"The endangered Pearl darter has only a few remaining hideouts in Mississippi"

"After decades of lobbying and legal action from environmental groups, the federal government has proposed protecting more than 500 miles of river habitat for the Pearl River’s namesake fish, the Pearl darter.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is considering Endangered Species Act protections for 517 miles of river in 13 Mississippi counties where the endangered Pearl darter still has places of refuge.

It’s been about 50 years since the darter was spotted in the river it was named after. Dams and industrial pollution likely killed the last darter in the Pearl, which starts in central Mississippi and runs past St. Tammany and Washington parishes, forming Louisiana’s eastern border."

Tristan Baurick reports for the New Orleans Times-Picayune July 26, 2021. [2]