Conservation
The Kanab ambersnail was proposed for emergency listing in 1991, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has listed the Kanab ambersnail as endangered since 1992.
The Kanab ambersnail is evaluated as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
In Utah, its habitat was threatened by commercial development, whereas the Grand Canyon population is threatened by discharges from the Glen Canyon Dam which can sweep the snail and its habitat downstream.
Reintroduction releases have been conducted at three sites along the Colorado river, each releasing 150 snails. The first of these releases was conducted in September 1998, and all sites were sufficiently high enough to not be flooded by normal dam activity. A second release was conducted at the same three sites in July 1999 to boost population densities and improve genetic variability, but only one of the three sites, Upper Elves Chasm, has established a new population.
Read more about this topic: Kanab Ambersnail
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