CHAPTER 1I: APPROACH AND METHODS 22
From that survey and review process, the SGCN list was developed for the purposes of Mississippi’s
CWCS. The SGCN list, which can be found at the end of this section, includes:
- Those species listed by state or federal statute as threatened or endangered.
- Species tracked by the Mississippi Natural Heritage Program, which includes species ranked as
S1 (critically imperiled), S2 (imperiled) or (S3) vulnerable. - Those species with low population density, low reproductive potential and narrow geographic
distributions that may not be included in endangered, threatened, imperiled or at-risk
classifications (or are thought to be declining rapidly).
Additionally, species that have been identified as a conservation priority under national plans and peer
reviewed publications were considered for inclusion on the SGCN list. Examples of peer-reviewed
publications which identify species as conservation priorities are: Partners In Flight North American
Landbird Conservation Plan, U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan, North American Waterfowl
Management Plan and the North American Waterbird Conservation Plan. Fish species identified as
threatened or vulnerable by the American Fisheries Society and freshwater mussel species identified as
endangered, threatened or special concern by the American Fisheries Society were also considered.
As noted above, some species on the NHP’s list of Special Animals were excluded from the selection of
Species of Greatest Conservation Need. However, these animals will continue to be tracked by the NHP
and may appear on future iterations of the SGCN.
When reviewing the scored data, some species at the extreme periphery of their range in Mississippi,
accidentals and/or sporadic migrants were not considered priority species for the SGCN list. While not
included on Mississippi SGCN list as individuals, we elected to include, as groups, lists of pelagic birds
and migratory songbirds and shorebirds associated with important habitat types (see Chapter IV). These
birds species (listed in Appendix IX) migrate through or are rare visitors to Mississippi. Also, individual
migratory songbirds that breed in Mississippi, but weren’t considered high enough in conservation need
to be considered separately were captured in that list. They are included as groups in an effort to
acknowledge the importance of Mississippi’s habitats to their conservation and survival.
SPECIAL ANIMALS DEFINITION OF RANKS
(USED TO DEVELOP THE SGCN LIST)
HERITAGE RANKS: The Mississippi NHP uses the Heritage ranking system developed by The
Nature Conservancy. Each species is assigned two ranks: one representing its range wide or global
status (GRANK) and one representing its status in the state (SRANK). A guide to ranking criteria and
symbols follows: