Proactive Conservation Program: Species of Concern
Background | Species of Concern List | Contacts | Grant Program | Grants and Technical Resources/Links
 Ivory Tree Coral (Oculina varicosa) Photo: NOAA |
Background
Species of Concern are those species about which NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has some concerns regarding status and threats, but for which insufficient information is available to indicate a need to list the species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). We wish to draw proactive attention and conservation action to these species. "Species of concern" status does not carry any procedural or substantive protections under the ESA.
Funding for projects led by state and territory management agencies is available through our Proactive Species Conservation Grant Program.
Additional funding for NOAA biologists working as Principal Investigators on projects implementing research or conservation measures to improve the status of Species of Concern is available through our Internal Grant Program.
- Identifies species potentially at risk;
- Identifies data deficiencies and uncertainties in species' status and threats;
- Increases public awareness about those species;
- Stimulates cooperative research efforts to obtain the information necessary to evaluate species status and threats; and,
- Fosters voluntary efforts to conserve the species before listing becomes warranted.
A printable, color brochure [pdf] of the program is available for download.
Annual Reports:
For more biological and ecological information on Species of Concern, please follow the links below.
Species of Concern List
Long, detailed fact sheets as well as two-page highlights of information for each species are provided below. A separate list of species removed from the SOC list is also available on our website.
Note: Species of concern can also be "candidate species" if they were petitioned for ESA listing or if a status review was initiated after they became Species of Concern.
| Species | Candidate | Area of Concern |
|---|---|---|
|
Gulf of Mexico-AL, FL, anadromous | |
|
Atlantic-Newfoundland to North Carolina | |
|
Atlantic-Labrador to southern New England | |
|
 |
North America, Atlantic coastal waters (Candidate species as of 10/17/2006 [pdf]; 71 FR 61022) |
|
|
Atlantic-Georges Bank and western Gulf of Maine |
|
Atlantic-Newfoundland, Canada to Cape Hatteras, NC.* |
|
|
Atlantic-Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, to St. John's River, FL | |
|
Pacific-Southern DPS (Northern CA to Mexico) * | |
|
Indo-Pacific-Red Sea and East Africa to the Line Islands and Samoa; north to Yaeyama, south to the Great Barrier Reef and New Caledonia; Paulau, Caroline, Mariana in Micronesia; in U.S. it occurs in Guam, American Samoa, CNMI and the Pacific Remote Island Areas (Wake Islands) | |
|
Pacific-Central Valley, fall and late fall-run ESU | |
|
Pacific-Puget Sound/Strait of Georgia ESU; anadromous. | |
|
Pacific-Central OR to central Baja California and Guadalupe Island, Mexico | |
|
|
Atlantic-Gulf of Maine (Candidate species as of 03/09/2007 [pdf]; 72 FR 10710) |
|
Atlantic; Gulf of Mexico; Pacific | |
|
Pacific- Point Concepcion, CA to Bahia de Magdalena, Gulf of CA, Mexico | |
|
Pacific-northern DPS* (including coastal spawning populations from the Eel River north, to the Klamath rivers); anadromous | |
|
Pacific- Hawaii (Kaneohe Bay, Midway Atoll, Maro Reef) | |
|
Indo-Pacific-Red Sea to the Tuamotus, north to the Ryukyus, east to Wake Islands, south to New Caledonia, throughout Micronesia; includes U.S. territories of Guam and American Samoa | |
|
Pacific- Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay | |
|
Atlantic- West Indies, Bermuda, NC, FL, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean | |
|
Atlantic-Florida Keys | |
|
|
Atlantic-TX, FL |
|
Atlantic-FL, estuarine | |
|
Atlantic-NC southward to Gulf of Mexico | |
|
Atlantic; Gulf of Mexico | |
|
Atlantic-Florida (Indian River Lagoon) | |
|
Pacific-Georgia Basin DPS | |
|
Pacific- Point Concepcion, CA to Bahia de Tortuga, Gulf of CA, Mexico | |
|
Pacific- Sitka, AK to Point Conception, CA | |
|
Atlantic, Newfoundland, Canada to New Jersey | |
|
Atlantic-Labrador to NJ; anadromous | |
|
North Pacific Ocean and adjacent parts of the Arctic Ocean* | |
|
Atlantic-TX, LA, MS, AL, FL | |
|
Atlantic; Gulf of Mexico | |
|
Atlantic-NC to Gulf of Mexico | |
|
Pacific-OR Coast ESU; anadromous | |
|
Atlantic-FL, Antilles and Caribbean from Costa Rica to Guyana | |
|
Atlantic-West Greenland to NY | |
|
Atlantic-MA southward to Gulf of Mexico |
* NMFS reviewed the status of this species as a result of a petition to list it under the Endangered Species Act. While ESA listing was determined to not be warranted, NMFS retained this species on the Species of Concern list.
Page last updated 01/14/2009.
