Defenders of Wildlife

Happy MLK Day of Service from all of us! At Defenders of Wildlife, service drives us forward – for wildlife that need us, ecosystems that we rely on, and the communities that serve us in return. Read one of our stories of service from our staff who volunteered this past summer collecting data on imperiled sea turtles at Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge in her home state of South Carolina! https://dfnd.us/49Db52S ⬅️

Say NO to offshore drilling ❌ The Department of the Interior is taking public feedback on their draft Offshore Drilling Plan – this is our chance to protect our coastal wildlife and coastal communities. Submit your comment today: https://dfnd.us/3NbMXNl ⬅️

Call the clean-up crew! That’s an important role wolverines play in nature. By scavenging dead animals, they help recycle nutrients back into the ecosystem and reduce disease spread by eating carcasses. They roam massive territories in search of their next meal, using their incredible sense of smell to locate meat, sometimes buried feet beneath the snow. Learn more about wolverines (and why they’re coming back to Colorado): https://dfnd.us/4swwq6B

The government is trying to expand offshore drilling in search of petroleum deposits – but we know that oil and water don’t mix. We can’t risk more oil spills. We don’t need any more birds being weighed down by oil in their feathers, sea otters ingesting oil when trying to groom it out of their fur, or fish bobbing to the surface suffocated by oil in the water. However, the Department of the Interior is currently taking public feedback about their proposed expansion. This is your chance to protect coastal ecosystems and communities from threats like pollution and deadly oil spills. Submit your comment today. Say NO to offshore expansion: https://dfnd.us/3NbMXNl

Happy 25th anniversary to the Roadless Area Conservation Rule! This Rule protects some of our most pristine forests and the wildlife that calls these areas home. Species like the Louisiana black bear, Eastern hellbender, Canada lynx, Grace’s warbler, wolverine, and Sierra Nevada red fox are just a snippet of animals across the country that benefit from the Rule’s protections. Wolverine: © Andrea Bohl / Pixabay Grace's Warbler: Matt VanWallene Red Fox: USFWS Lynx: Ken Conger/NPS Hellbender: Isaac Szabo

Can you imagine America without the bald eagle? If it weren’t for the Endangered Species Act, you wouldn’t have to imagine it. Without it, our national symbol would have gone extinct. By the 1950s, the bald eagle’s population plummeted to just hundreds. Now, they number some 70,000 nesting pairs in the wild. On Save the Eagles Day today, we celebrate – because bald eagles are safe.

Our long journeys into the New Year may be ahead of us, but we certainly aren’t alone. Each year whales across the planet will make immense journeys across the seas in search of warm waters and breeding grounds. For the mighty humpback whale, that migration may be thousands of miles as they trek to their breeding waters in tropical and subtropical waters – common sights along Hawaiian shores. But, despite the long journey across the Pacific, they almost always return to the same breeding waters throughout their lifetime. Our journeys may be long, but at least we know they are worth it!

When you are boating in Florida waterways, it's probably not a floating, mossy rock you’re seeing but likely a manatee! Manatees face many threats, but one of the most serious – and preventable – is collisions with boats and other watercraft. Like other grazing animals, Florida manatees play an important role in influencing plant growth in the shallow rivers, bays, estuaries, canals and coastal waters they call home. Often, they are swimming along Florida waterways slowly searching for warm waters and beds of seagrass. So, if you’re out boating in manatee waters, slow down and keep your eyes peeled for these gentle marine mammals – if you’re lucky, you might catch one floating by! Learn more: https://dfnd.us/4jtHptp

Did you know that opossums don’t choose to “play dead?” They’re actually entering a state called tonic immobility, which is their body’s response to extreme stress. If you stumble upon an opossum “playing dead,” it means they want you, or other animals, to lose interest in them and move along!

And now, a message from our President and CEO, Andrew Bowman!