SIGHTINGS INCREASE AFTER LIZARD PROPOSED FOR ENDANGERED STATUS.Byline: Thom Akeman Scripps-McClatchy Western Service The black legless legless Adjective 1. without legs 2. Slang very drunk Adj. 1. legless - not having legs; "a legless man in a wheelchair" lizard, a snakelike creature found in the sand dunes sand dune Hill, mound, or ridge of windblown sand or other loose material such as clay particles. Dunes are commonly associated with desert regions and seacoasts, and there are large areas of dunes in nonglacial parts of Antarctica. between the Salinas Salinas, city, United States Salinas (səlē`nəs), city (1990 pop. 108,777), seat of Monterey co., W Calif.; inc. 1874. It is the shipping and processing center of a fertile valley famous for its grain and lettuce. and Carmel rivers, may be more plentiful than federal scientists thought when they proposed listing it as an endangered species endangered species, any plant or animal species whose ability to survive and reproduce has been jeopardized by human activities. In 1999 the U.S. government, in accordance with the U.S. . The elusive little critter has been turning up in many places at Fort Ord Fort Ord was a U.S. Army post on Monterey Bay in California. It was established in 1917 as a maneuver area and field artillery target range and was closed in September 1994. Fort Ord was one of the most attractive locations of any U.S. , where it was once thought to be confined to be in childbed. See also: Confine to about 40 acres. Parks, university and Army officials now think black legless lizards might be found on as many as 15,000 acres of the former base, said Katie Ahern, spokeswoman for the Fort Ord Reuse Authority. In Marina, where the lizards are routinely turned up by backyard gardeners, there are at least 1,000 acres of protected land considered habitat for black legless lizards, said Jeff Dack, the city's planning director. In addition, black legless lizards, or evidence of them, has been found in Seaside, Sand City, Monterey, Pacific Grove Pacific Grove, residential and resort city (1990 pop. 16,117), Monterey co., W central Calif., on a point where Monterey Bay meets the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1889. , Pebble Beach and Carmel. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which has proposed protecting the lizard as an endangered species, heard a lot of new information about the subterranean critter during a public hearing in Monterey on Tuesday night. ``It does appear that the animal is more prevalent than our research revealed,'' said Patricia Foulk, a Sacramento-based spokeswoman for the federal wildlife service. One of the reasons for public hearings on proposals is to get just such information, Foulk said. After the public comment period closes, federal officials will evaluate the new information and decide whether to go ahead with the proposed endangered listing, downgrade it to threatened, order more field work or just drop the whole thing, said Susan Saul, a Portland-based spokeswoman for the wildlife service. ``If this animal is in dire straits Noun 1. dire straits - a state of extreme distress desperate straits straits, strait, pass - a bad or difficult situation or state of affairs , it should be listed. If not, it shouldn't be,'' Foulk said. The presence of an endangered species can block development. If an animal or plant is found to be endangered, it can't be destroyed, moved or disregarded without a permit from the federal or state agency that has declared it in need of special protection. The federal wildlife service anticipates making a decision on the status of the black legless lizard within the next year, Foulk said. Researchers at Fort Ord won't have a complete report on the lizard's presence there until next spring, Ahern said. |
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