Southeast Regional Partnership for Planning and Sustainability (SERPPAS)
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Threatened, Endangered, and At-Risk Species

Threatened, Endangered, and At-Risk Species

Both state and federal partners share a desire to conserve gopher tortoise populations and habitat in order to prevent regulatory constraints and carry out their missions to the best of their ability, be it training missions on military installations or forest management on U.S. Forest Service lands. The gopher tortoise is listed as threatened in the western portion of its range, while it’s a candidate species for possible federal listing in the eastern portion of the range.

Description

Why?  Military installations provide habitat for significant populations of federally-listed and at-risk species. These species can and do adversely impact training and testing on military installations due to Endangered Species Act (ESA) requirements. At-Risk species are defined as those species which have been proposed for listing by the Fish and Wildlife Service, designated as candidate species by the Service or which the Service has been petitioned to list under the ESA.

How?  The SERPPAS Threatened, Endangered, and At-Risk Species Work Group collaborates with federal, state and other partners to develop and promote innovative strategiesfor proactive conservation of at-risk species and increased flexibility for addressing impacts to both listed species and military missions.  These approaches include conservation agreements, mitigation credit strategies, and projects to increase status information of at-risk species to inform Species Status Assessments conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to inform listing decisions.

Benefit?  These efforts will promote and support ecosystem restoration, maintenance and monitoring on and off military installations to enhance the conservation of at-risk and listed species; increase flexibility for on-installation training; increase regulatory predictability for military services, other federal agencies, and private landowners who engage in proactive conservation; and provide a process for DoD and other partners to share species data that will inform regulatory decisions.

Photo Galleries

Documents Library

Date Title Author
02/06/19 2018 Annual Report: SERPPAS RCW Translocation Project Aliza Sager, Sarah Lauerman, and Ralph Costa
06/28/18 SERPPAS Threatened, Endangered and At-Risk Species Fact Sheet SERPPAS At-Risk Species Work Group
06/25/18 MOU Between DOI and DoD Establishing a Recovery and Sustainment Partnership Initiative DOI/DOD
03/21/18 9th Annual Gopher Tortoise Candidate Conservation Agreement Report GTCCA Agencies & Organizations
03/12/18 Perspectives on Collaborative Conservation Partners for Conservation
01/31/18 2017 Annual Report: SERPPAS RCW Translocation Project Aliza Sager, Sarah Lauerman, and Ralph Costa
04/30/17 AMERICA’S LONGLEAF RESTORATION INITIATIVE 2016 RANGE-WIDE ACCOMPLISHMENT REPORT Longleaf Partnership Council
04/20/17 8th Annual Gopher Tortoise Candidate Conservation Agreement Report GTCCA Agencies & Organizations
03/24/17 Department of Defense Gopher Tortoise Conservation and Crediting Strategy USFWS, DoD, SC DNR, GA DNR, AL DCNR, FL FWCC
01/30/17 2016 Annual Report: SERPPAS RCW Translocation Project Kristina Witter, Sarah Lauerman, Ralph Costa
12/14/16 Conserving Georgia's Nongame Wildlife 2016 Annual Report GA DNR Wildlife Resources Division
02/17/16 Issues in Ecology #20: Species Recovery in the U.S.: Increasing the Effectiveness of the Endangered Species Act Ecological Society of America
07/15/15 Webinar Recording: Better Integrating Natural Resources Management with Your REPI Project REPI
02/01/15 2014 RCW Translocations Annual Report Kristina Witter, Sarah Lauerman, Ralph Costa
03/01/13 4th Annual Report: Candidate Conservation Agreement for the Gopher Tortoise N/A
02/01/13 2012 RCW Translocations Annual Report Kristina Witter, Sarah Lauerman, Ralph Costa
12/01/12 Candidate Conservation Agreement (CCA) for the Gopher Tortoise N/A
02/01/12 2011 RCW Translocations Annual Report Kristina Witter, Sarah Lauerman, Ralph Costa
04/01/10 2009 RCW Translocations Annual Report Larry Wood, Sarah Lauerman, Ralph Costa
03/01/10 2010 RCW Translocations Annual Report Kristina Witter, Sarah Lauerman, Ralph Costa
05/01/09 2008 RCW Translocations Annual Report Larry Wood, Sarah Lauerman, Ralph Costa

Websites and Resources Library

Title Author
Candidate Conservation USFWS, Southeast Region
DoD Natural Resources Program DoD
National Military Fish and Wildlife Association (NMFWA) NMFWA
Recovery and Sustainment Program (RASP) NFWF
Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies SEAFWA
South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) USFWS
Peninsular Florida Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) USFWS
North Carolina Green Growth Toolbox North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
The Service's National Listing Workplan US FWS
Florida Gopher Tortoise Smartphone App FL Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Webinar Recording: Gopher Tortoise Conservation Strategy as a Model to Protect At-Risk Species DoD REPI
Longleaf Pine Story Map Longleaf Alliance and ALRI
Habitat Suitability Models for At-Risk Species in the Longleaf Pine Ecosystem USFWS

