http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=115792

San Francisco Bay-Delta in
top 10 for species
endangerment, report says
C. Johnson Last updated 4 days ago Posted:
1/5/2011
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - The San Francisco Bay-Delta
was named in a report Wednesday as one of the
nation's most vulnerable habitats for endangered
wildlife.
The delta, which is West Coast's largest estuary
making up about 1,000 square miles, was named in
a report released by the Endangered Species
Coalition as among the top 10 places where wildlife
on the brink of extinction needs protection.
According to the report, "It's Getting Hot Out There:
Top 10 Places to Save for Endangered Species in a
Warming World," 12 of the delta's original 29
indigenous fish are either extinct or endangered.
The Delta smelt, a fish whose numbers were once
abundant, is now considered endangered.
Also on the list are California's Sierra-Nevada
mountains, the Hawaiian Islands and the Southwest
deserts.
"These 10 places are key homes for endangered
species and are under significant danger because of
climate change," said Dr. Mark Rockwell, the
California representative of the Endangered Species
Coalition.
Rockwell said the delta has been seeing less
snowfall and rainfall in recent years, which could be
why "we've had record low fish numbers in the
delta," he said.
The delta also supplies water to about 23 million
Californians, which means wildlife could become
endangered if more water is drained, he said.
"There has been more demand for water than we've
had in the past," Rockwell said.
The Endangered Species Coalition is a national
network of science and conservation specialists who
aim to protect wildlife and wild land.
The organization collected about 400 submissions
for the list of places to save endangered life, and a
team of scientists chose the top 10 places from the
submissions, Rockwell said.
The full report can be found on the Endangered
Species Coalition website.
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