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[00:00.44] The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has identified 23 species it says are now extinct.

[00:13.72] The agency released a list Wednesday that includes 11 birds, eight freshwater mussels, two species of fish, a bat and a plant.

[00:30.24] Most of the species had been found in states in the southeastern U.S. Eleven species lived in Hawaii or Guam.

[00:42.73] Perhaps the best known species on the list is the ivory-billed woodpecker.

[00:51.23] There had been unconfirmed sightings of the bird over the past 20 years.

[00:58.40] That led to search operations in parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida.

[01:09.55] But none of the woodpeckers were found.

[01:13.54] Other species on the list had only been identified in the wild a few times and never seen again.

[01:23.63] One example is the flat pigtoe, a freshwater mussel found in Alabama and Mississippi.

[01:35.59] In such cases, the species likely started disappearing shortly after being discovered.

[01:43.82] In declaring a species extinct, the Fish and Wildlife Service removes it from its Endangered Species Act (ESA).

[01:54.44] The purpose of the ESA is to call attention to species with the greatest need for protection.

[02:04.01] The agency said the identifications came after officials carried out “rigorous” investigations based on “the best available science for each of these species.”

[02:20.74] The declarations will become final after a three-month public comment period.

[02:28.44] All 23 species were thought to have at least a small chance of survival when added to the ESA list.

[02:39.87] Only 11 species have been previously removed because of extinction in the nearly half-century since the ESA was signed into law.