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<br />0023J_5 <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />INTRODUCTION <br /> <br />BACKGROUND <br /> <br />The U.S. Fish and ~ildlife Service's involvement with endangered species <br />began with early wildlife laws such as the Lacey Act (1900) and the <br />Migratory Bird Treaty Act (1918), both of which served in part to save <br />vanishing species. The Service also, in a cooperative effort with the <br />National Audubon Society, began a project to save the whooping crane in <br />1945. The first legislation enacted specifically to conserve endangered <br />species occurred with the passage of the Endangered Species Preservation <br />Act of 1966. This act directed the Secretary of the Interior to "carry <br />out a program in the United States of conserving, protecting, restoring <br />and propagating selected species of native fish and wildlife." The <br />Preservation Act authorized the acquisition of endangered species habitat <br />for inclusion in the National Wildlife Refuge System. required the <br />official listing of endangered species, and further required the <br />Department of the Interior and the Departments of Agriculture and Defense <br />to protect fish and wildlife threatened with extinction and their habitat <br />consistent with the primary purpose of those departments. <br /> <br />The 1966 Preservation Act was expanded with passage of the Endangered <br />Species Conservation Act of 1969. This act increased the Secretary's <br />habitat acquisition authority and redefined fish and wildlife to include <br />"any wild mammal. fish, wild bird, amphibian. reptile. mollusk, or <br />crustacean." This act also authorized the listing of species and <br />subspecies threatened with "worldwide" extinction and prohibited the <br />importation of these species and subspecies into the United States. <br /> <br />In 1973. Congress enacted the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Public Law <br />93-205), which repealed previous acts designed to protect endangered <br />species. The 1973 Act afforded stronger protection to endangered and <br />threatened species and was expanded to include I.any member of the animal <br />kingdom." as well as authorizing for the first time the listing and <br />conservation of plants. A separate category for threatened species and <br />subspecies was established to protect plants and animals before they <br />reached dangerously low numbers. This act also provided for the <br />protection of habitat critical to the continued existence of endangered <br />and threatened species; prohibited the taking of endangered species; and. <br />under Section 7. placed strict requirements on all Federal agencies to <br />protect listed species and their habitat. <br /> <br />The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce are primarily <br />responsible for administering the Endangered Species Act. They determine <br />which species should be listed; enforce the Act's prohibitions against <br />violators; and, through required consultations, review the actions of <br />other Federal agencies that may affect listed species. The Secretary of <br />the Interior is generally responsible for freshwater and land species, <br />while the Secretary of Commerce is generally responsible for sea and <br />ocean (marine) species. Both Secretaries share responsibility for sea <br />turtles. Under the Secretary of the Interior, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife <br />Service is directly responsible for effectively planning, coordinating, <br />and carrying out a national program to conserve and protect freshwater <br /> <br />1 <br />