LAS VEGAS— The Center for Biological Diversity has finalized a legal agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, setting a deadline for a decision on Endangered Species Act protections for the imperiled Railroad Valley toad.

The toad lives in a single spring-fed wetland in a remote corner of Nye County, Nevada. Oil drilling, fracking and mining threaten to drain the water the toad needs to survive, pushing the species toward extinction.

“The Railroad Valley toad is a one-of-a-kind symbol of the Great Basin’s biodiversity, and the species is finally moving a step closer to the protections it so badly needs,” said Patrick Donnelly, Great Basin director at the Center. “The extinction crisis is happening right here in Nevada, and species like this toad are a warning sign for wetland ecosystems across the state.”

The Center first petitioned for the toad to be protected under the Endangered Species Act in 2022. In 2024 the Service said listing the Railroad Valley toad “may be warranted.”

In 2025 the Center sued the agency after it failed to make a final decision. This week’s agreement resolves that lawsuit and requires the Service to issue a final listing decision by May 31, 2028.

Threats to the toad have continued unabated through the years since the petition. In 2025 President Trump authorized a mining exploration project targeting the same waters that sustain the toad’s habitat under an “energy emergency” protocol, without any public review or comment. The Bureau of Land Management has continued leasing parcels in Railroad Valley for oil and gas drilling and fracking.

“Railroad Valley toads and their fragile wetland home are under siege as Trump unleashes profit-hungry industries on our public lands,” said Donnelly. “Endangered Species Act protection is the last, best hope for this special little toad and the wetlands it depends on.”