Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida v. United States

South Florida was covered by freshwater known as the Everglades. In 1948, the United States Army Corps of Engineers (the corps) undertook a project to control the waters and flooding associated with the Everglades. The Cape Sable seaside sparrow (the sparrow) was an endangered species with a critical habitat designation that lived primarily in the Everglades. The sparrow had a short lifespan and depended on specific water levels for nesting. Similarly, the Everglade snail kite hawk (the kite) was an endangered, critical habitat-designated species that depended on specific water levels in the Everglades. In the 1980s, to determine the best way to restore wildlife, the corps engaged in trial-and-error tests. Each test lasted for several years and released varying amounts of water from different flood gates. In 1995 during Test Seven, the corps released large amounts of water from gates located near the habitats of the sparrow and kite (S-12 gates). In 1998, the corps modified the water releases after the sparrow population dramatically declined. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) (defendant) issued a biological opinion that concluded continued flooding through the S-12 gates would lead to the extinction of the sparrow, but back-ups of water above the S-12 gate might adversely affect the kite. The corps and the FWS developed the Interim Operational Plan for the Protection of the Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow (interim plan). The corps implemented the interim plan, and water began to back up in the kites’ critical habitat on Miccosukee tribal land. The FWS issued another biological opinion in 2006 that analyzed the interim plan and concluded that continuing the interim plan would not jeopardize the kite or adversely modify its critical habitat within the meaning of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) because the kite had a long lifespan, a high adult survival rate, and an enormous range of critical habitat. The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida (plaintiff) filed a complaint in district court alleging that the conclusions of the 2006 biological opinion were arbitrary and capricious and violated the ESA. The district court granted summary judgment for the FWS, and the Miccosukee Tribe appealed.