Upcoming Events

Date Event Location
13:00 PM - 14:30 PM EST 07/10 - 03/19/19 How to Obtain Regulatory Relief for Endangered Species without Purchasing a Real Estate Interest Webinar
13:00 PM - 14:30 PM EST 11/27/19 REPI and the Farm Bill Webinar
07/16 - 07/18/19 Longleaf Academy: Longleaf 101 Brooksville, FL
08/13 - 08/15/19 Longleaf Academy: Fire & Longleaf 201 Woodworth, LA
09/09 - 09/10/19 RPPAS Fall 2019 Steering Committee Meeting Atlanta, GA
10/30 - 11/03/19 Society of American Foresters 2019 Convention Louisville, FY

News Stories

Date Title Author
04/24/19 Coastal Headwaters Project in Florida is a Major Step for Longleaf Pine Restoration USFWS
04/22/19 Eglin AFB named Air Force 2019 SECDEF Environmental Award recipient U.S. Air Force
04/15/19 NRCS Job Announcements - LLPI Coordinator and National WLFW Coordinator NRCS
04/10/19 What's Good For One Is Good For All: Quail and Wild Turkeys in Southern Piney Woods Aid RCW Recovery National Wild Turkey Federation
04/09/19 Bringing Back the Red-cockaded Woodpecker: Are Prescribed Fire and Artificial Nests Enough? Cornell Lab of Ornithology
04/03/19 NFWF Releases 2018 Annual Report NFWF
04/01/19 SEFireMap: Overview & Status Update NRCS; U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities; Longleaf Alliance
04/01/19 Natural Selections Newsletter: Spring 2019 DoD Natural Resources Program
03/30/19 ALRI Releases Strategic Priorities and Actions 2019-2021 America's Longleaf Restoration Initiative
03/11/19 A Real Good Burn - Photo Essay NC Wildlife Resources Commission
02/06/19 2018 Annual Report: SERPPAS RCW Translocation Project Aliza Sager, Sarah Lauerman, and Ralph Costa
02/04/19 U.S. Endowment Issues RFP for Field Data for Longleaf Ecosystem Occurrence Database U.S. Endowment
01/28/19 USFWS Develops Longleaf Pine Habitat Story Map USFWS
01/24/19 RCWs Receive Emergency Help at Silverlake WMA After Hurricane Michael GA DNR Wildlife Resources Division
01/23/19 DEP Adds Fragile Acreage to Florida Keys Ecosystem Project FL DEP
01/22/19 Longleaf Leader Details Post-Hurricane Recovery and Restoration The Longleaf Alliance
01/07/19 USACE Team Protects Gopher Tortoises USACE
12/20/18 Natural Selections Newsletter: Winter 2019 DoD Natural Resources Program
12/01/18 Fall 2018 Longleaf Partnership Council Meeting Summary ALRI
11/21/18 Longleaf Stewardship Fund 2019 Request for Proposals NFWF
11/15/18 Acres for America Program Awards $3.2M to Save Habitats and Increase Public Access to Nature NFWF
10/22/18 SERPPAS Partners Quoted in Longleaf Alliance's Longleaf Leader Longleaf Alliance
10/09/18 Protecting the Desert’s Little Tanks DoD
10/04/18 Relocation efforts reach 800 rescued gopher tortoises Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute
09/19/18 Regional Longleaf Awards Announced Longleaf Alliance
09/18/18 North Florida Land Trust Marks Largest Conservation Easement Acquisitions to Date North Florida Land Trust
08/29/18 Natural Selections Newsletter: Summer 2018 DoD Natural Resources Program
08/22/18 NFWF Longleaf Forests and Rivers Business Plan NFWF
08/03/18 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducts five-year status reviews of 42 southeastern species USFWS
06/28/18 The Longleaf Alliance and ALRI Release Story Map, "Building a "Road Map" to Restore Longleaf Pine" The Longleaf Alliance and ALRI
06/01/18 Texas A&M NRI Releases Article, "The Intersection of Gopher Tortoise Policy and Conservation" Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute
06/01/18 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers June 2018 Stewardship Newsletter USACE
05/18/18 Endangered Species Day: Congratulations to the 2017 Recovery Champions for the Southeast Region USFWS
05/07/18 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducts five-year status reviews of 35 Southeastern species USFWS
04/06/18 Gulf Power helps Eglin Air Force base save thousands of doomed gopher tortoises Gulf Power
03/29/18 Reversing America's Wildlife Crisis National Wildlife Federation
03/23/18 NRCS to Expand Targeted Conservation Effort for Wildlife on Agricultural Lands USDA NRCS
03/22/18 Marines and Woodpeckers Share the High Ground USFWS
03/09/18 Fish and Wildlife Service conducts five-year status reviews of eight southeastern species USFWS
03/05/18 Lesson from a Tortoise Mike Brennan
01/28/18 Business and Wildlife Groups Skip the Fight, Work Together to Save a Species NPR
