The Marine Mammal Protection Act is under assault by congress. Contact your House Representative and two Senators. Ask them to block any weakening amendments to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and Endangered Species Act (ESA) in Congress. The legislation is key to protection of wildlife throughout the United States.
Read MoreTell BOEM NO to Offshore Drilling
The Trump administration’s Department of the Interior is proposing a new 5-Year Offshore Drilling Plan that includes California, the Gulf of Mexico, the previously protected waters off of Florida, and Alaska, including the Alaskan wilderness, where drilling has never been attempted before because of the dangerous risk to sensitive wildlife. Oil spills caused by drilling- like the tragic Deep Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico- will have enduring negative impacts on climate, wildlife and human health. The agency is inviting public comments until Friday, January 23, 2026.
Read MoreVoices: A Scalloped Hammerhead’s Call from Hawaii
Even though Hawaii’s hammerhead population isn’t currently listed under the ESA, it’s connected to these other populations through migration and genetic exchange. We’re all part of the same species. When hammerheads in the Atlantic or Pacific are killed, it affects the entire global population.
This is why we need the ESA to remain strong: sharks in all waters should be protected like the hammerheads of Hawaii. We shouldn’t have to wait until a population is on the brink of extinction before we act. We should protect all populations, in all waters, before it’s too late.
Read MoreVoices of Extinction A Soupfin Shark’s Plea for Survival
Save the Soufin Shark and Defend the ESA. Color and Mail to Secretary Burgum (by December 21)
Download the Sammy the Soupfin Shark coloring page from Shark Stewards and color me in! Make me as beautiful and colorful as you want. Then write a short message on your drawing like:
“Dear Secretary Burgum, Please protect Sammy the Soupfin Shark and keep the Endangered Species Act strong! Sharks need our help! From, [Your Name]”
Mail your colored drawing to: Secretary Doug Burgum U.S. Department of the Interior 1849 C Street NWWashington, DC 20240
Read MoreVoices- The Oceanic Whitetip Shark
Im an oceanic whitetip shark and spend most of my time in the waters around the big Island of Hawaii. I’m a pelagic, or open- ocean species, constantly swimming over deep- ocean waters.
Read MoreSave the ESA and Save Endangered Sharks
For fifty years, the ESA has been the “emergency room” for America’s wildlife. It brought the California Gray Whale back from the brink of extinction. It allowed Southern Sea Otters to repopulate our kelp forests. It is the lifeline for endangered Oceanic Whitetip, Scalloped Hammerhead and Soupfin sharks. The ESA works because it was fast, strict, and based on science. Add your voice to USFWS today!
Read MoreHope for the Soupfin Shark: CITES Protection and the Fight Ahead
For far too long, the soupfin shark has faced a relentless onslaught of threats, pushing its global populations to the brink. At the latest Conference of the Parties to CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), soupfin sharks achieved international protection from trade.
Read MoreDefend the ESA: Submitting Comments
Making your voice heard is easy and takes less than 5 minutes. The most effective way to protect the Endangered Species Act is to submit your comment directly to the official federal record. Draft language to USFWS and Department of the Interior Doug Burgum.
Read MoreGood News for Shark Protection at CITES Oceanic Whitetip
The Oceanic Whitetip Shark (Carcharhinus longimanus} has been officially uplisted to CITES Appendix I at the 20th Conference of the Parties (CoP20) in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.The good news doesn’t stop there. CITES CoP20 saw an unprecedented commitment to marine conservation, with every shark and ray proposal tabled receiving adoption. This comprehensive suite of protections covers over 70 species and is a watershed moment for ocean wildlife.
Read MorePublic Comments Needed to Defend the Endangered Species Act
On November 19th the Trump Administration has published a proposal by US Fish and Wildlife to roll back Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections, specifically focusing on the removal of the “blanket rule” and its impact on threatened shark species. The public has a December 22nd deadline to comment to prevent the ESA from being weekend.
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