There are two broad categories for creatures whose rarity puts them in danger.

In each state a third category may used for those species who are generally considered to be in trouble. In Kansas it is called Species in need of Conservation (SINC).  In other states, they may be referred to as Special Concern species.  There are 78 species on the Kansas SINC list as of August 2009.  These break down to:  12 mussels, 1 snail, 2 dragonflys, 1 crayfish, 1 mole cricket, 31 fishes, 2 amphibians, 1 turtle, 6 snakes, 15 birds and 6 mammals.

For a pdf version of the SINC list, click here .
(On a Windows system, download the file by right-clicking on the link and choosing "Save Target As" to save it to your hard drive, then open it from there.   You will need Acrobat Reader to view this file.  If you don't have that software already, you can get it for free from Adobe.)

Species are ranked in Kansas by the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, in the United States by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and worldwide by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the Nature Conservancy.  The rankings at the state and national levels are required by law, while the world rankings are done by concerned professional organizations and do not have a legal mandate.  At all levels, the process for ranking the species seeks to answer these questions:

1. Do we know enough about the species to assess it properly?
2. What is the minimum viable population of the species?
3. What is the critical habitat necessary for survival of the species?
4. What are the immediate and long-term threats to the species and its habitat?

The list of threatened and endangered species in Kansas is below, last revised in January 2005.  For more information on each species, use the links in the list to go to the species pages in the Kansas Wildlife Refuge, the section of the GPNC website that is an online adaptation of our "Pocket Guide to Kansas Threatened and Endangered Species".

How can the plants be threatened or endangered nationally and not in Kansas?
That is because Kansas law does not allow the listing of plants.  Federal law is the only protector of plant species in Kansas.

Aren't there a lot of mussels on the list?
Yes!  Adding in the 12 mussel species on the SINC list, it shows that over half of Kansas' 45 known species of freshwater mussels are in trouble.   Nationwide, 71% of freshwater mussel species are either in serious decline or extinct.  These creatures are very sensitive to water quality and their plight should be considered a warning that our streams and rivers have grave problems. 

Why are so many species on the T & E list in Kansas, but not nationally?
This is usually because Kansas is on the edge of the range of the species. 

If they are common elsewhere, why should we be concerned about those few in our state?
It is important to protect all populations of a species.  Those at the fringe of their range are especially important because they may contain the genetic knowledge to help the species adapt if conditions change in the core of the species' range.  For example, if the predictions of global warming come to pass, those individuals within a species who can tolerate a hotter or drier climate will be able to carry on while those adapted to cooler and damper conditions will die out.  If the species did not have any members with the ability to survive warmer conditions, the whole species would die out.

For more information:

  For a site devoted to the Black Footed Ferret click here.

Last revised 01/15/10.

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Great Plains Nature Center
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