BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) – The U.S. government agreed Tuesday to decide over the next several years if federal protections are needed to help a small, fanged predator of the Northern Rockies, massive alligator snapping turtles in the South and seven other troubled species that in some cases have awaited action for years.
Deadlines for the decisions were detailed in a legal settlement filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.
The Center for Biological Diversity had sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in March, alleging agency officials repeatedly missed previous deadlines despite determining protections may be warranted.
Representatives of the Fish and Wildlife Service did not immediately comment on the settlement. It must be approved by Judge Emmet G. Sullivan before it goes into effect.
One of the first species to be decided on, by October 2017, is the Northern Rockies fisher. The cat-sized predator once ranged across at least five states. It’s now limited to a much smaller area straddling the Montana-Idaho border.