FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Endangered Adobe Hills Wildflower Gets Second Chance

Feds will consider protecting clay-loving wild buckwheat habitat

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service settled the lawsuit we brought about their failure to respond to our petition to expand the critical habitat designation for clay-loving wild buckwheat. The Service will make a decision about expansion in the next year.

Clay-loving wild buckwheat. Photo by J.L. Reveal.

Conservationists learned late Friday that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will consider formally protecting essential habitat for the clay-loving wild buckwheat, an endangered wildflower found only on the Adobe Hills near Delta and Montrose. In a court settlement agreement signed Thursday, the Service committed to issue a decision within the next year on whether to expand the area protected as critical habitat for the buckwheat.

Clay-loving wild buckwheat was protected under the Endangered Species Act in 1984. This Colorado wildflower was granted Endangered status because of the high risk of extinction, and the 125 acres occupied by the single known population at the time was also designated as critical habitat. When a plant or animal is protected under the Endangered Species Act, the Service is also supposed to designate "areas essential to the conservation" of that species as critical habitat, and the Act prohibits "adverse modification" of these areas by federal agencies.

Since then a total of about 15 clay-loving wild buckwheat sites have been discovered, some of which are now considered more valuable for recovery. This wildflower is still very rare, and only occupies about 1000 acres total. The recovery plan for the species, adopted in 1988, called for designating additional critical habitat if other populations were found, but the Service has never followed through.

"Protecting critical habitat for Colorado's rarest wildflowers like the clay-loving wild buckwheat greatly increases the chances that these beauties will be around for the next generation," said Erin Robertson, Senior Staff Biologist for Center for Native Ecosystems. A 2005 study found that endangered species with designated critical habitat were twice as likely to be recovering as those species for which critical habitat still has not been designated.

In July 2006, Center for Native Ecosystems, the Colorado Native Plant Society, and the Uncompahgre Valley Association formally petitioned the Service to expand the protected area. Although the Act requires that the Service make an initial finding within 90 days, the Service did nothing.

In March 2008, Center for Native Ecosystems was forced to sue the Service in federal district court in Colorado to obtain a response. In the settlement agreement signed last week, the Service has committed to make an initial finding on the petition by June 15, 2009. At that point if the Service determines that there is substantial information pointing toward the need to expand the critical habitat designation, they must undertake their own investigation and announce whether the expansion is warranted by September 21, 2009. Therefore, the Service will decide whether to expand the critical habitat designation sometime in the next year.

Clay-loving wild buckwheat is threatened by dirt bike and ATV damage, suburban sprawl, and even a proposed highway project in the Montrose Valley. This short, woody wildflower with pink petals is only known from the Adobe Hills, and the area is experiencing major growth in both residential development and recreational use. From 1990 to 2004, the population of Montrose grew by 73%. Between 2000 and 2004, 162 new subdivisions were approved in Montrose.

"This wildflower deserves a second chance - expanding the critical habitat designation to protect the most biologically valuable sites just makes sense," said Robertson.

For high resolution photographs, a copy of the petition, and other information about clay-loving wild buckwheat, please visit:
http://www.nativeecosystems.org/species/clay-loving-wild-buckwheat

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