By Cat Lazaroff

SEATTLE, Washington, April 4, 2002 (ENS) - Many of the species discovered by explorers Lewis and Clark on their 19th century expeditions have either lost their historic habitat, have dwindling populations, or are near extinction, shows a new report by the Sierra Club. The list of vanishing species features some of the American west's most symbolic plant and animal species, including grizzly bears, bison and prairie dogs.

When Lewis and Clark traveled across the American west, there were more than five billion prairie dogs living in enormous underground villages. Now they are found on just one percent of their former range. (Photo courtesy U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

The report reviews the 122 animals discovered by Lewis and Clark, finding that at least 40 percent are designated by state or federal agencies as warranting concern and protection. It focuses on more than 40 species, from those in critical condition, to a few success stories of recovered populations.

For example, the grizzly bear population, which once topped 100,000, now number about 1,000 individuals. Of the 70 million bison that used to roam western plains, just 20,000 still exist in the wild.

The records of the Lewis and Clark expeditions provide one of the clearest records of the state of U.S. wilderness and native species before the massive influx of human settlers.

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis, Clark, and the men who made up their Corps of Discovery on an 8,000 mile round trip journey across the West. Their main purpose was to map and explore the western territory and to establish trade routes to the Pacific Ocean.

The mission had a secondary goal as well. Jefferson instructed the explorers to observe "the animals of the country generally, and especially those not known in the U.S. the remains and accounts of any which may [be] deemed rare or extinct" and to note "the face of the country, it's growth and vegetable productions."

Lewis and Clark recorded "innumerable herds of Buffalow" during their expedition; now, just 20,000 still live in the wild. (Photo courtesy Sierra Club)

Lewis and Clark recorded not just the specific details of each species, but the interrelationships between animal, plant and habitat.

The new report, "What's Lost, What's Left: A Status Report on the Plants & Animals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition," is a component of the Sierra Club's seven year bicentennial campaign to protect the wild lands and species documented by Lewis and Clark.

"Future generations should be able to explore our wild lands with the same sense of excitement Lewis and Clark felt 200 years ago," said Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club. "Using Lewis and Clark's journals as a historical gauge, the report illustrates the contrast between what our country looked like 200 years ago and what it looks like today. It sets the bar for habitat protection and gives us a blueprint for protecting the lands explored by Lewis and Clark."

The report also makes recommendations for habitat protection that would help ensure the survival of historic species in the American West.

The Audubon bighorn sheep, first observed by Clark along the upper Missouri River, has since gone extinct. (Illustration by John James Audubon, courtesy Sierra Club)

Some of the species, like the passenger pigeon, Audubon's bighorn sheep, the plains gray wolf and the Carolina parakeet, are already extinct. Others, including black footed ferrets, woodland caribou and whooping cranes are down to just a handful of individuals.

Others, while not in immediate danger of extinction, are now restricted to a fraction of their historic range. Cutthroat trout, which were once the most common salmonid in many places, now occupy just two to four percent of their traditional habitat as unhybridized cutthroat strains, not mixed with introduced species.

Prairie dogs, which used to inhabit 100 million acres, are now found on just one percent of their former range.

In 1979, the black footed ferret was believed to be extinct. When a remnant population was discovered, 18 individuals were taken into captivity to preserve the species. About 1,200 have now been released into the wild from captive breeding programs. (Photo courtesy Sierra Club)

Oil and gas drilling bring pollution, disturbances, and roads to the grizzly bear's last refuges, while toxic mining, industrial waste, and polluted runoff from cities and industrialized agriculture threaten many waterways.

The report also profiles some success stories of species that have been brought back to healthy numbers. Healthy species include elk, beaver and pronghorn, which were far worse off at the turn of the 20th century than they are today.

The Sierra Club says the good news is that most of the species discovered by the explorers still exist, though in lower numbers, and can be saved for centuries to come through increased protection. Among the report's recommendations are permanent protection for undeveloped public lands, and a permanent ban on new road building and logging in all remaining roadless areas of national forests.

This week, a federal court ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service failed to consider the problems of crossbreeding with nonnative species when it decided not to list the fish as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. (Photo courtesy Sierra Club)

Today, the Lewis and Clark campaign also unveiled a national magazine and television ad campaign and an interactive campaign website at: http://www.sierraclub.org/lewisandclark. The website will provide resources for Lewis and Clark enthusiasts, travelers and wilderness supporters, offering information on specific animals, plants and issues in states along the Lewis and Clark trail.

The Sierra Club report is available at: http://www.sierraclub.org/lewisandclark/species/endangered_species.pdf