Endangered Species Act

A United States law that protects species listed as endangered or threatened and conserves the ecosystems they depend on.

Endangered species listing: The formal process for deciding whether a species qualifies as endangered or threatened under the Act. Listing triggers the Act’s core protections and federal recovery responsibilities.
Habitat Conservation Plan: A plan describing how land use will minimize and mitigate harm to listed species under an incidental take permit. Private and local projects often use these plans to secure permits while conserving habitat.
Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966: A federal law that authorized acquisition of habitat for native species threatened with extinction. It was an earlier, narrower statute that preceded the 1973 Act.
National Environmental Policy Act: A United States law requiring environmental review of major federal actions, generally without prescribing a specific outcome. Unlike the Endangered Species Act, it usually requires analysis rather than a species-specific protective result.
Critical habitat: Habitat areas designated as essential to a listed species’ conservation and potentially requiring special management. The Act can protect designated habitat by restricting harmful federal actions.
Biological opinion: A wildlife agency’s finding on whether a proposed federal action is likely to jeopardize a listed species or destroy critical habitat. Consultation under the Act can culminate in this assessment and required conservation measures.
Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969: A federal law that strengthened protections for endangered species and restricted imports of species threatened with extinction worldwide. It expanded federal protection before Congress enacted the current framework.
Marine Mammal Protection Act: A United States law that restricts taking and importing marine mammals, with protections distinct from endangered-species listing. It protects marine mammals through a separate statute and regulatory structure.
Section 7 consultation: A process requiring federal agencies to consult wildlife agencies before actions that may affect listed species or critical habitat. This provision makes federal projects account for species impacts before proceeding.
Bald eagle delisting: The 2007 removal of the bald eagle from the federal endangered and threatened species list after its recovery. It illustrates how population recovery can lead to the Act’s protections ending.

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