Minnesota

Mammals

Canada lynx
(Lynx canadensis)

Threatened

Aitkin, Beltrami, Carlton, Cass, Clearwater, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, Lake of The Woods, Marshall, Pine, Roseau, St. Louis

Northern forested areas

Canada lynx
(Lynx canadensis)

Critical Habitat

Cook, Koochiching, Lake, St. Louis

Map of lynx critical habitat in Minnesota

Birds

Piping plover
(Charadrius melodus)
Great Lakes Breeding Population

Endangered

St. Louis County

Sandy beaches, islands

Piping plover
(Charadrius melodus)
Northern Great Plains Breeding Population

Threatened

Lake of The Woods

Sandy beaches, islands

Piping plover
(Charadrius melodus)
Great Lakes Breeding Population

Critical
Habitat

St. Louis County

Piping plover
(Charadrius melodus)
Northern Great Plains Breeding Population

Critical
Habitat

Lake of the Woods

Sprague's pipit

(Anthus spragueii)

Candidate

Clay, Polk, and Roseau

Large (>350 acre) patches of grassland - prefer native grassland, but also use non-native planted grasslands.

Eastern massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus)

Candidate

Houston, Wabasha, Winona

Floodplain wetlands and nearby upland areas along the Mississippi River and Tributaries in Houston, Wabasha, and Winona Counties

Fish

Topeka shiner
(Notropis topeka)

Endangered

Lincoln, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Rock

Prairie rivers and streams

Topeka shiner
(Notropis topeka)

Critical Habitat

Lincoln, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Rock

Insects

Dakota skipper
(Hesperia dacotae)

Candidate

Big Stone, Chippewa, Clay, Kittson, Lac Qui Parle, Lincoln, Murray, Norman, Pipestone, Polk, Pope, Swift, Traverse, Yellow Medicine

Native prairie habitat

Karner blue butterfly
(Lycaeides melissa samuelis)

Endangered

Winona

Pine barrens and oak savannas on sandy soils and containing wild lupines (Lupinus perennis), the only known food plant of larvae.

*Poweshiek skipperling

(Oarisma poweshiek)

Candidate

Becker, Big Stone, Chippewa, Clay, Cottonwood, Douglas, Kandiyohi, Kittson, Lac Qui Parle, Lincoln, Lyon, Mahnomen, Mcleod, Murray, Norman, Pipestone, Pope, Roseau, Stearns, Swift, Traverse, Wilkin, Yellow Medicine

This list includes counties where Poweshiek skipperling has been confirmed within the past 25 years (1986 or later).  Due to the sharp declines in the last several years, the list may include counties in which the species no longer occurs.  Nevertheless, we recommend that agencies contact the Twin Cities Ecological Services Field Office if undertaking or planning projects that may affect Poweshiek skipperling habitat in these counties.

Native prairie

Mussels

Higgins eye pearlymussel
(Lampsilis higginsii)

Endangered

Chisago, Dakota, Goodhue, Hennepin, Houston, Ramsey, Wabasha, Washington, Winona

Mississippi and St. Croix Rivers

Sheepnose
(Plethobasus cyphyus)

Endangered

Wabasha and Winona

Mississippi River in Wabasha and Winona counties, St. Croix River in Washington county

Snuffbox
(Epioblasma triquetra)

Endangered

Chisago, Washington

Small to medium-sized creeks and some larger rivers, in areas with a swift current

Spectaclecase (Cumberlandia monodonta)

Endangered

Chisago, Pine, Wabasha, Washington

St. Croix River and Mississippi River

Winged mapleleaf
(Quadrula fragosa)

Endangered

Chisago, Ramsey, Washington

St. Croix River

Plants

Minnesota dwarf trout lily
(Erythronium propullans)

Endangered

Dodge, Goodhue, Rice, and Steele

North facing slopes and floodplains in deciduous forest

Leedy's roseroot
(Rhodiola integrifolia ssp. leedyi)

Threatened

Fillmore, Olmsted

Cool, wet groundwater-fed limestone cliffs

Prairie bush clover
(Lespedeza leptostachya)

Threatened

Brown, Cottonwood, Dakota, Dodge, Goodhue, Jackson, Martin, Mower, Nobles, Olmsted, Redwood, Renville, Rice, Rock

Native prairie on well-drained soils

Western prairie fringed orchid
(Platanthera praeclara)

Threatened

Clay, Kittson, Lincoln, Mower, Nobles, Norman, Pennington, Pipestone, Polk, Red Lake, Rock

Wet prairies and sedge meadows