Wildlife

Weasel-Like Mammal Proposed for Listing under US Endangered Species Act

A shy, stubby-legged creature known as a Pacific fisher is now threatened by cannabis cultivators. It lived along the Pacific coast for thousands of years but was nearly wiped out because of hunting and loss of habitat.

The weasel-like mammal this week proposed for listing under the Endangered Species Act, providing conservationists with hope that the uncommon and elusive predator can be returned to the forests of California, Oregon and Washington.

Drug cartels and others have increasingly been setting up giant, illegal marijuana farms in public forests. They spread deadly rodenticides to kill pests that might damage their plants, and the furtive fishers have been hit badly.

Next year, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service will take public comment and collect information on the Pacific fisher, which consume porcupine and survives in old-growth forests.