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Authors: hocEEDnrcs oFTr$ DESTRT Frsrss Cou.JCIL, l9g5 SyrvrcsIUM Vou-nvc)O(/II - RlEls@ I 996

Year: 1995 (xxvii)

Abstract

The Desert Eshes co’ncil was founded in 1969 ‘in the–heat of battlen, as a group of concerned.biolqgists endeavored to halt a wave of destruction that was well.und.rt;;tl..rt“r,“d desert aquaticcommunities throughout the southwestem u.s. and northern Mexico. o”.tr1 ;Jl“], National park,s Devil,sHole served as a focal point. Early Desert l:h:r council proceed,ings primarily record specific recoveryefforts for threatened and endangered fishes. with the advent rf rh. fid;;;a’sp“a., Act in lare 1973,and its attention to recovery of affected fishes, &rection of the council rniri.l ”“gly into the realmofgeneral research on desert fishes and their habitats. Recovery efforts were relegated primarily to thecategory of agency reports. Yet, habitat destruction has continired throughout tt “ sorrtt-“st during thePast 20 years without noticeable improvement in the status of the “qilu.-i;a we are mandated toprotect, a situation agravared by a cirronic-lTk:f funding for recovery “ffo, ^“d;”p;;;.;?r;;;recently) by ccmpllcence. and outright hostility from tegislative bodies, both ,;; ; federal. As a Councilwe knorvsrere we have been and where we are nou’. we need badly to ask ourselrres if we are headed inthe right direction’ There is much wisdom in a recent statement by the Smithsonian Institution,s TomLoveic5r \A/hile research is a true ‘,“.4 y. are far more likely to attain poriurr” ,.rpol,se from socieryif weare seen as wanting to develop the information necessary to produce good public poliqy rather than aswanting only to Pursue our private, esoteric intellectual pleasrrres.“ arr“ora sa’ng warns that unless youchange direction you will get to where you are going. Is tire Desert fi;h”-,Affioi n““a”o the rightway?What course changes should we makei RESI/IVTEN El Desert Eshes Co’ncil fue fundado en 1969 nen el calor de la batalla“, como un grupo de bi6lqgospreocupados por intentar detener una ola de destrucci6n que estaba en el camino y amenazaba lascomtrnidades acuaticas del desierto desde el suroesGd de Estados unidos y G; a.trgi“o. Ei Devis Holedel Death valley National Parh sirvi6 como punto focal. AI inicio el o”“.r, e.ones council procedi6principalmente a registrar los esfuerzos de recuperaci6n especi^fi”“t,”.,t“ a“ “.o”“5i.] d.e peces amenazaaasyen peligro’ con la llegada del Acta de especiei en pehgro a finales d” l;;i,; atencion por recuperarlos peces afectados, ia direcci6n del conseio cambi6 fu-ertemente dentro d.i .ei’o de los investigacionesgenerales sobre peces del desierto y sus h6bitats. L,os esfuerz“r d; ;-.r;;;]our, ,,r..o., relegadosprincipalmente a la-categoria de agencia de reportes. Aun, la destrucci6n de los h6bitats ha continuado atrav€s dei suroeste, duranG ios pasados 20 arlos sin mejoramiento notable en el Status d.e la fa’na acu6ticaque estamos mandando Proteger, situaci6n agravada por una ausencia cr5nica de financiamiento, para losesfuerzos de recuperaci6n y ain m5s (rlci3ntemente) por la complace”.i“ yh;;;lid.d sin resenas de loscuelpos legislativos de ambos, Estado y Federici6n. Como conselo ,ab.mo, donde hemos estad.o v donde 75