f wildlife, acquiring and managing wildlife habitats, and requiring federal agencies to consider the impacts of their action on wildlife. The first administrative statement of the problem occurred in 1964, when a Committee on Rare and Endangered Wildlife Species was established in the Interior Department's Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife (BSFW). In August 1964, it published the "Redbook"--the first official federal list of rare and endangered species of fish and wildlife.
III. The History of the Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act was adopted in 1973. It followed two other acts passed in 1966 and 1969 that authorized the federal government to purchase land for the conservation of species and directed federal agencies to preserve the habitats of such species. The principal objective of the 1966 Act was to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to create a comprehensive program to conserve, protect, restore, and where necessary to establish and propagate threatened species. It differed from earlier legislation because it outlined a comprehensive program that incorporated three of the four themes of federal wildlife law: acquiring habitat, regulating taking, and mandating inter-agency cooperation, rather than providing help on a species-by-species basis.
The 1966 Act was proposed by the BSFW's scientists and wildlife managers. They had developed a strong commitment to the endangered species issue and wanted a bill that would give the BSFW authority to undertake a comprehensive program to conserve endangered animals. The bills were largely perceived as "refuge bills" with little or no impact on any other interest. They included a mandate requiring federal agencies to consider the impact of their actions on wildlife populations, but only to the "extent practicable." In addition, the Senate amended its version to add that the secretaries of interior, agriculture, and defense "shall seek" t...