US may give tortoise protected status

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - The federal government has agreed to consider whether the Sonoran desert tortoise, a Southwest icon whose population has declined by half in the past 20 years, warrants protection under the Endangered Species Act.

Two environmental groups petitioned the US Fish and Wildlife Service to list the tortoise, found in southwest Arizona and northern Mexico, as a distinct population.

The agency said yesterday that it would review the status of the tortoise and any threats to its habitat.