VICTORY! Helping Lynx Recover Nationwide

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is entrusted with the important duty of helping threatened species like Canada lynx recover to healthy levels. Recovery plans are one of the most important tools for ensuring the survival and recovery of listed species, as they are the “road map” to recovery and lay out where we need to go and how best to get there.

The Service is required to prepare recovery plans for all species listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act unless it determines such plans would not promote the conservation of the species. After a long legal ballet spanning 20 years and involving many court orders telling the Service to do its duty to protect and restore Canada lynx, the agency finally just said that a recovery plan would not help lynx recover.

In 2021, WELC and our partners convinced the Biden administration to do the right thing and write a recovery plan for lynx in the contiguous U.S. We will closely monitor and contribute to this plan to ensure it gives lynx the best possible chance at a strong recovery.

We also took legal action compelling federal wildlife managers to evaluate vital areas in the Southern Rocky Mountains for protected lynx habitat, and to create lynx protection zones in Montana.