Public comment sought on state list of declining species
— Photo by Gary Eslinger/USFWS
The fox squirrel is on the draft list of Species of Greatest Conservation Need. Once common across New York state, changes in forest structure,or the proliferation of eastern gray squirrels, a competitor, may explain the decline of fox squirrels across eastern New York and their scarcity in western New York, according to the draft list.
The state has an “action plan” meant to protect species under threat.
Public comment is now being sought on a list of Species of Greatest Conservation Need drafted by the Department of Environmental Conservation that will be used in updating New York’s State Wildlife Action Plan for 2025-35.
“The New York State Wildlife Action Plan is a critical tool that guides biodiversity conservation and protects declining and threatened wildlife populations in New York State,” DEC Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar said in a release from the department.
“DEC encourages scientific experts, stakeholders, and all New Yorkers to provide their input on the draft list of Species of Greatest Conservation Need as we go through the revision process and identify the threats that must be addressed to protect health of the state's wildlife and habitats,” Mahar said.
The action plan, which serves as New York State’s guiding document for managing and conserving species and habitats before these species become too rare or costly to restore, is required for New York to participate in the federally funded State and Tribal Wildlife Grants Program.
The list, which must be updated every 10 years, has species native to and extant in New York that are currently experiencing threats likely to result in further decline of their populations in the state if conservation actions are not implemented within the next 10 years.
The draft list and revised species status assessments are available to download from the DEC’s website. The public may also nominate a new species, or propose a species be removed from the list.
Anyone interested in providing data, updates, or other comments pertaining to the nomination of a new species may download copies of a blank form from the website, populate one form per species, and send to by Jan. 14, 2025.
The DEC will provide an opportunity for public review and comments of the full updated action plan prior to its submission to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Input and data may be submitted by email to . Information may also be sent by mail to: SWAP Coordinator, Division of Fish and Wildlife, NYSDEC, 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12233-4754.
— Melissa Hale-Spencer
