Species at Risk

What are species at risk?  Species at risk are plants and animals that are at risk of disappearing from the wild. These may be categorized as special concern, threatened, endangered, extirpated, or extinct. In Canada, we have both territorial and federal legislation to help identify, protect, and recover species at risk.

The GRRB works to facilitate input from Renewable Resource Councils (RRCs), the GTC Lands Department, and the public into territorial and federal species at risk processes to ensure that community voices and input from across the Gwich’in Settlement Area are heard. For more information on the species at risk consultation process, or to share your feedback on a current drafted species at risk document, please visit our Public Registry. We will advertise when a species at risk document is open for public comment on our Facebook page.

The GRRB also works to fill knowledge gaps about species at risk in the Gwich’in Settlement Area to help better inform decision making. Visit the Current Wildlife Research & Monitoring page to learn more about species monitoring projects that the GRRB supports.

There are currently 12 species at risk listed territorially in the NWT and 42 species at risk listed federally that have present-day ranges within the NWT (as of January 2025). Of these species in the NWT, those with ranges inside the Gwich’in Settlement Area are listed below.

If there is a species you are concerned about that is not listed below, please reach out to the GRRB Species at Risk Biologist Alissa Sallans at asallans@grrb.nt.ca or by phone 867-777-6600 x6 to share your perspectives.

Species at Risk Listed in the NWT found within the GSA:

The following species within the Gwich’in Settlement Area are currently listed as species at risk in the NWT. For a full list of species at risk in the NWT, please visit: NWT List of Species at Risk | NWT Species at Risk

• Barren-ground Caribou (Threatened)
• Boreal Caribou (Threatened)
• Northern Mountain Caribou (Special Concern)

The following species in the GSA are being assessed in the coming years as to whether they should be included in the NWT species at risk list. To see the full NWT assessment schedule, please visit: NWT Assessment Schedule | NWT Species at Risk

• Muskrat (2026)
• Little Brown Bat* (2027)
• Northern Long Eared Bat* (2027)
• Muskox (2028)
• Rock Cranberry (2028)
• Dall’s Sheep (2029)

*GRRB is currently undertaking research to determine whether any bat species are present in the GSA.

Species at Risk Listed Federally found within the GSA:

The following species within the GSA are currently listed as species at risk federally. For a full federal list of species at risk across Canada, please visit: Species at Risk Act

• Boreal Caribou (Threatened)
• Northern Mountain Caribou (Special Concern)
• Grizzly Bear (Special Concern)
• Wolverine (Special Concern)
• Collared Pika (Special Concern)
• Little Brown Bat* (Endangered)
• Northern Long Eared Bat* (Endangered)
• Barn Swallow (Threatened)
• Bank Swallow (Threatened)
• Harris’s Sparrow (Special Concern)
• Horned Grebe (Special Concern)
• Olive-Sided Fly Catcher (Special Concern)
• Red-Necked Phalarope (Special Concern)
• Rusty Black Bird (Special Concern)
• Short-Eared Owl (Special Concern)
• Bull Trout (Special Concern)
• Dolly Varden (Special Concern)
• Gypsy Cuckoo Bumble Bee (Endangered)
• Yellow Banded Bumble Bee (Special Concern)
• Transverse Lady Beetle (Special Concern)

*GRRB is currently undertaking research to determine whether any bat species are present in the GSA.

How are Species at Risk Listed?

The figure below summarizes how species at risk get assessed and listed both federally and territorially, as well as how the GRRB and RRCs are involved in this process. The NWT Species at Risk Committee has developed a dual-assessment process whereby Indigenous Knowledge and scientific knowledge are weighted equally in the species at risk process. To learn more, check out the article on how the NWT uses Indigenous and scientific knowledge in species at risk assessments, which was co-authored by a previous GRRB Species at Risk Biologist!