Five environmental organizations filed suit in federal court in Denver on Tuesday to undo the Bush administration’s decision to roll back protections for the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse and other endangered species.
The groups are the Center for Native Ecosystems in Denver; Biodiversity Conservation Alliance in Laramie; Natural Resources Defense Council in New York; the Center for Biological Diversity in Tucson; and the Defenders of Wildlife in Washington.
Last year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ruled the mouse would continue to be protected in Colorado. But in Wyoming the mouse is no longer protected as a threatened species. Bush administration rules have also weakened protections for the gray wolf, Gunnison’s prairie dog and Queen Charlotte goshawk, the groups claim. Joey Bunch, The Denver Post
