District Court, District of Columbia November 1, 2004, CIV.A.03-217(RCL) (Cape Hatteras Access Preservation Alliance v. United States Department of the Interior)

MEMORANDUM OPINION

LAMBERTH, District Judge.

This case concerns the piping plover, a small, sand-colored shorebird, and the designation of its critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act. Defendants, the Department of the Interior and its Fish and Wildlife Service (collectively the “Service”), designated 137 coastal areas to serve as the wintering plovers’ critical habitat.