The West Indian Manatee is one many endangered species that can be found in North Carolina. (Photo courtesy of Unsplash)
Learn about five species you may not know are endangered in North Carolina.
At any given time, hundreds of species that call the Tar Heel State home are at some varying risk of extinction.
According to the North Carolina Wildlife Federation (NCWF), there are 34 North Carolina wildlife species listed for protection under the Endangered Species Act, 109 listed as endangered or threatened in the state, and 129 listed as “species of special concern” in the state.
There are countless things that can be done to help ensure the survival of these vulnerable populations, and one piece of proposed legislation that would help fund a lot of those measures.
If passed, the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (RAWA) would prove invaluable to North Carolina wildlife species facing declines and potential extinction by allocating more than $1.397 billion dollars toward on-the-ground conservation efforts across the country.
That would include between $20-$25 million annually for the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC), which would work with partners to help the nearly 500 identified fish and wildlife species of greatest conservation need in North Carolina.
Despite bipartisan support, the bill has had a rough time getting through Congress, having narrowly failed to pass multiple votes since its introduction in 2022.
The NCWF and other organizations around the country will continue to lobby for the passage of RAWA, and in the meantime they’ll continue to work with the resources they have to protect North Carolina’s most vulnerable wildlife, like the species we’ve listed below with some tips about what you can do to help.
1. Red-cockaded woodpecker
At just 7 inches long, the red-cockaded woodpecker is the only woodpecker in North Carolina to excavate cavities in living pine trees. After the woodpecker leaves, dozens of other species live in those cavities.
Once a common species throughout long-leaf pine ecosystems, the red-cockaded woodpecker is now due to the decimation of critical habitat, the result of increased farming practices throughout the state, urbanization, and the failure to utilize prescribed burning that would preserve the ecosystems provided by the state tree.
As a fire-adapted species, red-cockaded woodpeckers depend on regular controlled burning of the long-leaf pine ecosystems they call home. Though much of that habitat management takes place on state and federal land, private landowners have the opportunity to help through NCWRC’s Red-cockaded Woodpecker Safe Harbor Program. Through this program, landowners implement land management techniques that benefit the species in exchange for regulatory assurances that no additional restrictions will be imposed as a result of their management actions.
Photo courtesy of Lance Cpl. Matthew K. Hacker, /James Hanula, USDA Forest Service.
2. Red wolf
Red wolves are one of North Carolina’s most popular endangered species among supporters — but also one of the state’s most imperiled species and the world’s most endangered wild canid.
Most folks driving into the Outer Banks for a summer vacation have seen the signs along I-64 passing through the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, where U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) Red Wolf Recovery Program re-introduced the wolves to the wild. While the eastern NC red wolf population rebounded to about 120 known adult wolves, but now their numbers are down to just 18 thanks to poachers and traffic wrecks.
In collaboration with USFWS’ Partners Program, NCWF rolled out Prey for the Pack, a cost-share program to assist private landowners in making habitat improvements for red wolves and other wildlife on their properties. Any landowners not wanting to apply for the cost-share portion of the program can still support red wolves by becoming a “supporter” and completing a zero-cost agreement.
And if you’re on the way to the Outer Banks this summer, do as the signs say and slow down for the red wolves’ sake.
Photo courtesy of LaggedOnUser/CC BY-SA 2.0,
3. Atlantic sturgeon
Atlantic sturgeon are anadromous fish, meaning they spend much of their time in coastal salt water but move along inland freshwater systems to spawn. They are long-distance travelers known to move up to 950 miles between the ocean and their spawning areas. The species dates back to the dinosaur age.
Unsustainable and unregulated fishing practices have led to a dwindling population, and the Atlantic sturgeon was listed as a federally endangered species in 2012.
The harvest of Atlantic sturgeon is not allowed in North Carolina, and any Atlantic sturgeon captured while fishing for other species must be returned to the water alive.
Folks who encounter a wild sturgeon are asked to contact the NCWRC’s Division of Inland Fisheries. Be sure to document the time, date, and location of the encounter, the approximate length of the fish, and a photograph showing the mouth and anal fin for species verification.
4. Carolina northern flying squirrel
The Carolina northern flying squirrel is one of two species of flying squirrel in North Carolina. Their cousin species, the southern flying squirrel, sticks to lower elevations while the Carolina northern flying squirrel resides in higher elevations, usually at least 4,000-5,000 feet above sea level.
That aspect of their lives left them vulnerable to deforestation and forest fires, which eliminated crucial habitat, as did the introduction of the invasive balsam and hemlock woolly adelgids, which further damaged balsam fir and hemlock trees, forcing the squirrels to move to less ideal tree species.
In North Carolina, the Carolina northern flying squirrel is found in Long Hope Mountain, Roan Mountain, Grandfather Mountain, Unaka Mountain, the Black-Craggy Mountains north and east of the French Broad River Basin, and Great Balsam, Plott Balsam, Smoky, and Unicoi Mountains south and west of the French Broad River Basin.
The NCWRC and the Southern Appalachian Spruce Restoration Initiative are working to restore the squirrel’s forest habitat. If you’re hiking in the above-named areas, stay on trails to avoid damaging their habitat, and don’t cut wood from live trees or bring in outside firewood.
Photo courtesy of Angie spuc/CC BY-SA 3.0.
5. West Indian manatee
Perhaps the West Indian manatee is overlooked as a North Carolina species because of its other common name: the Florida manatee. The slow-moving mammal primarily lives in freshwater and brackish marine ecosystems on the southeastern coast, including the Carolinas seasonally, where it largely subsists on a diet of underwater grass beds.
The West Indian manatee has suffered significantly from a combination of habitat loss and collisions with boats. Much of their habitat loss is a result of harmful fertilizer, sewage, manure, and development runoff, which cause algae blooms that are harmful and sometimes even fatal to manatees.
Though manatee sightings are rare in North Carolina, it is advised to keep an eye out for manatees when boating in their preferred environments, particularly during the summer season on the coast. In the event that you spot a manatee, the NCWF asks that you turn off your boat propeller so as not to accidentally injure the animal.
This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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