Fish and Wildlife Service for missing its deadline to decide whether to protect yellow-spotted woodland salamanders. Named for the two rows of yellow spots along their back, these slender, purplish-brown salamanders have dwindled to a population of only a few hundred.

In response to a petition by the Center and allies, in January 2024 the federal government said the species may deserve Endangered Species Act protection. Now two years have passed without a decision.

“Without federal action these salamanders will go extinct,” said Center biologist Will Harlan.

The Revelator: Species Lost in 2025

Among the species declared extinct last year were Galápagos damselfish, Christmas Island shrews, several newly identified bandicoots, and South American rocket frogs.

Learn about them all in The Revelator.

And make sure you’re subscribed to the free Revelator weekly e-newsletter for more wildlife and conservation news.

That's Wild: Sea Turtle Cam Shows Wonders, Dangers

Take a look at this footage from a camera placed on a loggerhead sea turtle’s shell (for a short time) by scientists working with the BBC.

You can watch her eat seaweed off a submerged anchor, have a close call with a discarded net, and encounter another turtle — illuminating her feeding habits as well as the dangers these marvelous, ancient creatures face and the urgent need to make the ocean safer for their kind.

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Photo credits: Pacific fishers by Emily Brouwer/NPS; Florida panther courtesy USFWS; screenshot of ocelot video courtesy Center for Biological Diversity; oceanic whitetip shark courtesy NOAA Fisheries; manatee by Terri Calleson/USFWS, gulf sturgeon by Ryan Hagerty/USFWS; yellow-spotted woodland salamander by Kevin Hutcheson; 1863 painting of Perameles fasciata by John Gold from The Mammals of Australia/Biodiversity Heritage Library; sea turtle by Jithma Kalingu/Wikimedia Commons.

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