May 16 is Endangered Species Day, founded to honor the incredible biodiversity that the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has helped conserve for more than half a century. Thanks to the ESA, sea otters still splash along the Pacific coastline, grizzly bears roam the Northern Rockies, and California condors once again soar over the Southwest. Since its establishment by President Richard Nixon in 1973, the ESA has been a critical environmental safeguard that now protects over 1,600 species. It has brought the bald eagle, American alligator, whooping crane, and other iconic species back from the brink.
But this year, Endangered Species Day isn’t about celebration—it’s about defending thousands of endangered species from the Trump administration‘s all-out assault on the ESA. In the last four months, leaders and lawmakers have unleashed a wave of legislative, administrative, and executive rollbacks that would weaken environmental protections, put wildlife at risk, and harm the ecosystems that sustain us.
With one proposed ESA rule change, the Trump administration seeks to strip habitat destruction from the definition of “harm,” making it easier to log, mine, and develop lands that endangered species rely on. This change would mean the ESA would be powerless to stop bulldozing in a meadow where protected species live, for example, even if those animals died as a result of losing their home. It’s a chilling shift that would legalize the destruction of critical habitat for over 900 species currently under review, all without scientific justification or public consent.
At the same time, lawmakers have introduced sweeping bills with misleading names, like the “Pet and Livestock Protection Act” and the “ESA Amendments Act of 2025,” designed to fast-track delistings, block court challenges, and hand species management to states with poor track records.
The Pet and Livestock Protection Act (H.R. 845), introduced by Representative Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) and Representative Tom Tiffany (R-Wis.), would strip gray wolves of federal protections, leaving it up to the states to determine whether wolves can be hunted. The bill would also block judicial review, preventing any legal challenges to the legislation, no matter how detrimental its effects on wolves.
Similarly, the ESA Amendments Act of 2025 (H.R. 1897), proposed by Representative Bruce Westerman (R-Ariz.), would make it harder to list species, weaken protections for listed species, and fast-track the delisting of species without relying on best available science. According to Defenders of Wildlife, the bill “would gut the most important provisions of the ESA, resulting in catastrophic damage to American wildlife and inviting the extinction of imperiled species.”
Other actions that undermine species protections include Trump’s executive order opening the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument to commercial fishing; legislation to sell off thousands of acres of public lands; an executive order to expand drilling, mining, and logging in Alaska; and an administrative rule that weakens migratory bird protections. Meanwhile, the US Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services Program (often called the “killing arm” of the USDA) used taxpayer dollars to kill over 1.9 million wild animals nationwide to make way for ranching, farming, and development.
Equally troubling, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has proposed major changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The law, authorized in 1970 with bipartisan support, ensures that federal agencies consider the environmental impacts of proposed actions. Like the ESA, NEPA has been a powerful tool for protecting wildlife and ecosystems threatened by development and pollution. CEQ intends to weaken NEPA regulations by removing oversight, reducing community input, and removing the requirement for a cumulative impacts analysis.
The Trump administration is purposefully decimating species protections in order to serve the interests of fossil fuel, logging, agriculture, and other big industries. In the eyes of Trump and his allies, protected land is a business obstacle; endangered species are a nuisance.
Yet the American public has never been more supportive of protecting wildlife. A 2023 poll of US registered voters found that 80 percent of Americans support fully funding the Endangered Species Act, and 70 percent believe that listing decisions should be made by scientists, not politicians. Similarly, a national public survey published by the Animal-Human Policy Center at Colorado State University, in collaboration with Project Coyote, showed broad public support among US citizens for policy solutions aimed at protecting wildlife. More than 75 percent of participants would support state or federal laws banning wildlife killing contests, unregulated hunting seasons, and animal cruelty.
Despite the Trump administration’s claims to the contrary, federal environmental legislation, including the ESA, has been incredibly effective at protecting threatened species. The Department of the Interior’s own website hosts a blog (written during the Biden-Harris administration; now archived) celebrating the ESA’s 50 years of success in preventing extinction for 99 percent of listed species.
“ESA success stories demonstrate the effectiveness of the ESA in conserving and recovering imperiled species and highlight the importance of continued efforts to protect and conserve species threatened with extinction,” reads the post. “Animals, plants, insects, and all living things are part of the balance of nature that our world relies on, but today there are still species at risk of being lost forever.… We have an obligation to protect our planet’s biodiversity now and for future generations.”
The ESA has worked for 50 years because it’s based on science, not politics. It has historically received significant bipartisan support. But the act only works if we defend it. Call your representatives—they need to hear from us now more than ever. Demand that they oppose bills that weaken species protections. Write letters to the editor and spread awareness about the current threats to environmental legislation.
Extinction isn’t something we can reverse with a headline or a lab experiment, as suggested by Representative Boebert when one Texas-based company incorrectly announced that it had resurrected a dire wolf. Many scientists called the news a deceptive publicity stunt. Once these species are gone, they’re gone for good, and only science-based, ethical, enforceable protections will ensure they—and we—survive.
This article by Kristen Weiss was first published by Sierra on 16 May 2025. Lead Image: Gray wolves in Sandstone, Minnesota. | Photo by Kathleen Reeder Wildlife Photography via Getty Images.
Wildlife in catastrophic decline
The 73% decline in vertebrate wildlife populations during the last 50 years (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish), is primarily driven by human activities that threaten biodiversity.
Habitat Loss and Degradation – human activities like deforestation, urbanization, and agriculture have led to the destruction and fragmentation of natural habitats, reducing the space and resources available for wildlife.
Pollution – air, water, and soil pollution from industrial activities, agriculture, and other sources can harm wildlife directly or indirectly by affecting their habitats and food sources.
Climate Change – changing weather patterns, rising temperatures, and sea levels are disrupting ecosystems and impacting species’ ability to adapt and survive.
Overexploitation of Resources – unsustainable hunting, fishing, and logging practices can lead to the depletion of populations and the loss of biodiversity.
Invasive Species – the introduction of non-native species can disrupt ecosystems, compete with native species, and threaten their survival.
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