Species at Risk

Glacier National Park

What is a species at risk?

A species at risk is one that requires special considerations for its conservation. Some species have suffered significant declines in their numbers or distribution and are on the path toward local and, perhaps, global extinction. These species require immediate help while others need attention to ensure they don't start down this path.

Why worry about species at risk?

Protecting the full range of life on earth sustains the health and beauty of our planet. A rich diversity of species is reflective of a healthy and functioning ecosystem.

How are species at risk protected in national parks?

Through the Canada National Parks Act, all plants, animals and natural objects in national parks are protected. Parks Canada gives special attention to species listed in the Species at Risk Act (SARA) and to those that have been assessed as being of conservation concern by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC).

Action planning for species at risk

Multi-species Action Plans for Banff, Kootenay, Yoho, Jasper, Waterton Lakes, Mount Revelstoke and Glacier national parks and Bar U Ranch National Historic Site have been prepared to meet the recovery strategy goals for species found on Parks Canada lands that are listed as endangered or threatened under Canada’s Species at Risk Act. The goal of these action plans is to identify, coordinate and prioritize site-specific actions to support species at risk recovery and management in the parks.

• Multi-species Action Plan for Banff National Park of Canada (PDF, 1,319 KB)
• Multi-species Action Plan for Jasper National Park of Canada (PDF, 984 KB)
• Multi-species Action Plan for Kootenay National Park of Canada (PDF, 1,106 KB)
• Multi-Species Action Plan, Mount Revelstoke National Park of Canada and Glacier National Park of Canada (PDF, 1,056 KB)
• Multi-species Action Plan for Waterton Lakes National Park of Canada and Bar U Ranch National Historic Site of Canada (PDF, 1,725 KB)
• Multi-species Action Plan for Yoho National Park of Canada (PDF, 882 KB)

To learn more, visit the Species at Risk Public Registry website.

Species at Risk Act rankings:

• Extinct: Gone forever
• Extirpated: Locally, regionally or nationally extinct, but exists elsewhere in the wild
• Endangered: Facing imminent extirpation or extinction if nothing is done to reverse the threats
• Threatened: Likely to become endangered if nothing is done to reverse the threats
• Special concern: Sensitive to human activities or natural events, but not an endangered or threatened species

• Banff National Park (BNP)
• Kootenay National Park (KNP)
• Yoho National Park (YNP)
• Jasper National Park (JNP)
• Waterton Lakes National Park (WLNP) and Bar U Ranch National Historic Site (BURNHS)
• Mount Revelstoke National Park (MRNP)
• Glacier National Park (GNP)

SARA extirpated, endangered and threatened species included in multi-species action plans

Endangered

American badger, subspecies jeffersonii (KNP)
Banff Springs snail (BNP)
Half-moon hairstreak (WLNP)
Little brown myotis (BNP, YNP, KNP, JNP, MRNP, GNP, WLNP, BURNHS)
Northern myotis (JNP, MRNP, GNP)
Western screech-owl (WLNP)
Whitebark pine (BNP, KNP, YNP, JNP, MRNP, GNP, WLNP)
Whooping crane (WLNP)

Threatened

Bolander’s quillwort (WLNP)
Canada warbler (WLNP)
Chestnut-collared longspur (WLNP)
Common nighthawk (BNP, KNP, JNP, WLNP)
Ferruginous hawk (WLNP)
Olive-sided flycatcher (BNP, YNP, KNP, JNP, MRNP, GNP, WLNP)
Haller's apple moss (JNP)
Lewis’s woodpecker (WLNP)
Loggerhead shrike (WLNP)
Red-headed woodpecker (WLNP)
Sprague’s pipit (WLNP)
Westslope cutthroat trout - Alberta population (BNP, WLNP, BURNHS)
Woodland caribou - central mountain population (BNP, JNP)
Woodland caribou - southern mountain population (MRNP, GNP)

Other species at risk considered in park/site management

 *COSEWIC listed; not yet included on SARA

Endangered

Black swift (BNP, JNP, WLNP)*
Limber pine (BNP, KNP, YNP, WLNP)*

Threatened

Bank swallow (BNP, KNP, JNP, YNP, WLNP, MRNP, GNP)*
Barn swallow (BNP, KNP, JNP, YNP, MRNP, GNP, WLNP, BURNHS)*
Bull trout (BNP, JNP, WLNP, BURNHS)*
Plains bison (BNP, WLNP)*
Western bumblebee - occidentalis subspecies (WLNP)*

Special concern

American badger - taxus (BNP, WLNP)*
Bobolink (MRNP, GNP)*
Coeur d'Alene Salamander (MRNP, GNP)
Grizzly bear - western population (BNP, JNP, YNP, KNP, WLNP, MRNP, GNP)*
Northern leopard frog - western boreal/prairie population (WLNP)
Rubber boa (KNP)
Rusty blackbird (BNP, GNP)
Vivid dancer (BNP)*
Western tiger salamander - prairie/boreal population (WLNP)*
Westslope cutthroat trout - BC population (YNP, KNP, MRNP, GNP)
Western grebe (BNP, WLNP, MRNP. GNP)*
Western toad (BNP, JNP, YNP, KNP, MRNP, GNP, WLNP)*
Wolverine (BNP, JNP, YNP, KNP, WLNP, MRNP, GNP)*

Extinct

Banff longnose dace (BNP)

Find out more

• Parks Canada - Protecting Species
• Species at Risk Public Registry
• BC species at risk
• Alberta species at risk