Urge Oregon Officials to List the Marbled Murrelet as Endangered

Right now, we have the chance to bolster protections for the Marbled Murrelet, an iconic Oregon seabird that nests in old-growth and mature forests and forages at sea. This bird has continued to head towards extinction in Oregon despite being listed as “Threatened” for more than two decades under both the Oregon and Federal Endangered Species Acts.

Photo by Robin Corcoran USFWS

Tell the ODFW Commission to follow the science and uplist the Marbled Murrelet to “Endangered”

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) recently completed a draft status review that affirms the dire prospects for this species. Now is the time to let the ODFW Commission know that they need to take an important step and uplist this species from “Threatened” to “Endangered”.

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Continued habitat loss and fragmentation due to inadequate logging regulations, most dramatically on nonfederal lands, and increasingly poor oceanic conditions have resulted in a historically small and vulnerable Oregon murrelet population. The growing body of science indicates a variety of increasing threats are driving this species toward a high probability of extinction.

Remarkably, Oregon has no comprehensive murrelet conservation strategy on state land. An uplisting would make this a requirement and set in motion survival guidelines for the species. Without a roadmap for recovery on state lands, which contains a significant percentage of remaining high quality murrelet nesting habitat, efforts to bring this species back from the brink will continue to fail.

Thank you for speaking up for the Marbled Murrelet!