A U.S. District Court upheld protections for the Southwestern willow flycatcher bird after the New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Association sought to remove the animal from the endangered species list.

The Maricopa Audubon Society and Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity acted as third parties in support of maintaining protections.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

A southwestern willow flycatcher.

Charles Babbitt is the Maricopa Audubon Society’s conservation chairman.

“This was just a naked attempt by the ranchers to get their cattle grazing back in priceless riparian habitat," he said.

Babbitt also says the involvement of the society protecting the bird extends to the 1990s when studies showed a decline in the bird population.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the songbird as an endangered species back in 1995.

But attorneys for the New Mexico Cattle Grower’s Association argued that scientific information from one individual showed that the flycatcher species did not meet the standards to receive protection under the Endangered Species Act.

Meg Townsend is an attorney for the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity, which intervened in the case.

“So the reason why it's so important to protect the flycatcher and other species that are in danger of extinction is because once we lose them, they'll be gone forever," she said.

Members of the cattle grower’s association own land where livestock grazing takes place.

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the loss and degradation of riparian habitats is a threat to flycatchers.