The Fish and Wildlife Service said Monday that it will list three Florida reptiles as endangered.
The determinations, announced in the Federal Register, find that the Florida Keys mole skink, Key ring-necked snake and rim rock crowned snake need protections under the Endangered Species Act to prevent their likely extinction.
They are the first final decisions to grant endangered species status to new wildlife during the Trump administration and come after a court settlement with environmental groups that gave FWS a July deadline to make final determinations for the three species.
All three species primarily inhabit the Florida Keys, a low-lying archipelago that is highly vulnerable to sea-level rise and flooding linked to climate change. Their new status automatically grants the species some protections from harm and will require future environmental analyses of development activities for their potential to jeopardize the species’ future.
