The act  directs the services, to the maximum extent practicable, to incorporate in  each recovery plan (1) a description of site-specific management actions  necessary to achieve the plan’s goal for the conservation and survival of the  species; (2) objective, measurable criteria that will result in a  determination that the species can be removed from the list of threatened  and endangered species (i.e., delisted); and (3) estimates of the time and  cost required to carry out those measures needed to achieve the plan’s goal. To do this, recovery plans aim to identify threats to the species’  survival and the actions needed to mitigate those threats. The services’ biologists report that 19  of these species are likely to be delisted within the next 25 years because  (1) the primary threats faced by the species have been or are being  mitigated; (2) the species are more prevalent than thought at the time they  were listed and/or habitat has been secured for the species; or (3) they are  the beneficiaries of extensive recovery efforts and are expected to respond  relatively quickly to those efforts. In contrast, the remaining 12 species are  far from recovery because (1) they respond slowly to recovery actions; (2)  the services have not been successful in protecting essential habitat; or (3)  there are gaps in knowledge about the threats challenging their survival, or  how to mitigate these threats. The remaining 5 of  the 19 species are expected to recover and be delisted within 25 years,  because they are expected to respond relatively quickly to recovery efforts  involving significant resources and a wide range of stakeholders. The services’ biologists believe that four of these species  will likely recover, but not for many decades—they respond slowly to  recovery efforts. For  the three remaining species, not enough is known about the threats they  face, or how to mitigate those threats, to predict whether or when a  successful recovery is possible. Some Species’ Habitats Are Difficult to Protect

Recovery efforts for five of the species we reviewed are far from complete  because FWS is unable to protect the habitat necessary to recover these  species. Recovery Plans Play an Important Role in Recovering Certain Threatened and Endangered Species

We found that recovery plans have played an important role in the recovery  efforts of all but one of the 31 species we reviewed. Although not all of  these species are nearing recovery, the services’ biologists report that the  success that these species have had can be attributed, in large part, to  implementation of actions in the species’ recovery plans. In some  cases, historic and legal events outside the purview of the recovery plan— such as the banning of DDT, which set the stage for the bald eagle’s  recovery—have been critical to the species recovery. The species declined  significantly because logging eliminated much of the woodpecker’s habitat  of old-growth pine. The plan also  identified measures to protect existing woodpecker habitat on private land,  for example, through conservation agreements. Interior generally agreed with the information presented in  this report; its letter is presented in appendix III. Scope and Methodology

In response to a request from 10 members of Congress, we (1) identified  factors affecting the length of time to recover 31 selected species listed as  threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act, and (2)  described the role that recovery plans have played in recovering these  species. First, we used three criteria to identify species that were  nearing recovery or had significant attention devoted to them, and thus  would be expected to be making progress towards recovery. The information provided is based primarily on species’ recovery plans,  Federal Register notices associated with the species, and information  provided by the biologists at the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the  National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) who are responsible for  recovering the species we reviewed. Building artificial cavities is necessary because most existing trees are not  suitable for the red-cockaded woodpecker to carve cavities.
Why GAO Did This Study

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service (the services) are responsible for administration and implementation of the Endangered Species Act of 1973. The act generally requires the services to develop recovery plans for endangered and threatened species--species facing extinction or likely to face extinction, respectively. Recovery plans identify threats to the species' survival and the actions needed to mitigate those threats. Proposed amendments to the act are under consideration and GAO was asked to provide information to facilitate this effort. In April 2006, GAO issued a report providing high-level information on the extent to which recovery plans contain estimates of when species are expected to be recovered, among other things. This follow-on report provides more detailed information on the factors that affect species recovery and the importance of recovery plans in recovery efforts. For 31 species--selected because they were nearing recovery, or had significant attention devoted to them and thus would be expected to be making progress towards recovery--GAO (1) identifies factors affecting the length of time to recover the species and (2) describes the role recovery plans have played in recovering these species. The Department of the Interior agreed with the facts presented in this report. The Department of Commerce declined to comment.

What GAO Found

Many factors affect the length of time it takes to recover the 31 species GAO reviewed. Specifically, 19 of these species have been recently delisted (removed from the list of endangered and threatened species) or are likely to be delisted within the next 25 years either because (1) they faced a primary threat that has been or is being mitigated; (2) they were found to be more prevalent than biologists thought at the time they were listed and/or habitats have been secured for the species; or (3) they are expected to respond relatively quickly to recovery efforts because, for example, they reproduce quickly in the presence of good habitat. The remaining 12 species are much farther away from being delisted, and for some, recovery is uncertain. Some of these species are not expected to recover for many decades because they respond relatively slowly to recovery efforts, for example, because they reproduce slowly. Recovery for the remaining species is uncertain either because their habitat is difficult to protect, or because not enough is known about the threats facing the species or how to mitigate those threats. Recovery plans have played an important role in the recovery efforts of nearly all of the species GAO reviewed by identifying many of the actions the services' biologists deemed most important to the species' recovery. The services' biologists report that these actions have contributed, at least in part, to the progress made in recovering these species. For example, recovery of the red-cockaded woodpecker is dependent on having sufficient habitat--the species nests in cavities that they peck out of old pine trees, but logging largely eliminated these trees from the woodpecker's range. The recovery plan identifies measures to protect the habitat, including land acquisition and conservation agreements with landowners, as well as steps to provide artificial nest boxes until pines mature enough to provide natural habitat for the birds. The services' biologists told us that these actions have significantly improved this species' prospects for recovery. However, for about one-half of the species GAO reviewed, actions beyond those in the recovery plans also played an important role in progress toward the species' recovery. For example, the banning of the insecticide dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT) by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1972--a year before the Endangered Species Act was enacted--has been critical to recovery of the bald eagle.