Listed Species and Critical Habitats
The purpose of this section of the toolkit is to provide information about the Endangered Species Act listed species and their critical habitats that are known to occur in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana (the four states that protect the majority of the Columbia River Basin). The intent is to provide easy access to key life history vulnerabilities associated with those species and critical habitat, with the likely effects of an action on species, and additional species-specific best management practices to inform any proposed action to control (or eradicate) dreissenids.
The information in this section was obtained from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Environmental Conservation Online System (ECOS), and was supported by each state’s heritage database system. This information updated regularly. The material in this chapter does not substitute for the need to communicate with the local U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Ecological Services Program to confirm the accuracy of this information as well as any new information and updates made since the development of this document.
The four CRB states have federally endangered and threatened species that occur in habitats conducive to dreissenids (see table below updated 11 October 2022).
The following table provides a detailed list of federally listed species by state, including a hyperlink to the ECOS profile, a link to the distribution map, and links to information about critical habitat and critical habitat maps (if appropriate).
Table of Listed Threatened (T), Endangered (E), and Experimental Population (XN) species and critical habitat (CH) in the Columbia River Basin States (updated 13 October 2022)
Endangered (E)—Any species that is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range.
Threatened (T)—Any species that is likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range.
Proposed (P)—Any species of that is proposed in the Federal Register to be listed under section 4 of the Act.
Non-essential experimental population (XN)—A population of a listed species reintroduced into a specific area that receives more flexible management under the Act.
Critical Habitat/Proposed Critical Habitat (CH, PCH)—The specific areas (i) within the geographic area occupied by a species, at the time it is listed, on which are found those physical or biological features (I) essential to conserve the species and (II) that may require special management considerations or protection; and (ii) specific areas outside the geographic area occupied by the species at the time it is listed upon determination that such areas are essential to conserve the species.