Brown Pelicans Protected, But Not Fluvial Grayling

None can doubt that the effort to rid North America of DDT in the 1960s proved one of the smartest ideas U.S. government officials have ever had. But there are plenty of folks, including many anglers, who now think that removing brown and white pelicans from the endangered species list is long overdue. With 620,000 brown pelicans inhabiting the U.S. gulf coast and the threat from DDT virtually gone in this hemisphere, it is hard to imagine why brown pelicans are still listed and fluvial grayling are not (see “U.S. Fish and Wildlife Decides Against Protecting Fluvial Grayling“). “Celebrating the phoenix-like recovery of the brown pelican, brought to near-extinction 40 years ago by potent insecticides, U.S. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne on Friday proposed removing the big-beaked coastal bird from the endangered species list.”