The Center for Biological Diversity is suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for denying Endangered Species Act protections for the Rio Grande cooter.
The freshwater turtles are found in the Rio Grande and Rio Bravo river basins in New Mexico, Texas and northeastern Mexico.
“Rio Grande cooters are threatened by climate change, unsustainable water usage and the oil industry’s influence, but we can save them with Endangered Species Act protections,” said Camila Cossío, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. USFWS determined in 2022 that the species did not warrant protections.
