A new section of border wall in southern Arizona will do more than just keep out illegal immigrants, a nonprofit conservation organization announced.
A press release from the Center for Biological Diversity states that a portion of the border wall and a “paved road across Arizona’s California Gulch are essential to the survival of one of only two Sonoran staghorn populations in the United States.” The flow of the river is being obstructed.”
According to the organization, this “rare desert fish” is “a small, moderately chubby fish that likes to eat a variety of native foods, and when in breeding condition has a distinctive, distinctly red underside. “I’m there.”
“New walls and roads will push these endangered fish species to the brink of extinction,” Dr. Krista Kempinen, lead researcher at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement.
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A look at the then and now of southern Arizona’s border wall impacting the endangered Sonoran mabu fish. (Russ McSpadden/Biodiversity Center)
“The survival of the Sonoran sea bream depends on access to scarce desert waters on both sides of the border, the ability to exchange genetic material with nearby populations in Mexico, and the ability of the fish to migrate upstream from Sonora to increase the population after droughts. “With new construction, all of that is possible,” she continued.
The organization drew attention to the issue days before President-elect Donald Trump takes office again and ramps up border security efforts.
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A close-up of the endangered Sonorama chub, a “river minnow” typically 5 to 7 inches long. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
“It is more urgent than ever to designate California Gulch as critical habitat to minimize other threats, such as keeping cattle away from Sonoran mab pools,” Kemppinen said in a statement. ”. “It’s also essential that carefully designed culverts be added to new border infrastructure to allow for at least some semblance of natural river flow and migration, if federal officials are serious about protecting this fish. , we need to act now.”
President Trump earlier this month accused Gov. Gavin Newsom of caring more about protecting an endangered fish species known as smelt than protecting the state’s residents from wildfires, saying he was responsible for California’s wildfires. This sparked a heated debate as to whether the Democratic Party had the right to do so.
President Donald Trump speaks with U.S. Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott during a ceremony marking the completion of 200 miles of wall on the U.S.-Mexico border in San Luis, Arizona, June 23, 2020. (SAUL LOEB/ AFP)
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President Trump sparked a firestorm on Wednesday when he accused Newsom on the Truth social platform of wanting to “protect fish that are inherently worthless” rather than protecting Californians’ water needs. However, this comment is not new. President Trump made this claim in an interview with podcaster Joe Rogan in October in the lead-up to the November election.
Neither the Center for Biological Diversity nor the Trump transition team responded to requests for comment on this story.
FOX News’ Alec Shemel contributed to this report.
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