Endangered Species Act
Overview
The Endangered Species Act has successfully protected imperiled marine species since 1973. Oceana is committed to defending this crucial law from political interests that put profit over protection.
What is the Endangered Species Act?
Fact Sheet
The Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act (ESA) is a law that protects more than 1,600 animals and plants to prevent them from becoming extinct. Protections include prohibiting the “take” (harassment, harm, or killing) of endangered or threatened species, as well as the possession, sale, transport, or trade of these animals, with limited exceptions. It also protects the habitats that are crucial to their survival and recovery.
Marine Animals Protected Under the ESA
Approximately 160 marine species are protected by the ESA, including ocean mammals, sea turtles, fish, and marine invertebrates. This includes foreign species that are protected primarily through trade restrictions.
Threats to the ESA
The ESA authorizes an “Endangered Species Committee” consisting of federal and state officials, to create exemptions from ESA requirements. It’s sometimes called the “God Squad” because it can authorize activities that might cause a species to go extinct. In March 2026, the Trump administration convened a group of political appointees to serve on a committee and unilaterally eliminated key ESA protections for marine life in the Gulf of Mexico, including the critically endangered Rice’s whale, sea turtles, and giant manta rays, to make way for expanded oil and gas drilling. This action is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration and some members of Congress to gut the ESA through regulatory rollbacks and legislation that would strip away decades of hard-won protections.
Watch: The Life-Saving Impact of the ESA
For 50-plus years, the Endangered Species Act has protected marine life from extinction. Explore five iconic success stories and why this law matters today.
Endangered Species Act Success Stories
Atlantic Green Sea Turtle
The historic exploitation of green sea turtles and their eggs — exacerbated by habitat loss, disease, and incidental catch in fishing gear — resulted in significant population declines. In 1978, the species was placed on the endangered species list. After years of efforts to restore nesting grounds and reduce bycatch, in 2016, two of the 11 distinct breeding populations, including the population residing along the Atlantic coast of Florida, were downlisted from endangered to threatened.
Humpback Whale
Industrial whaling reduced all humpback whale populations by 95% from historical levels. But after decades of conservation, research, and monitoring, in 2016 scientists confirmed the Hawaii whale population — which spends winters off Hawaii and feeds in waters off Alaska, Russia, and British Columbia — had reached 11,000, a number that scientists felt at the time was sufficient for the Hawaii population to be removed from the endangered species list. The population has since further increased and is widely considered a conservation success story. Also in 2016, the Western North Atlantic population was downlisted from endangered to threatened, reflecting meaningful progress in recovery. However, four of the 14 distinct humpback whale populations worldwide remain endangered, including those that winter off Central America and Mexico.
Brown Pelican
Nearly wiped out by the feather trade, then poisoned by pesticides that caused their eggshells to thin and crack, the brown pelican was listed as endangered in 1970 under the precursor to the ESA. The ban on DDT in 1972, combined with the ESA’s habitat protections, saw the population rebound. By 2009, they were removed from the endangered species list.
Southern Sea Otter
Southern sea otter populations in North America once numbered hundreds of thousands. By 1914, trapping reduced their numbers to approximately 50 individuals. The ESA prohibited the intentional killing and harassing of southern sea otters and minimized their unintentional capture within fisheries, allowing their population numbers to slowly recover to approximately 3,000 today. Southern sea otters remain listed as threatened under the ESA.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q: When was the Endangered Species Act passed?
A: The ESA was signed into law in 1973 with overwhelming bipartisan support, after President Nixon called existing laws inadequate.
Q: Who enforces the Endangered Species Act?
A: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) are the two federal agencies primarily responsible for implementing the ESA.
Q: Has the Endangered Species Act helped?
A: Yes. Four decades after the ESA was passed, the law has prevented 99% of the species under its care from going extinct.
Q: Why is the Endangered Species Act important?
A: Beyond the obvious benefit of saving the lives of imperiled animals, every organism on the planet is part of an intricate ecosystem and food web. You cannot remove one from the system without harming the rest. The ESA also provides significant economic benefits within the U.S., like supporting wildlife-related tourism economies including whale watching and sea turtle ecotourism.
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