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DEC Announces Updated New York State Wildlife Action
Plan
Published: October 01, 2026
at 05:45 p.m.
By: Press Release
from NYS DEC
DEC Announces Updated New York State Wildlife Action
Plan
Final 2025 State Wildlife Action Plan and List of
Species of Greatest Conservation Need Now Available
New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Amanda Lefton
today announced that the New York State Wildlife
Action Plan for 2025–2035 is now finalized. The State Wildlife
Action Plan (SWAP) guides conservation and management actions for New
York’s Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) and is a requirement
for New York to participate in the federally funded State and Tribal
Wildlife Grants Program.
“The State
Wildlife Action Plan serves as DEC’s guiding document for managing and
conserving species and habitats before they become too rare or costly to
restore,” said Commissioner Lefton. “This action plan reflects
more than two years of review and coordination between DEC, partners, and
stakeholders to identify our state’s species in greatest need of protection
and develop strategies and actions to address threats and promote healthy populations.”
To remain
eligible for federal funding, Congress requires states and territories to
develop a SWAP and update it every 10 years. SGCN are species native to and
extant in New York that are currently experiencing threats likely to result
in further decline of their populations in the state if conservation
actions are not implemented within the next 10 years. States may only spend
grant funds on SGCN identified in their SWAP.
In revising the
SWAP, 920 wildlife species were assessed, including all SGCN from the 2015
SWAP and 441 additional species. Important habitats, population trends, and
the presence of threats were identified for each species. These assessments
resulted in designating a total of 570 wildlife species as SGCN, 147 of
which are considered High-Priority SGCN. New for this revision, the SWAP also identifies 269 plants as SGCN.
The final,
approved 2025 SWAP, updated SGCN list, and Species Status Assessments are
available to download from DEC’s website.
Questions about
the SWAP can be sent to nyswap2025@dec.ny.gov or by mail to:
SWAP Coordinator
Division of Fish and Wildlife
NYSDEC
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-4754
For more
information on New York’s State Wildlife Action Plan, visit DEC’s website.
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