Conservation

Photo © Vickie Prussman

Wildlife Action Plan

View the South Dakota Wildlife Action Plan Explorer, an interactive website for our Wildlife Action Plan and related projects.

The South Dakota Wildlife Action Plan assesses the health of South Dakota's fish and wildlife and associated habitats, evaluates the problems they face, and outlines actions to help conserve them for the long term. This plan encourages voluntary partnerships among governmental entities, tribes, organizations, and private citizens to help prevent fish and wildlife from becoming endangered and to provide for the needs of the full array of fish and wildlife and habitat diversity for the future sustained enjoyment and use by South Dakota's residents and visitors.

A federal match source called State Wildlife Grants has been helping South Dakota provide for the needs of all fish and wildlife species since 2000. The broad goals of this funding program are to help prevent future endangered species listings while also keeping common species common. In return for this federal funding match, each state prepared a plan to show how they would assure that the needs of all fish and wildlife species and their habitats should be supported. By planning ahead, we hope to reduce regulatory conflicts regarding rare species by gathering information in a systematic and proactive way. A plan that addresses habitats also helps assure that the needs of more common species are met and that species currently under the radar are accommodated.

States have flexibility in how they develop their plans, but the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reviews each plan for compliance with required elements. These elements include identifying fish and wildlife species that represent the state's wildlife diversity, describing key habitat types, identifying conservation challenges and actions, developing species and habitat monitoring plans, and coordinating with other agencies, tribes and the public.

South Dakota's revised Wildlife Action Plan was approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in May 2015. The revision allowed SDGFP to use the results of State Wildlife Grants projects, many of which deal with inventories of rare species and unique habitats and incorporate new information on conservation challenges. South Dakota's plan is not a SDGFP plan, but instead a strategic framework for agencies, partners, and the public to work together for the long-term benefit of fish and wildlife and their habitats.

The entire South Dakota Wildlife Action Plan is provided below. Due to the plan's large size, sections have been broken into multiple files for faster downloading. The 7-page Executive Summary offers a brief look at the approaches taken in the plan and newly incorporated conservation challenges, without the extensive tables, maps, and other data provided in the complete 583-page plan.

View Entire Plan

Minor Plan Revision - 2018

Minor Plan Revision - 2022

SGGN List as of 1 May 2023