BEFORE THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR Photo by Tara Easter PETITION TO RECLASSIFY AND UPLIST AFRICAN ELEPHANTS FROM THREATENED TO ENDANGERED UNDER THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT AS TWO SEPARATE SPECIES: FOREST ELEPHANTS (Loxodonta cyclotis) AND SAVANNAH ELEPHANTS (Loxodonta africana) JUNE 10, 2015 CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY NOTICE OF PETITION Sally Jewell, Secretary U.S. Department of the Interior 1849 C Street NW Washington, D.C. 20240
[email protected] Dan Ashe, Director U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1849 C Street NW Washington, D.C. 20240
[email protected] Douglas Krofta, Chief Branch of Listing, Endangered Species Program U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 420 Arlington, VA 22203
[email protected] PETITIONER The Center for Biological Diversity (Center) is a non-profit, public interest environmental organization dedicated to the protection of native species and their habitats through science, policy, and environmental law. The Center is supported by more than 900,000 members and activists throughout the United States. The Center and its members are concerned with the conservation of endangered species and the effective implementation of the Endangered Species Act. Submitted this 10th day of June, 2015 Pursuant to Section 4(b) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), 16 U.S.C. § 1533(b); section 553(e) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. § 553(e); and 50 C.F.R. § 424.14(a), the Center for Biological Diversity hereby petitions the Secretary of the Interior, through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS or Service), to reclassify and uplist African elephants from Threatened to Endangered as two separate species: forest elephants, (Loxodonta cyclotis) and savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana).