BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 31, 2022
While many people are familiar with threatened and endangered species like piping plover, Atlantic salmon, Canada lynx, and leatherback sea turtle, they may not realize that plant species — just as important as the furry, feathered, and scaled — are listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act as well. There are three federally listed plant species in Maine that need protection so they’re not wiped out forever: the Furbish lousewort, eastern prairie fringed orchid and small whorled pogonia. I urge Rep. Chellie Pingree to increase funding for the ESA in the fiscal year 23 appropriations bill. It may be easy to overlook the importance of saving rare plants, but losing them would take a bigger toll on society—and ecosystems—than people may think. ~ Don Hudson, Arrowsic