Stonefly Endangered by|Disappearance of Glaciers

WASHINGTON (CN) - The imminent disappearance of glaciers in Glacier National Park endangers the survival of the meltwater lednian stonefly, but protecting the species under the Endangered Species Act is precluded by higher priority listing actions, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The National Park Service predicts that all the glaciers in the park will be gone by 2030, which will destroy the only habitat in which the lednian stonefly is known to exist: the park's glacier fed streams.

A "warranted but precluded" designation places the stonefly on a candidate species list with over 250 other species the agency has determined warrant protection under the act. The agency noted that existing regulatory mechanisms do not address environmental changes due to global climate change.

In a related action, the agency determined that two previously undescribed mountainsnails, the Bearmouth and Byrne Resort do not warrant protection under the Endangered Species Act because they are not recognized by the scientific community.

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