Proposed federal protection for Humboldt Martens incomplete, according to activists

EUREKA, CA., (KIEM)- Fewer than 400 Humboldt Martens are living in California and Oregon.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife services issues a proposal today, that would add Humboldt Martens to the list of “threatened” species under the endangered species act.

This is a direct response to a petition from conservationists. According to the Center for Biological Diversity and the Environmental Protection Information Center, the move leaves a large loophole, that may render protections ineffective.

The proposal makes allowances for logging activities, which conservationists argue, are the primary threat to martens and marten habitat. Wiped out traditionally by trapping and logging, the center petitioners want to see legal protections for the animals that also protects their closed canopy habitat and mature forests.

“I love Humboldt martens and am so relieved they’re finally being proposed for
Endangered Species Act protection,” said Tierra Curry, a senior scientist at the Center
for Biological Diversity, said in a statement. “But it’s deeply troubling that the agency charged with safeguarding them isn’t protecting them from the habitat loss that’s pushing them toward extinction.”