Rating:

0.0 (0 votes)

HELENA, Mont. (AP) - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says the protection of the Montana arctic grayling is warranted, but it won't be listed as an endangered or threatened species because other species take priority.

In an advance notice of the Federal Register, the agency says the Montana grayling population will be added to the candidate species list for protection.

The decision to review the grayling was part of a U.S. District Court-approved settlement of a lawsuit filed against the agency by the Center for Biological Diversity, Federation of Fly Fishers and Western Watersheds Project.

Noah Greenwald of the Center for Biological Diversity says the decision the Montana subspecies is on the brink of extinction. He said Tuesday that there are 244 other species awaiting protection.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

(Photo from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service website)