Endangered and Threatened Marine Species

ESA Fact Sheet

How Does the ESA Define "Species"?
The term "species" under the ESA includes species, subspecies, and, for vertebrates only, "distinct population segments (DPSs)". Pacific salmon are listed as "evolutionarily significant units (ESUs)", which are essentially equivalent to DPSs for the purpose of the ESA.

Overview

NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) share responsibility for implementing the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

There are approximately 2,100 species listed under the ESA. Of these species, approximately 1,480 are found in part or entirely in the U.S. and its waters; the remainder are foreign species.

Generally, USFWS manages land and freshwater species, while NMFS manages marine and "anadromous" species. NMFS has jurisdiction over 94 listed species (74 of these species are found in part or entirely in U.S. waters; 20 are foreign species) (see links below).

The ESA requires NMFS to designate critical habitat and to develop and implement recovery plans for threatened and endangered species.

For more information on the ESA, see our ESA Fact Sheet [pdf] and the special edition of the Fish and Wildlife Service's Endangered Species Bulletin Highlights Marine and Anadromous Species [pdf].

Updated: August 8, 2013