Species at Risk

What’s in Your Backyard?

Plant and animal species are being driven to extinction in all terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems across the world due to human activities. Such activities have resulted in habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, climate crisis, and pollution of all three media on an unprecedented scale.

In the US, imperiled species are afforded protection under federal laws such as the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Endangered and Threatened flora and fauna are also protected through state and local laws.

Which species are at risk of extinction in your area?

Click here for the federal listing of species at risk.

Click on the map below for species’ listing at the state level:

Learn more about individual plants and animals here.

In Canada, the Endangered Species at Risk Act (SARA) protects species in all provinces.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) maintains a comprehensive inventory of the conservation status of biological species across the world. Check out IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species by country/region.

Personal responsibility is just as important as policy in saving species from extinction and protecting the planet’s biodiversity. Here are 5 simple things each of us can do, wherever we are in the world, to protect the plants and animals around us:

  1. Do not kill, harm, or maim plants and animals
  2. Do not pollute water, land, and air
  3. Do plant locally native plants
  4. Do reduce consumption and waste generation
  5. Do think of the environmental impact of your daily activities
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