08/22/17 Boosting the gopher tortoise: Federal, state and private partners raise $150 million to help the much-loved keystone species flourish in the South US FWS
08/09/17 Growing Trees, Saving Species USFWS
08/01/17 The Tortoise and the Lair Garden and Gun
06/29/17 Fish and Wildlife Service conducts five-year status reviews of 23 Southeastern species USFWS
06/26/17 NWTF Donates Land for Lauderdale WMA Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
06/17/17 Service Provides 1 Million Dollars to States to Combat Bat-Killing Fungal Disease USFWS
06/05/17 Applicants sought for Central Appalachia Habitat Stewardship Program NFWF
05/09/17 A harmonious future for profits, pine and at-risk species along the Florida-Alabama line USFWS
04/18/17 Endangered Species Act Petitions for Florida Black Bear and Mojave Desert Tortoise do not Warrant Further Action USFWS
04/06/17 Fish and Wildlife, the military and state of Florida boost conservation at Camp Blanding USFWS
04/04/17 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finds yellow lance mussel warrants Endangered Species Act protection USFWS
03/30/17 Manatee Reclassified from Endangered to Threatened as Habitat Improves and Population Expands – Existing Federal Protections Remain in Place USFWS
03/24/17 Service, Department of Defense Adopt Credit Strategy for SE Installations Benefiting Gopher Tortoise and other species USFWS
03/06/17 Draft Recovery Plan for Endangered Yellowcheek Darter Available USFWS
03/01/17 Natural Selections Newsletter: Winter 2017 DoD Natural Resources Program
02/10/17 SCDNR, SCBS partner for bluebird conservation SC DNR
02/06/17 Partnering to Protect Longleaf Pines The Conservation Fund
01/03/17 The Longleaf Reader Winter 2016 The Longleaf Alliance
12/31/16 Longleaf Stewardship Fund 2017 Request for Proposals NFWF
12/23/16 Final Policy Provides Standards to Offset Impacts of Development on America’s Most At-Risk Species USFWS
12/23/16 Federal Agencies Strengthen Opportunities for Public Engagement in Voluntary Conservation Efforts Under Endangered Species Act USFWS
12/01/16 Fall 2016 Natural Selections: Spotlight on GT Conservation and Crediting Strategy DoD Natural Resources Program
11/10/16 Georgia's Revised Wildlife Action Plan Approved, at Work GA DNR Wildlife Resources Division
11/10/16 2016 season marked by high sea turtle nest, stranding numbers SC DNR
10/27/16 NFWF and USFWS Announce Launch of the Bats for the Future Fund NFWF
09/15/16 Military Bases Serve As Safe Haven For Endangered Species NPR
09/13/16 Service Announces Findings on Ten Endangered Species Act Petitions US FWS
09/01/16 The Birds and the Bombs BioGraphic, Ben Goldfarb
08/30/16 Fish and Wildlife Service Conducting Five-Year Status Reviews of 22 Southeastern Species US FWS
08/17/16 NOAA awards $5.4 million in grants for endangered, threatened species recovery NOAA
07/27/16 UCF to Establish Permanent Sea Turtle Research Field Station on Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge US FWS
07/26/16 Service Announces Final Methodology for Prioritizing and Addressing Endangered Species Act Status Reviews US FWS
07/22/16 Corps and Service Agree On Actions for Conserving Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow and Restoring Balance to Everglades Ecosystem US FWS
02/17/16 DoD Announces Request for Fiscal Year 2017 Legacy Resource Management Program Funding Pre-Proposals Department of Defense
01/19/16 USFWS Regulates Human Interactions with Listed Bat Species USFWS
12/14/15 The Department of Defense and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have produced the Fall 2015 Wildlife Stewardship & National Defense Issue of the Endangered Species Bulletin DoD and USFWS
09/17/15 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Announces Findings for 25 Endangered Species Act Petitions USFWS
09/14/15 Fish and Wildlife Service Proposes Adding White Fringeless Orchid to Threatened and Endangered Species List USFWS
09/02/15 Loggerhead Sea Turtles Set Another Nesting Record in Georgia GA DNR
08/11/15 Military Conservation Partner Award 2016—Solicitation of Nominations USFWS
07/23/15 Dusty Gopher Frog Recovery Plan Released USFWS
08/19/14 Fort Bragg and red-cockaded woodpecker co-exist comfortably after shift in conservation attitudes Fayetteville Observer
07/27/11 12-Month Finding on a Petition To List the Gopher Tortoise as Threatened in the Eastern Portion of Its Range USFWS
02/21/10 A Base for War Training, and Species Preservation NY Times