A rare plant is no longer 'endangered'. Landowners get fewer federal restrictions.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service removed the dwarf-flowered heartleaf from the federal list of endangered plants. This means landowners and developers in its habitat no longer have to follow federal rules to protect it.

The Endangered Species Act places strict rules on land use where protected species live. Removing a species from the list means those federal restrictions disappear for that specific plant's habitat. This makes development easier and cheaper in parts of the southeastern US where the plant grows.