US to declare ivory-billed woodpecker and 22 more species extinct

Fish and Wildlife Service proposes removing species from endangered list because they have not been spotted in the wild

The US Fish and Wildlife Service officially proposed taking 23 plants and animals off the endangered species list Wednesday, because they have not been spotted in the wild and are believed to be completely gone from an earth experiencing human population growth and a climate crisis.

Only 11 species previously have been removed due to extinction in the almost half-century since the Endangered Species Act was signed into law.