Critics say proposal to add lesser prairie chicken to endangered species list is a thinly disguised attempt to stop growth on energy-rich land.

A family oyster business recently shut down by the Obama administration’s demand that the public land on which it operates revert to a wilderness area is suing the federal government for what they say is an illegal taking of the property.

Suing the government in the name of the Endangered Species Act to stop development or exploration “has become a cottage industry.”