The dunes sagebrush lizard (Sceloporus arenicolus) is yet again under consideration for listing under the Endangered Species Act. The lizard was a can
The dunes sagebrush lizard (Sceloporus arenicolus) is yet again under consideration for listing under the Endangered Species Act. The lizard was a candidate for protection in 2010, but was denied the listing after a 2012 public-private scheme with the state of Texas was said to help stave off the listing. That conservation plan was discontinued in 2018 after years of controversy.
Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Status Over The Years
The lizard’s status has for the last several years been a contentious issue for the state of Texas and the Texas oil industry. The agency that was set up in 2013 to monitor the voluntary protection efforts for the dunes sagebrush lizard was comprised of oil industry lobbyists, according to a report in the Texas Tribune. The Texas Habitat Conservation Foundation was formed, supposedly in an effort to ensure that the agreements laid out to protect the lizard were enforced. That agency was disbanded.
The USFWS has found that, based on the best available scientific and commercial information, that listing of the lizard is warranted. The service notes in a press release the designation of critical habitat, which is crucial to the recovery of any endangered species, cannot be determined at the time of publication of the release.
Much of the dunes sagebrush lizard’s habitat is found in oil- rich West Texas. USFWS
“The Endangered Species Act provides a critical safety net for imperiled species like the dunes sagebrush lizard,” Shawn Sartorius,supervisor for the Service’s New Mexico Ecological Services Field Office said in a statement. “Habitat loss and fragmentation as well as climate change are pushing this rare species closer to extinction.”
The lizard is only found in the shinnery oak sand dune ecosystems of West Texas. and southeastern New Mexico. This ecosystem is also home to large oil and gas development and sand mining.
Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Under Review For Federal Endangered Species Act Protections.
Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Listing Delayed By Six Months
Ranchers in New Mexico and Texas and 100 oil and gas partners have enrolled in a voluntary Candidate Conservation Agreements and Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances. These agreements enable the stakeholders to manage their lands with no additional requirements or restrictions to help ensure the viability of healthy populations of the lizard.
For those who wish to comment for the public record on listing the dunes sagebrush lizard, you can do so starting July 3 in the Federal Register at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/current and in the Federal Register Reading Room on Friday, June 30, 2023 at https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection/current
Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Information
The dunes sagebrush lizard is found in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas. The dunes sagebrush lizard is native to small areas of shinnery oak dunes in these states, according to the USFWS. USFWS has not yet determined which area should be designated as critical habitat for the lizard.
