WASHINGTON— On the eve of the Endangered Species Act’s 50th anniversary, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a final rule today protecting the black-capped petrel as endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

Once thought to be extinct, these rare cliff-dwelling seabirds have only a few breeding colonies remaining in the Caribbean. The Service initially proposed to list the petrel as threatened in 2018, but new data confirm that increased protections are needed to prevent the bird’s extinction.

“We commend the Service for recognizing that black-capped petrels need the full protection of the Endangered Species Act,” said Stephanie Kurose, a senior policy specialist at the Center for Biological Diversity. “These beautiful birds were so close to disappearing forever, but now they have a fighting chance.”

Black-capped petrels forage off the Atlantic coast, from North Carolina to Florida. There are only four known petrel nesting colonies on the island of Hispaniola and 500 to 1,000 breeding pairs. The petrel is considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the international authority on endangered species.

On shore the birds are threatened by the destruction of breeding habitat through deforestation. At sea, oil and gas extraction in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean threaten the bird and its habitat with seismic exploration, oil spills and night lighting.

Today’s rule does not immediately protect the black-capped petrel’s critical habitat, but the Service has one year to do so.

“These long-overdue protections came just in time to prevent the petrel’s extinction, but now the Service must move quickly to designate critical habitat for this ocean-loving bird,” said Kurose.

In 2011 the petrel was petitioned for protection and in 2018 the Service first proposed protecting it under the Act.