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Alaska Department of Fish and Game

Alaska Species of Special Concern

 

The list of Species of Special Concern is an administrative listing established in May, 1993 and amended in October, 1998 by the Commissioner of Fish and Game.

A Species of Special Concern is any species or subspecies of fish or wildlife or population of mammal or bird native to Alaska that has entered a long-term decline in abundance or is vulnerable to a significant decline due to low numbers, restricted distribution, dependence on limited habitat resources, or sensitivity to environmental disturbance.

Under this listing, the department will:

  1. review existing information on the species;
  2. publish a notification of listing, including a summary of the information that led to listing;
  3. identify critical seasonal habitat (if known);
  4. if appropriate, initiate or increase survey and monitoring efforts, population or habitat studies, enhancement efforts, and/or regulatory review; and
  5. recommend management action.

By establishing a Species of Special Concern List, the department can:

  1. protect species or subspecies and forestall or mitigate serious threats to fish or wildlife populations before they become critical;
  2. identify conservation concerns at an earlier stage while avoiding the necessity for listing on the State Endangered Species List or through the federal Endangered Species Act; and
  3. provide for recovery efforts to be initiated under a more flexible managment system. A byproduct of this new list will be to help the department focus conservation efforts on ecosystems and problems that may affect a variety of species and habitats.

Alaska Species of Special Concern
(Effective November 27, 1998)

1 Federally listed as threatened
2 Downlisted from Alaska Endangered Species List
3 Federally listed as endangered
4 Category 2 Candidate Species under federal ESA

 

 

For Additional Information
Please contact:
Doug Vincent-Lang
(907) 267-2339

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