2015 - 2025 Pennsylvania Wildlife Action Plan
In the end, the 2015-2025 State Wildlife Action Plan is a declaration -- an affirmation that each of these wild creatures is an important part of a vivid, vibrant Penn's Woods, and the birthright of every Pennsylvanian.
- Scott Weidensaul, Wildlife Action Plan Foreword
Check out the Conservation Opportunity Area Tool!
Thank you for wanting to help fish and wildlife! The
Conservation Opportunity Area Tool is an interactive, web-based tool to support conservation planning and implementation for at-risk species. Users can find information on Species of Greatest Conservation Need, habitats, conservation actions, and more. Use this tool to explore statewide features or seek information in an area of interest you draw. Registration is free!
Check-out the Quick Start Instructions, or simply dive-in!
What is the State Wildlife Action Plan?
Updated from the first version published in 2005, the 2015 Pennsylvania Wildlife Action Plan is a
non-regulatory, proactive conservation blueprint to prevent Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) from requiring federal protection under the Endangered Species Act. This approach helps
reduce the costs of fish and wildlife
management
by decreasing expensive recoveries of species in need of critical care. Pennsylvania's natural resources are the foundation of our state's beauty and cultural heritage, and the Pennsylvania Wildlife Action Plan provides the framework to secure these resources for future generations.
A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-approved Wildlife Action Plan maintains Pennsylvania's eligibility for federal
State & Tribal Wildlife Grants funding - the nation's core program to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered. These funds help implement conservation actions recommended in the Plan.
What is in the Pennsylvania Wildlife Action Plan?
- List of Species of Greatest Conservation Need (Appendix 1.3)
- Extent and condition of habitats where these species are found (Chapter 2 & Appendix 2.1)
- Environmental threats to these species (Chapter 1, Appendix 1.1, Appendix 1.4; Chapter 3)
- Conservation actions needed recover and protect these species (Chapter 1, Appendix 1.4; Chapter 4)
- Monitoring needed for species, habitats, and conservation actions (Appendix 1.4; Chapter 5 & Appendix 5.1)
- Plans to revise the Plan by 2025 (Chapter 6)
- Partner and public participation in Plan development and implementation (Chapters 7 & 8)
Who should use the State Wildlife Action Plan?
Everyone! Explore the Wildlife Action Plan and interactive, web-based
Conservation Opportunity Area Tool to visualize species distributions statewide or select specific areas of interest to obtain a list of species and conservation actions for an area you identify. Also, get involved by participating in conservation actions found in Chapter 4, Get Involved! Take Action! Don’t wait! Pennsylvania’s Species of Greatest Conservation Need are looking to you for help.
Thank you for your interest in the Pennsylvania Wildlife Action Plan! Please provide your contact information to receive an email notification when a section of the plan has been updated.
Registration Form
All links below are PDFs.
|
Topic (Chapter) |
Updates |
Contents |
|---|
|
Executive Summary | | Overview of the 2015 Plan |
|
Introduction | 03.15.16 | Table of Contents, Acknowledgments, Executive Summary, Foreword, Agency Authorities, Review of 2005 Plan |
|
Species (1) | 03.15.16 | Species of Greatest Conservation Need selection, prioritization, threats and conservation action summary |
|
Appendices 1.1 & 1.2 | 03.15.16 | Species conservation status assessment reports; flowchart and guidance |
|
Appendix 1.3 | 03.18.16 | Species of Greatest Conservation Need list and prioritization |
| Appendix 1.4 | | Species Accounts - detailed summaries of species' status, threats, actions, surveys, monitoring and research |
Questions? Contact the PGC Wildlife Diversity Conservation Planning Coordinator,
PGCSWAP@pa.gov.
Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission Wildlife Action Plan website