"The dunes sagebrush lizard, found only in the oil-rich Permian Basin, was classified as endangered two years ago."
"At the request of the Trump administration, a federal judge in Texas has stripped endangered species protections from a small lizard whose habitat overlaps with the largest oil-producing region in the United States.
It was the latest twist in a long-running fight over the fate of the dunes sagebrush lizard, a light brown reptile found only in portions of the oil-rich Permian Basin in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas.
The Biden administration classified the lizard as endangered in 2024, saying it faced grave threats from oil and gas development and climate change. But the state of Texas sued, and the Trump administration asked the judge to remove the lizard from the endangered species list as part of a settlement with the state.
The judge, David Counts of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, approved the settlement on Tuesday. Judge Counts, who was appointed by President Trump, found that the Biden administration’s evaluation of the lizard’s habitat was “potentially inaccurate.”"
Catrin Einhorn and Maxine Joselow report for the New York Times July 23, 2026.
