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A Gulf of Mexico Rice’s whale — one of the world’s rarest whales — observed in the western Gulf of Mexico in 2024. The species is the only large whale species that lives year-round in North American waters. (Paul Nagelkirk / NOAA Fisheries - NMFS ESA/MMPA Permit #21938)
From the Experts January 16, 2026

As a kid, he came face to face with one of the rarest whales in the world — he just didn’t know it yet

A photo of the whale caught a researcher’s eye, sparking a scientific odyssey spanning 56 years. Today, amid a push to expand fossil fuel drilling in the Gulf, Rice’s whales face extinction.

Caribou on the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. (Florian Schulz / protectthearctic.org)
Press Release January 13, 2026

Groups Challenge Arctic Refuge Leases and Drilling Plan

Updated complaint restarts paused litigation to protect the 1.56 million-acre Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil and gas leasing

In the News: The East Hampton Star January 8, 2026

LaLota a Critical ‘No’ on Wolf Protections

Ben Levitan, Attorney, Biodiversity Defense Program: “This attack is not just about the harm it would bring to wildlife and ecosystems; it’s also a threat from the Trump administration to violate the law and ignore the popular will in order to serve well-connected special interests.”

A bald eagle lands in the snow at the edge of the Chilkat River, near Haines, Alaska. In this area is the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, where thousands of bald eagles gather to feast on the last runs of coho and chum salmon — a globally unique phenomenon. (Sergei Uryadnikov / Getty Images)
Press Release December 22, 2025

Hundreds of Thousands of Americans Oppose Trump Administration Effort to Roll Back Protections for Imperiled Species

Trump agencies proposed weakening Endangered Species Act rules

Polar bears near the Beaufort Sea on Alaska's North Slope. (Stephanie Powell / Getty Images)
Press Release December 19, 2025

Groups Issue Notice of Intent to Sue Federal Agencies Over Expected Harm to Polar Bears from Arctic Oil and Gas Development

Federal agencies failed to prevent harm to threatened polar bears when they opened the entire Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas leasing

Endangered beluga whale, photographed during a hexacopter photogrammetry study of the Cook Inlet population. (Paul Wade / NOAA Fisheries)
Press Release December 19, 2025

Trump Administration Reaffirms Cook Inlet Offshore Oil and Gas Lease Sale Based on Environmental Study Completed Without Public Input

Federal regulators are allowing the challenged lease sale to move forward without any additional measures to protect endangered beluga whales

document December 18, 2025

60-Day Notice of Intent to Sue Regarding Violations of the Endangered Species Act Related to Oil and Gas Leasing Program in the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

This letter serves as a 60-day notice on behalf of the three conservation groups of their intent to sue the Bureau of Land Management and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum for violating the Endangered Species Act by failing to ensure that the oil and gas leasing program approved by the Bureau in October 2025 is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of polar bears or result in the destruction or adverse modification of their critical habitat.

As the gray wolf’s reintroduction has illustrated, healthy ecosystems are interconnected, holistic entities requiring rich biodiversity, including the presence of apex predators such as wolves.
(National Park Service Photo)
Press Release December 18, 2025

Earthjustice Responds to House Vote to Strip Gray Wolves of Endangered Species Act Protections

Legislation puts gray wolf recovery in jeopardy and defies science

A humpback whale breaches out of the water in Monterey Bay, California. (Chase Dekker Wild-Life Images / Getty Images)
Article December 17, 2025

5 Species Threatened if the California Coastline is Opened for Oil Drilling

The Trump administration wants to expand drilling across U.S. coastlines, endangering Pacific wildlife and communities.

A monarch butterfly on goldenrod in Schaumburg, Illinois. (Zara / 500px)
Press Release December 17, 2025

House Republicans Advance Bill to Gut Endangered Species Act

Bill would reduce critical protections for imperiled plants and animals

A snowy owl in the Western Arctic. Earthjustice has fought for decades on multiple fronts to protect this irreplaceable region. (Kiliii Yuyan for Earthjustice)
Update December 11, 2025

We’re Suing to Stop Arctic Oil Exploration

An exploratory project in the Western Arctic would harm wildlife, sensitive ecosystems, and Alaska Native communities.

Caribou in the Western Arctic around the Teshekpuk Lake area. (Kiliii Yuyan for Earthjustice)
Press Release December 11, 2025

Lawsuit Challenges Federal Approval of Harmful Oil Exploration in Alaska’s Western Arctic

Interior approved ConocoPhillips’ plan to explore for more oil near its Willow project without addressing the harm it will cause to wildlife and sensitive ecosystems

document December 11, 2025

Western Arctic Exploration Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief

Conservation groups and an Iñupiat-led grassroots organization seek to overturn the Trump administration’s approval of ConocoPhillips’ winter seismic and exploration drilling program in the Western Arctic.

A California spotted owl in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California. (Jamie Chambers / USDA Forest Service)
Article December 8, 2025

Saving Endangered Species Polls at 84%. So Why Does Trump Keep Doing the Opposite?

All the ways the Trump administration is targeting endangered species and their habitats for corporate profits — and how you can help.

Illustrations by Ceylan Sahin Eker
Article December 5, 2025

The Lawyers Giving Us Hope

Six Earthjustice attorneys share what motivates them to keep fighting for the planet and its people.

In the News: CBS November 20, 2025

Trump administration moves to roll back some protections for endangered and threatened species

Kristen Boyles, Managing Attorney, Northwest Office: “The Services are required to prevent harmful consequences to species, not ignore them.”

A northern spotted owl in Oregon. The northern spotted owl was listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act in 1990. (Kyle Sullivan / BLM)
Update November 20, 2025

Trump’s Latest Attack on Endangered Species Act Threatens Biodiversity

Already, over one-third of plant and animal species in the U.S. are at risk of disappearing.

A California spotted owl perches on a tree. (Rick Kuyper / USFWS)
Press Release November 19, 2025

Lawsuit Seeks Final Protection for California Spotted Owls

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service failed to finalize Endangered Species Act protections for California spotted owls it proposed in 2023