Camping & RVs
Wilderness Travel
Protected Area Planning
Territorial Parks & Protected Areas
- Agay Mene (Park in progress)
- Asi Keyi (Park in progress)
- Big Island
- Coal River Springs
- Devil's Elbow
- Herschel Island - Qikiqtaruk
- Horseshoe Slough
- Kusawa (Park in progress)
- Lhutsaw Wetlands
- Ni'iinlii Njik (Fishing Branch)
- Old Crow Flats (Van Tat K'atr'anahtii)
- Ta'Tla Mun
- Tombstone
- Ts'alwnjik Chu (Nordenskiold) Wetland
Hunting in Yukon
Fishing in Yukon
Trapping in Yukon
- Trapping Regulation Highlights
- Humane Trapping Standards
- Trapper Education
- Development Concession - CAPS
- Yukon Trapper Profiles
Hunter & Trapper Education & Resources
Wildlife Viewing
- Wildlife Viewing Program
- Wildlife Viewing Events
- Viewing Tips & Etiquette
- Best Viewing Sites
- Through the Seasons
- Bird Watching
- Swan Haven
- Celebration of Swans
Yukon Species
Animal Management
- Southern Lakes Bear Study
- Winter Ticks
- Wildlife Diseases & Contaminants
- Wildlife Management Modelling
Wilderness Management
Climate Change
- Climate Change
- Climate Change Action Plan
- Impacts of Climate Change
- Climate Change Adaptation
Information Notes - Water & Climate Change
- Yukon Government Initiatives
Air & Water
Waste & Chemicals
Clean Northern Living
- Household Hazardous Waste
- Spill Reporting
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- Turn in Poachers & Polluters
- Warming Up Your Vehicle
- Wood Burning Tips
Animal Encounters
Get Involved
- Environment Fair 2013
- Draft Yukon Water Strategy
- Animal Health Act Review
- Volunteer Opportunities in Yukon Parks
- How You Can Help Wildlife Studies
- Environmental Awareness Fund
- Joining Boards & Councils
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Youth Programs
Educator Resources
- BIGFOOT/littlefoot Game
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- Backyard Biodiversity
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- Environment Education Links
About the Department
Publications
Maps & GIS Data
Yukon Species At Risk
The Buff-breasted Sandpiper (photo Cameron Eckert) was assessed as Special Concern in 2012. It breeds on Yukon’s north coast.
The earth's plants and animals are going extinct at an alarming rate - a rate that some biologists have estimated at about 100 species every day. Many more species are at risk, including some that live in the Yukon.
Today, it is recognized that all life is linked together, that the survival of an endangered species is tied to the survival of its habitat and the other life forms to which it is linked.
- Mechanisms for Identifying Species at Risk
- Species at Risk in Yukon
- How You Can Help
- Additional Resources
- Contact Us
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Want more information about species at risk nationally that occur in Yukon? Full of photos, maps, and interesting facts, Yukon Species at Risk describes the threats faced by some of our most iconic plants and animals. |
Mechanisms for Identifying Species at Risk
Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada
COSEWIC is a national committee that evaluates the status of all wildlife species in Canada and identifies those most at risk. COSEWIC places species at risk in the following categories:
- Endangered: A species facing imminent extirpation or extinction.
- Threatened: A species likely to become endangered if limiting factors are not reversed.
- Special Concern: A species with characteristics that make it particularly sensitive to human activities or natural events.
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
CITES is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. Currently many mammals, birds and orchids require a special permit to bring listed species into or out of Canada. If you have any questions, please contact a Conservation Officer.
Yukon Wildlife Act
The Yukon Wildlife Act (Regulations Section 5) lists several species as "specially protected" including:
- Cougar
- Gyrfalcon
- Peregrine Falcon
- Trumpeter Swan
- Chisana Caribou Herd
Yukon Wildlife Act 
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Species at Risk in Yukon
At Risk in Yukon (last date assessed by COSEWIC)
Endangered
Plants:
- Yukon Draba (Draba yukonensis) (2011, awaiting listing)
Mammals:
- Little Brown Myotis (Little Brown Bat - Myotis lucifugus) (2012, awaiting listing)
- Northern Myotis (Northern Long-eared Bat - Myotis septentrionalis) (2012, awaiting listing)
Threatened
Plants:
- Spiked Saxifrage (Micranthes spicata) (2013, awaiting listing)
- Baikal Sedge (Carex sabulosa) (2005)
Birds:
- Bank Swallow (2013, awaiting listing)
- Barn Swallow (2011, awaiting listing)
- Canada Warbler (2008)
- Common Nighthawk (2007)
- Olive-sided Flycatcher (2007)
- Red Knot (roselaari type) (an accidental species in Yukon)
Mammals:
- Wood Bison (2000)
- Woodland Caribou (boreal population) (2002)
Special Concern
Insects:
- Dune Tachinid Fly (Germaria angustata) (2011, awaiting listing)
Amphibians:
- Western Toad (2012)
Fishes
- Bering Cisco (2004, awaiting listing)
- Bull Trout (western arctic population 2012, awaiting listing)
- Dolly Varden (2010, awaiting listing)
- Squanga Whitefish (1997)
Birds:
- Buff-breasted Sandpiper (2012, awaiting listing)
- Horned Grebe (2009, awaiting listing)
- Peregrine Falcon (2007)
- Rusty Blackbird (2006)
- Short-eared Owl (2008)
Mammals:
- Bowhead Whale (Bering-Chukchi-Beaufort population) (2009)
- Collared Pika (2011, awaiting listing)
- Grey Whale (Eastern North Pacific population) (2004)
- Grizzly Bear (Western population) (2012, awaiting listing)
- Polar Bear (2008)
- Wolverine (western population) (2003, awaiting listing)
- Woodland Caribou (Northern Mountain population) (2002)
Under Review (anticipated date of next assessment)
Plants:
- Yukon Podistera (Podistera yukonensis) (November 2013)
Insects:
- Ashton’s Cuckoo Bumble Bee (Bombus ashtoni) (April 2013)
- Western Bumble Bee (Bombus occidentalis) (TBA)
Fishes:
- Sockeye Salmon (Fraser River Drainage) (November 2014)
Birds:
- Red-necked Phalarope (November 2014)
- Evening Grosbeak (to be determined)
Mammals:
- Wood Bison (reassessment November 2013)
- Caribou (Boreal Population) (April 2014)
- Caribou (Northern Mountain Population) (April 2014)
- Wolverine (Western Population) (April 2014)
How You Can Help
- Learn all you can about the status of wildlife species and their habitats. Start with the species that live in your region.
- Examine your own habits and lifestyle to ensure you are living a life in harmony with earth's other creatures.
- Contribute your time and financial support to groups that promote biodiversity and conservation.
- Encourage programs that monitor biodiversity, particularly those that focus on vulnerable, threatened or endangered species.
- Broaden your interest to include events in other parts of the world that may be affecting the species in your region. Global problems like disappearing species usually require global solutions.
- Teach others about the urgency to protect endangered species. Species at risk from human activities can only be saved with the support of an informed public.
Additional Resources
- Species at Risk Brochures & Booklets
- Yukon CDC: providing species at risk data
- Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada
- Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
- World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Canada - Species at Risk
- Nature Canada
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Environment Yukon Government of Yukon Box 2703 (V-5) Branch and Research Support Coordinator Email: fish.wildlife@gov.yk.ca |
