Fish and Wildlife Service 2000-1113 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: George Lisles Wild Atlantic salmon in Maine rivers are
at an all-time low and face a number of threats that could drive
them to extinction. As a result, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service today
announced they are listing the species as endangered under the
Endangered Species Act. The listing covers the wild population
of Atlantic salmon found in rivers and streams in Maine from the
lower Kennebec River north to the U.S.-Canada border. These
include the Dennys, East Machias, Machias, Pleasant,
Narraguagus, Ducktrap, and Sheepscot rivers and Cove Brook.
Although significant progress has been made under the state of
Maine's conservation plan, disease and other threats remain, and
the Act's protection is critical to ensure the survival of these
salmon, said Jamie Rappaport Clark, director of the Fish and
Wildlife Service, and Penny Dalton, administrator of the
National Marine Fisheries Service. "Less than