Order Amending Schedule 1 to the Species at Risk Act (Chestnut-collared Longspur and nine other wildlife species)

A review of the potential environmental impacts of amendments to the list of species at risk under the Species at Risk Act (SARA) as published in the Canada Gazette.

The Order Amending Schedule 1 to the Species at Risk Act (Chestnut-collared Longspur and nine other wildlife species) (the Order) helps support species at risk by adding them or by updating their designation on the list of species at risk. The objective of the Order is to support species so they can recover. The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) reassesses species every 10 years, which is one of the ways to monitor the health of the species.  Monitoring will also be done through the recovery plans or management plans to be developed for the species and reassessed every 5 years.

The SARA provides protections for species at risk by:

• preventing wildlife species from being extirpated or becoming extinct
• providing for the recovery of wildlife species that are extirpated, endangered or threatened as a result of human activity and managing species of special concern to prevent them from becoming endangered or threatened
• responding to the advice of scientists 

Species can be added to the list of species at risk (Schedule 1 of SARA) under various designations depending on the severity of the risk of disappearance from the wild in Canada. Following listing, species designated as endangered, threatened or extirpated benefit from SARA’s general prohibitions, including protections against the killing, harming or harassing and against damaging or destroying their residences (i.e., nests, burrows, etc.). SARA also requires recovery planning efforts to address threats to the survival or recovery of the listed species, in the form of recovery strategies or action plans.

A special concern status in Schedule 1 of SARA does not trigger the general prohibitions but requires a management plan be developed. This plan includes conservation measures to preserve the wildlife species and avoid a future decline of its populations.

Table 1: Additions or modifications to Schedule 1 of SARA

Common species name	Range	Listing
		Action	Old status	New status
Shagreen	ON	New addition	No status	Endangered
Toothed Globe	ON	New addition	No status	Endangered
Reversed Haploa Moth	ON	New addition	No status	Endangered
Gillman's Goldenrod	ON	New addition	No status	Endangered
Slender Yoke-moss	BC	New addition	No status	Endangered
Carolina Mantleslug	ON	New addition	No status	Threatened
Plains Hog-nosed Snake	AB, SK, MB	New addition	No status	Special concern
Manitoba Oakworm Moth	MB	New addition	No status	Special concern
Puvirnituq Mountain Draba	QC	New addition	No status	Special concern
Chestnut-collared Longspur	AB, SK, MB	Reclassification	Threatened	Endangered

The strategic environmental assessment concluded that the Order results in important positive environmental effects for the species included in the Order, and their respective ecosystems. Specifically, it demonstrated that the protection of these wildlife species at risk contributes to national biodiversity and protects ecosystem productivity, health and resiliency.

The economic impacts of making these additions or modifications have been assessed and it was determined that prohibitions on federal lands will have a low socio-economic impact. Listing these species will preserve their socio-economic and cultural value for Indigenous peoples, as well as provide benefits such as pest-control, pollination, and nutrient cycling, and scientific and existence values. With respect to the species included in the Order, the Plains Hog-nosed Snake and the Chestnut-collared Longspur are notable for their uniqueness: the Plains Hog-nosed Snake exhibits some of the most interesting and bizarre behaviours documented for snakes, while the Chestnut-collared Longspur, a striking grassland songbird, displays a plumage with an inverted dark triangle at the tip of its tail which distinguishes it from all other longspurs.

The Order supports the 2022-2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy (FSDS) goal 15 “Protect and recover species, conserve Canadian biodiversity”, and would support the Government of Canada’s priority, as stated in the FSDS, of “enhancing the implementation of the Species at Risk Act”. The Order moreover contributes to the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15 “Life on Land” of the United Nation’s Agenda 2030 to halt biodiversity loss, protect biodiversity and natural habitat by preventing the extinction of threatened species. It also supports the recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the overarching global goal regarding the “sustainable use and management of biodiversity to ensure that nature’s contributions to people are valued, maintained, and enhanced”.

By supporting the conservation of biodiversity, and maintenance of healthy ecosystems, the Order indirectly contributes to the 2022-2026 FSDS goal 13 “Take action on climate change and its impacts” and the associated UN SDG 13 “Climate Action”, since many ecosystems play a key role in mitigating climate change impacts. Coastal ecosystems contribute to absorbing excess flood water or buffering against coastal erosion or extreme weather events. In addition, forests, peatlands and other habitats are major stores of carbon. Protecting and supporting conservation of ecosystems may also help limit atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations.