Here Are The Most Endangered Animals In Arizona

PHOENIX, AZ — When you think of the planet’s most endangered species, some common examples that might come to mind include rhinos, elephants, tigers, gorillas and leopards. But a new report has identified the two most endangered species in every state — and in Arizona, the answer might not be what you think.

In the Grand Canyon State, the two most threatened animals are the Yaqui Chub and the Three Forks Springsnail, according to the report released Wednesday by 24/7 Wall St.

• Yaqui Chub
  • Scientific name: gila purpurea
  • IUCN Red List classification: Vulnerable
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service classification: Endangered
  • Description: Small freshwater fish.
  • Geographic range: Historically the Yaqui Chub were seen in the Rio Yaqui drainage in Cochise County in southeastern Arizona, as well as in a short perennial reach of the Rio San Bernardino near the U.S.-Mexico border in Sonora, Mexico.
  • Habitat: Yaqui Chub is a freshwater fish that likes the quiet waters of streams and has adapted to ponds. Habitat includes deep pools in creeks, springheads, scoured areas of cienegas, and other stream-associated quiet waters. The fish seeks shade, often near undercut banks or debris; it is often associated with higher aquatic plants. Similarly, in artificial ponds, adults tend to occupy the lower part of the water column and seek shade. Young occupy near-shore zones, often near the lower ends of riffles. Spawning occurs probably in deep pools where there is aquatic vegetation.

• Three Forks Springsnail
  • Scientific name: pyrgulopsis trivialis
  • IUCN Red List classification: critically endangered
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service classification: Endangered
  • Description: The Three Forks springsnail is a variably sized species, with a shell height of 0.06 to 0.19 inches. Springsnails are strictly aquatic. They respirate via an internal gill. Mobility is limited, and significant migration is unlikely, although aquatic snails have been known to disperse by becoming attached to the feathers of migratory birds.
  • Geographic range: The species is restricted to a single spring complex from areas of the Upper Black River drainage (tributary to the Gila River) in Apache County, southeastern Arizona.
  • Habitat: This freshwater species occurs at an unusually high elevational habitat — 8,400 feet — in spring-rich meadows with springs and creeks of various sizes. The species is limited to the pond and spring rich meadow perched above the steep canyon of the North Fork of the East Fork of the Black River.
  • Habitat loss: The greatest threat to this species is likely to be habitat loss (human created and due to trampling by livestock and crayfish burrowing).

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, there are 64 threatened or endangered species in Arizona, including the jaguar, Mexican spotted owl and California Condor.

Hawaii has by far the most number of animals on the federal registry at more than 500. While accounting for just 0.2 percent of America’s land mass, it is home to a quarter of the federally endangered species, according to the Mother Nature Network.

Other animals on the 24/7 Wall St. list include various species of sea turtles, rabbits and cranes. More broadly, it features mammals, marine animals, fish, insects, birds, amphibians and reptiles, to name just a few. Various species of mollusks — a key sustenance source for fish — make the list, including the spectaclecase, a freshwater mussel. This is often because of the construction of dams, which disrupt the flow of water and can even change its temperature, leading to massive mollusk losses.
The financial news and opinion site reviewed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s listing of endangered animals to identify the most threatened animals in every state. The site says many of the animals appear in multiple states.

“Only 31 states have animals endangered only there,” the authors said.

To identify which of the threatened animals in those states were in the most dire circumstances, the site used the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s inventory of threatened species. Many of the most threatened animals on on the IUCN’s “Red List of Threatened Species” were labeled “critically endangered.”

We used this same approach to evaluate the threat level of endangered animals in the remaining 19 states, but in these cases animals may be listed as endangered in other states as well.

Photo credit: Darren J. Bradley/Shutterstock