WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Barrasso, R-Wyo., issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announcement that the Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mouse has been removed from the Endangered Species Act for Wyoming.

" Wyoming ranchers and farmers are the best stewards of the land, not bureaucrats in Washington.  Agriculture dominates the area inhabited by the Preble mouse and the decision to delist it will free Wyoming’s agricultural producers of unnecessary Washington red tape.  We need less federal interference, not more."

Background
The Preble’s meadow jumping mouse is a small mammal with a long tail, large hind feet, and long hind legs.  Total length of an adult is approximately 7 to 10 inches, with the tail comprising approximately 60 percent of that length.  To evade predators, the mouse can jump up to three feet.