Salazar

James S. Burling, M. Reed Hopper, Damien M. Schiff, Brandon M. Middleton, Pacific Legal Foundation, Sacramento, CA, for the plaintiffs/appellants.

Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General, David Shilton, Ethan Carson Eddy, Charles R. Scott, United States Department of Justice, Environment & Natural Resources Division, Washington, D.C., for the federal defendants/appellees.

Trent W. Orr, George M. Torgun, Earthjustice, Oakland, CA, Katherine Poole, Doug Obegi, Natural Resources Defense Council, San Francisco, CA, for the defendant-intervenors/appellees.

Before: MARY M. SCHROEDER and SIDNEY R. THOMAS, Circuit Judges, and MARK W. BENNETT, District Judge. [*]

THOMAS, Circuit Judge:

In this appeal, we consider whether application of sections 7 and 9 of the Endangered Species Act to the California delta smelt violates the Commerce Clause in the United States Constitution. We conclude that it does not, and we affirm the judgment of the district court.

The delta smelt is a small fish, 60-70 millimeters in length, that is undisputedly endemic to California. Though once inhabiting California's San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary, its range has diminished. The…