Endangered Cave Bugs Threatened By Austin Expansion

The Los Angeles Times (the best place to get news about Austin) reports that a war is a'brewin' just a few miles North of our beautiful city. And it's all over a few little bugs.

Fred Purcell, dentist turned land developer, has been prevented from developing his property by the discovery of several species of cave bug that may not exist anywhere else in the world. The bugs are protected by the Endangered Species Act, and Purcell's efforts to develop his own land may have dangerous repurcussions for endangered animals everwhere.

In what is becoming a disturbing trend in this country, the argument Purcell is making is that the federal government should not have the authority to tell him he cannot build on his property to save the lives of endangered pseudoscorpions. He might've sued to build around them, or to have a special reserve built and sold to the park department, but no, he's going straight for the throat.

If he wins his case, the Endangered Species Act could suffer a significant set back, and many species - in Texas and elsewhere - would lose their protection. So that Purcell can capitalize on his personal investment, major changes could occur in this legislation that would leave animals such as the Florida Panther in a very risky position.

We understand that Purcell wants to develop the land that has cost him a lot of money, and into which he's put a lot of work. But we have to wonder whether he's actually considered what it means to wipe a species off the face of the planet. And if he might feel different if it were something fuzzy and cute that pooped gold.

Austinist wants Austin to grow, but we want it to grow in an environmentally friendly and ecologically sound way. Putting an end to several species in order to build a few houses sounds like neither of those. We know that the lives of a few squiggly cave bugs doesn't sound like a very important issue, but this sort of thing sets a dangerous precident. If we do not cherish and protect every species on this planet, pretty soon, we won't have any. We suggest you call your Congressional representatives and express your interest in this subject.

We love you, cave bugs! We really do! (And we hope that, if you do get wiped out, a few survive to evolve into giant man eaters who rise up and destroy the houses which sit on the graves of your cohorts.)

(The Statesman also covered this issue.)