ENDANGERED
SPECIES
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 was written
by Congress, on behalf of the American people,
to prevent extinctions facing species of fish, wildlife and plants and to conserve the ecosystems on which they depend.
A species is listed depending on its status and the degree of threat it faces.
One that is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range
One that is likely
to become endangered in the foreseeable future
Vertebrates
In 2021, there are 1,266 endangered vertebrates, invertebrates and plants in the United States and its territories.
Invertebrates
Plants
268
226
772
Endangered species in the U.S.
Type of endangered animals
Endangered vertebrates with populations in the 50 states:
Mammals
66
Amphibians
22
Birds
76
Fishes
88
Reptiles
16
Breakdown by state
Number of endangered animals listed in each state:
Click for details
Lookup endangered species
Filter by state or vertebrate species group:
No creature exists in a vacuum. All living things are part of a complex, often delicately balanced, network. The earth’s biosphere is composed of countless ecosystems, which include plants and animals and their physical environments. No one knows how the extinction of organisms will affect the other members of its ecosystem, but the removal of a single species can set off a chain reaction affecting many others.
The loss of a “keystone” species can fundamentally change the composition of the wildlife community. When the gray wolves were restored to Yellowstone National Park, they started to control the park’s large population of elk, which had been over consuming the willows, aspen, and other trees that grew along streams. The recovery of these trees cools stream flows, which benefit native trout, and increases nesting habitat for migratory birds. Beavers now have willow branches to eat, and beaver dams create marshland habitat for otters, mink, and ducks. Wolves even benefit the threatened grizzly bear, since grizzlies find it easier to take over a wolf kill than to bring down their own elk.
— U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Ecological Services Program “Why Save Endangered Species?” brochure
Does not include invertebrates (clams, insects, crustaceans) or plants
Gallery: Common species listed in multiple states
Endangered
species
Threatened
species
!
!
268
species
Reptile: Dermochelys coriacea
Al Woodson photo, USFWS volunteer
Leatherback sea turtle
Endangered in 22 states
Endangered in 22 states
Ann Froschauer photo, USFWS
Mammal: Myotis sodalis
Indiana bat
Endangered in 18 states
Caroline S. Rogers photo, NOA-USFWS
Reptile: Eretmochelys imbricata
Hawksbill sea turtle
Endangered in 15 states
Ann Froschauer photo, USFWS
Mammal: Myotis grisescens
Gray bat
Endangered in 13 states
USFWS photo
Fish: Scaphirhynchus albus
Pallid sturgeon
Endangered in 12 states
Martjan Lammertink photo, USFWS
Bird: Picoides borealis
Red-cockaded woodpecker
Endangered in 9 states
USFWS photo
Bird: Sterna dougallii dougallii
Roseate tern
Endangered in 9 states
NER Sea Turtle Stranding Network photo
Reptile: Lepidochelys kempii
Kemp's ridley sea turtle
Endangered in 8 states
Dave Frederick photo, USFWS
Bird: Charadrius melodus
Piping Plover
Endangered in 8 states
Klaus Nigge photo, USFWS
Bird: Grus americana
Whooping crane
Endangered in 7 states
Natural Resources Conservation Service Colorado photo
Bird: Empidonax traillii extimus
Southwestern willow flycatcher
Endangered in 6 states
Ben Kiefer photo, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
Fish: Ptychocheilus lucius
Colorado pikeminnow
Endangered in 6 states
Melanie Fischer photo, USFWS
Fish: Xyrauchen texanus
Razorback sucker
Endangered in 6 states
USFWS photo
Fish: Notropis topeka
Topeka shiner
Endangered in 7 states
J. Michael Lockhart photo, USFW
Mammal: Mustela nigripes
Black-footed ferret
Endangered in 5 states
Pete Leary photo, USFWS
Bird: Phoebastria albatrus
Short-tailed albatross
Endangered in 5 states
Kevin Kappenman photo, USFWS
Fish: Gila elegans
Bonytail
Endangered in 5 states
George Andrejko photo, Arizona Game and Fish Department
Fish: Gila cypha
Humpback chub
Endangered in 5 states
Barbara Taylor photo, NMFS/SWFSC/PRD
Bird: Gymnogyps californianus
California condor
Endangered in 5 states
JH Fagan photo, Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation
Mammal: Corynorhinus townsendii virginianus
Virginia big-eared bat
Mammals
Birds
Fishes
Reptiles
Amphibians
Amphibians
Birds
Fishes
Mammals
Reptiles
California: 8
Texas: 4
California: 9
Texas: 7
Hawaii: 33
Tennessee: 13
Arizona: 13
Nevada: 18
California: 17
Arizona: 7
Florida: 14
Mississippi: 4
Alabama: 4
Species per state:
1
10
20
Tap for details
Endangered in 22 states
Ann Froschauer photo, USFWS
Mammal: Myotis sodalis
Indiana bat
Endangered in 18 states
Endangered in 15 states
Endangered in 13 states
Endangered in 12 states
Endangered in 9 states
Endangered in 9 states
Endangered in 8 states
Endangered in 8 states
Endangered in 7 states
Endangered in 6 states
Endangered in 6 states
Endangered in 6 states
Endangered in 7 states
Endangered in 5 states
Endangered in 5 states
Endangered in 5 states
Endangered in 5 states
Endangered in 5 states
Type of
endangered animals
SOURCE: United States Fish and Wildlife Service; Environmental Conservation Online System
