PRESCOTT, Ariz.— The Center for Biological Diversity and Maricopa Bird Alliance sued two federal agencies today for failing to protect endangered species and riparian habitat from illegal livestock grazing along the upper Verde River, 25 miles west of Sedona, Arizona.
This is the second time in recent years the groups have sued the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service over the same issues.
“Despite being off-limits to grazing, recurring cattle damage to endangered species critical habitat has forced us to court again,” said Chris Bugbee, senior conservation advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “It’s pathetic that we need to sue again because the Prescott National Forest refuses to control their rancher permittees.”
For years, the Center has documented illegal cattle damage to designated critical habitat for northern Mexican garter snakes, western yellow-billed cuckoos and native spikedace, all protected under the Endangered Species Act.
The Center and the Alliance first sued the agencies over illegal cattle damage along the upper Verde in 2020. The Forest Service agreed to repair fences and routinely remove unauthorized cows for three years. That agreement expired in 2024.
In 2025 Center field biologists documented escalating damage from unauthorized cattle across six public-land grazing allotments. The damage shows that Prescott National Forest officials have failed to continue enforcing endangered species protections along the upper Verde River.
In 2026 Center biologists found that 40% of nearly 34 miles surveyed on the upper Verde were moderately or significantly damaged by unauthorized cattle. All the surveyed areas are explicitly closed to grazing.
“The Prescott National Forest needs to get its grazing program under control,” said Bugbee. “The Verde River is too important to people and native wildlife to be repeatedly damaged by cows that shouldn’t be there in the first place.”
Consistent with the situation on the Prescott National Forest, of the 3,131 miles of “protected” endangered species critical habitat surveyed by the Center regionwide from 2017-2025, 50% — or 1,557 miles — were significantly damaged by cattle grazing and 13% — or 396 miles — were moderately damaged.
At nearby Agua Fria National Monument, a recent court ruling found that federal agencies violated the Endangered Species Act by continuing to issue grazing permits despite years of evidence that fencing failed to keep livestock from damaging protected streams. Those same legal obligations apply to the Forest Service’s management of grazing along the upper Verde River.
Riparian areas cover less than 1% of Arizona but support up to 75% of its wildlife, making them among the region’s most important and imperiled ecosystems. A 2025 Center report documented chronic and severe damage from unlawful livestock grazing to endangered species habitat along hundreds of miles of streams, rivers and tributaries on public lands in Arizona and New Mexico.
Livestock grazing is a leading cause of species endangerment in the Southwest. Removal of livestock from riparian areas is critical to curbing the extinction crisis regionally.
Today’s lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Tucson.
