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Wildlife in Alabama

Alabama has more varieties of fish, animals, birds, and plants than any other state east of the Mississippi River.  This biodiversity makes the state an excellent place to study…or just watch and enjoy…these many varied species.

The links below can take you on a tour of Alabama’s many species, through the webpages of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

Threatened and Endangered Species

Alabama is also home to many endangered and threatened species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), administers the Endangered Species Act.  In 1973, Congress passed the Endangered Species Act, recognizing that:

  • various species of fish, wildlife, and plants in the United States have been rendered extinct as a consequence of economic growth and development untempered by adequate concern and conservation,
  • other species of fish, wildlife and plants have been so depleted in numbers that they are in danger of or threatened with extinction, and  
  • these species of fish, wildlife, and plants are of esthetic, ecological, educational, historical, recreational, and scientific value to the United States and its people. The intended purpose of the Act is to provide a means by which the ecosystems upon which endangered and threatened species depend may be conserved and to provide a program for the conservation of those species.

The purpose of the Endangered Species Act is to conserve the ecosystems upon which endangered and threatened species depend and to conserve and recover listed species. Under the law, species may be listed as either “endangered” or “threatened.”  Endangered means a species is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range.  Threatened means a species is likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future. 


Endangered Species Links:

Page last revised: June 19, 2007