60 Percent of Threatened Species Lack Conservation Plans That Address Climate Change Risk According to New Defenders Research

A new Defenders of Wildlife study published in Biological Conservation finds that 60 percent of US animal species listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act lack conservation plans from the US Fish and Wildlife Service or National Marine Fisheries Services that address the risks of climate change. The  findings also concluded that all but one of species listed as threatened under the ESA are potentially impacted by climate change, higher than the 91 percent acknowledged in species’ plans and documents published by those agencies. 

“The impacts of climate change are severe and wide-reaching, and nearly all species protected under the Endangered Species Act are at risk,” said Aimee Delach, senior climate change adaptation policy analyst for Defenders of Wildlife and co-author of the paper. “As a key driver of the biodiversity crisis, it is imperative that climate change is incorporated into existing and future recovery plans so we have a blueprint to save wildlife from this imminent threat.”

A previous study by Defenders of Wildlife found that 80 percent of US wildlife species listed as endangered under the ESA lack plans addressing the threat of climate change, though this shortcoming has improved over the past few years.

“The Endangered Species Act is a powerful tool for saving our nation’s most imperiled species in the face of climate change and we must continue to support it,” said Ted Weber, climate adaptation policy analyst for Defenders of Wildlife and lead author of the paper. “Just recently, the Inflation Reduction Act allocated $125 million for endangered species recovery planning and implementation, and the Fish and Wildlife Service decided to allow establishment of new populations in suitable future habitat. We hope these can catalyze the actions needed to save these species.”

Mollusks and amphibians were generally the most sensitive animals to climate change effects due to their aquatic habitats and susceptibility to hydrological and chemical changes. These include freshwater mussels, the most imperiled group of species in the United States.

Fish, however, had the lowest proportion of plans that addressed climate change impacts and mammals, in general, were found to be the least sensitive. 

“Moving forward, it is critically important for Congress to fully fund the Endangered Species Act to achieve the ultimate purpose of the law, to save our nation’s species from the threat of extinction,” said Weber.