Arizona Endangered Species

Many species today are impacted by threats from changing environments. These threats can pose a great amount of harm to a specific species, which in turn, can ultimately cause it to be endangered. A species is considered endangered when a threat is relatively high and a population is rapidly declining in size. One of the most effective ways to identify an endangered species is through acknowledging habitat loss, introduced species, pollution, and overconsumption. This paper will investigate two endangered species, the Arizona agave plant endemic of Arizona, and the Mexican Wolf (Lobo) of the Southwest.
The Arizona agave, also known as Agave arizonica, is rare and native to central Arizona. This species is somewhat small, and measures at about
This particular species, at the time, had a reputation of reproducing at extremely low levels, so any loss of habitat was prohibited. Due to the declining population levels of the Arizona agave, officials raised concern, which eventually ended the distinctive plant from being used as any commercial trade. However, upon further review, it was later found that the species was actually that of a hybrid and was removed from the endangered species list in July of 2006. According to Jeff Humphrey of the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service, “two relatively common and abundant species of agave overlap and occasionally produce a hybrid.” (Hogan, 2006). As a result, the arizonica was delisted from the endangered species list due to requirements that the endangered species act proposed.
Today, the Arizona agave plant species occurrence is estimated to be 6-20,. Two EOs are considered historical, 6 have not be re-located, 1 is extant, and 15 have not been visited in awhile so their status is unknown (Gentry & J.H. Weber, 2015). It can be noted, however, that wildlife officials are doing an excessive job at conserving and regulating all forms of life on public and private lands. Furthermore, just as the Arizona agave has made its way back into the ecosystem, the Mexican wolf of the Southwest, on the other hand, is struggling to do
As in the case of the Arizona agave, it was recovered and removed from the endangered species list due to the hybridization of two common and abundant species of agave as they essentially overlapped. By the same token, the Mexican wolf was subsequently thrown into endangerment due to improper conservation evaluations and lack of ecological research. This goes to show that ecology has come a long way since the nineteenth century, and has ultimately worked its way toward better scientific evaluations and stricter conservation