Candidate Conservation | How Can You Help Conservation?
The Service works in partnership with landowners and the general public to identify threats to candidate species, plan the measures needed to address the threats and conserve these species, identify willing landowners, develop agreements, and design and implement conservation measures and monitor their effectiveness. Below are some of the many tools that you can use to learn more about how you can proactively remove or reduce threats to candidate species, thus contributing to stabilizing or restoring the species so that listing is no longer necessary.
![Photo of DeBeque phacelia by Creed Clayton, USFWS](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20121017041416im_/http://www.fws.gov/endangered/media/Phacelia-submutica.jpg)
DeBeque phacelia
Photo credit: Creed Clayton, USFWS
Candidate Conservation Agreements (CCAs & CCAAs)
The Service and one or more public or private parties can enter into voluntary Candidate Conservation Agreements (CCAs) to address the needs of proposed or candidate species before they become listed as endangered or threatened. Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances (CCAAs) expand on the success of traditional CCAs by providing non-Federal landowners with additional incentives for engaging in voluntary proactive conservation through assurances that limit future conservation obligations.
Learn more about these agreements
State Wildlife Action Plans
All State and Territorial fish and wildlife agencies have established comprehensive conservation plans that, together, provide a nationwide blueprint of actions to conserve imperiled species. Most, if not all, of our candidate species are included in these plans. By working together with the states, we may be able to remove threats and improve habitats and prevent them these species from becoming threatened or endangered.
The State Wildlife Action Plans are a thorough state-by-state assessment of the condition/status of wildlife and the actions needed to ensure their survival.
View individual State Wildlife Action Plans
Landowner Tools
We work with private landowners, Tribes, and other Federal and State agencies including other programs within the Fish and Wildlife Service to forge voluntary conservation agreements that benefit candidates and other species-at-risk. We provide technical assistance on designing and implementing conservation actions to address threats identified in our species assessments.
Download Tools for Helping Imperiled Wildlife on Private Lands brochure [1.76MB].
Download Conservation Profiles: Landowners Help Imperiled Wildlife brochure [1.84MB].
Candidate Conservation Video
Learn more about how landowner's can voluntarily conserve imperiled species by watching this enlightening video that includes interviews with Service field supervisors and partners about the benefits of Candidate Conservation Agreements and testimonials from landowners.
Species
What We Do
For Landowners
- Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs)
- Safe Harbor Agreements
- Candidate Conservation Agreements
- Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances
- Recovery Credits and Tax Deductions
- Conservation Banking
- Conservation Plans Database
- Information, Planning and Conservation System (IPaC)
- Recovery Online Activity Reporting System (ROAR)
Permits
Grants
News
- News Stories
- Featured Species
- Recovery Success Stories
- Endangered Species Bulletin
- Partnership Stories