The government says we can't protect the greater sage grouse, which it acknowledges is heading for extinction, because we're doing a much worse job of protecting other species.
WASHINGTON — The Interior Department said Friday that the greater sage grouse, an iconic dweller of the high plains of the American West, was facing extinction but would not be designated as an endangered species for now.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, a conservative Democrat from a Colorado ranching family...said that scientists at the United States Fish and Wildlife Service had concluded that the sage grouse deserved inclusion on the endangered species list but that other species were facing more imminent threats...[instead] the bird will be placed on the list of “candidate species” for future inclusion on the list"
It's not even an Onion story (yet)!
via www.nytimes.com
