NEW MEXICO

Endangered listing for rare lizard could slow drilling

Federal wildlife officials declared a rare lizard in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas an endangered species on May 17, citing future energy development, sand mining and climate change as the biggest threats to its survival in one of the world’s most lucrative oil and natural gas basins.

“We have determined that the dunes sagebrush lizard is in danger of extinction throughout all of its range,” the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said. It concluded that the lizard already is “functionally extinct” across 47% of its range.

Much of the the 2.5-inch-long, spiny, light brown lizard’s remaining habitat has been fragmented, preventing the species from finding mates beyond those already living close by, according to biologists.

The decision caps two decades of legal and regulatory skirmishes between the U.S. government, conservationists and the oil and gas industry. Environmentalists cheered the move, while industry leaders condemned it as a threat to future production of the fossil fuels.

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The decision provides a “lifeline for survival” for a unique species whose “only fault has been occupying a habitat that the fossil fuel industry has been wanting to claw away from it,” said Bryan Bird, the Southwest director for Defenders of Wildlife.

The Permian Basin Petroleum Association and the New Mexico Oil & Gas Association expressed disappointment, saying the determination flies in the face of available science and ignores longstanding state-sponsored conservation efforts.

Scientists say the lizards are found only in the Permian Basin, the second-smallest range of any North American lizard. The reptiles live in sand dunes and among shinnery oak, where they feed on insects and spiders and burrow into the sand for protection from extreme temperatures.

Officials warn of heat-related health effects

SANTA FE — Health officials in New Mexico warned residents to take precautions as daytime temperatures are expected to climb over the coming days in eastern and southern parts of the state.

Since April 1, the state Health Department said there have been at least 51 heat-related visits to emergency departments across New Mexico as record high temperatures have been recorded.

The state in 2023 logged more than 900 heat-related hospital visits between April and September — with nearly half of those occurring in July. This marked a sharp increase from previous years, and forecasts for this summer are calling for above-average chances for more hot and dry weather.

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In New Mexico, temperatures were expected to climb to the upper 90s in Roswell and Carlsbad and remain in the 90s in Las Cruces through late May. Authorities there told motorists not to leave children or pets in the car, even if the windows are cracked.

State health officials said symptoms of heat-related illnesses can range from rash and sunburn to cramps and exhaustion. Those who are more vulnerable include people who work outside, children, older adults and those with chronic medical conditions.

KANSAS

Governor vetoes bill limiting foreign land ownership

TOPEKA — Proposed restrictions in Kansas on the foreign ownership of land died on May 10 when the state’s Democratic governor vetoed a bill that top Republican lawmakers argued would protect military bases from Chinese spying.

The Kansas House’s top GOP leader accused Gov. Laura Kelly of “apathy” toward serious national security threats from China and other nations declared by the U.S. government to be adversaries “of concern,” including Cuba, Iraq, North Korea and Venezuela. The bill would have prohibited more than 10% ownership by foreign nationals from those countries of any non-residential property within 100 miles of any military installation — or most of Kansas.

A Kansas State University report last fall said Chinese ownership accounted for a single acre of privately owned Kansas agricultural land and all foreign individuals and companies owned 2.4% of the state’s 49 million acres of private agricultural land. The bill would have required the university to compile annual reports on all foreign real estate ownership, including non-agricultural business property.

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Kelly said in her veto message that while Kansas needs stronger protections against foreign adversaries, the bill was so “overly broad” that it could disrupt “legitimate investment and business relationships.”

Kansas already limits corporate ownership of agricultural land. More than 20 other states restrict foreign land ownership, according to the National Agricultural Law Center.

A few Republicans in the state Senate balked at the restrictions, and the bill appeared to be just short of the two-thirds majority necessary to override a veto. The bill would have given affected foreign individuals and companies two years to divest themselves of their Kansas properties.

IDAHO

Drag performer awarded $1.1 million in defamation case

COEUR D’ALENE — A jury has awarded more than $1.1 million to an Idaho drag performer who accused a far-right blogger of defaming him when she falsely claimed that he exposed himself to a crowd, including children, during a Pride event in June 2022.

The Kootenai County District Court jury unanimously found on May 24 that Summer Bushnell defamed Post Falls resident Eric Posey when she posted a doctored video of his performance with a blurred spot that she claimed covered his “fully exposed genitals,” the Coeur D’Alene Press reported.

In reality the unedited video showed no indecent exposure, and prosecutors declined to file charges.

“The judicial system did what needed to be done,” Posey said after the verdict.

Jurors awarded Posey $926,000 in compensatory damages for defamation. Because Posey proved that Bushnell knew her allegations were false when she made them or that she made the accusations with reckless disregard for the truth, the jury awarded $250,000 in additional punitive damages.

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Posey, who uses the stage name Mona Liza Million, performed three times at the Pride in the Park celebration wearing a long-sleeve leotard, black shorts and tights, with a shiny metallic boa around his waist. He did not remove clothing.

The Pride event made national news at the time when 31 members of a white supremacist group called Patriot Front were arrested nearby and charged with conspiracy to riot.

The next day Bushnell published the edited version of the video, which she obtained from a local videographer. It garnered many thousands of views, sparking national news coverage and a police investigation. She suggested he had committed a felony and urged people to call police and have him arrested.

Bushnell’s attorney, Colton Boyles, told jurors that his client’s allegations were “close to the line” but not defamatory. He maintained that Bushnell’s “honest belief” was that Posey exposed himself, though she admitted on the witness stand that she never saw the “fully exposed genitals” she described to others.

ARIZONA

Bear shot dead after swipe attack on teen

ALPINE — A black bear was shot and killed by Arizona fish and game officers after it entered a home through an open door and injured a teenager in a mountain community near the New Mexico state line, wildlife officials said.

The 15-year-old boy received wounds to his face and arm when the bear swiped at him, and he was treated at a hospital after the May 22 incident in Alpine, the state Game and Fish Department said.

His mother, Carol Hawkins, told AZFamily TV in Phoenix that the bear attacked her son while he was alone and watching television. Hawkins said her other son heard screams and went to help. Wildlife officials said the bear entered the home a second time before it fled.

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“Not many kids can say they got in a fight with a bear and came out on top,” Hawkins said in a Facebook post that included a photo showing cuts on her son’s nose and arm.

Wildlife officers found and shot the bear, which the agency said was believed to be about 3 years old and would be tested for disease by department specialists.

The attack was the 16th by bears on people in the state since wildlife officials began keeping records in 1990, including two that were fatal, the department said.

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