TUCSON, Ariz.– The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking input and comment on the draft revised recovery plan for the Mount Graham red squirrel, an endangered squirrel found only in southeastern Arizona. The recovery plan’s goal is to recover the subspecies, so it no longer needs protection under the Endangered Species Act. The 30-day comment period begins today and closes on July 2, 2026.
The Mount Graham red squirrel weighs only half a pound and measures approximately 14 inches in length, with nearly half of that being its tail. The subspecies lives in high-elevation mixed conifer and spruce-fir forests within the Pinaleño Mountains in southeastern Arizona. The squirrel requires mixed forests composed of a variety of plants species, trees of different sizes and ages, snags (dead trees), as well as open and closed canopy areas.
The Mount Graham red squirrel was listed as endangered in 1987. Threats to the subspecies include habitat loss, small and reduced population size, and competition with the introduced Abert’s squirrel. Regular annual population counts of Mount Graham red squirrel have occurred since 1986, and its peak population estimate was about 550 individuals in 1998. After the Frye Fire in 2017, only an estimated 35 squirrels remained. The subspecies has since rebounded, with the latest population count estimating 232 individuals.
The draft revised recovery plan describes actions that are considered necessary for the recovery of the Mount Graham red squirrel, establishes delisting criteria, and estimates the time and cost to implement these recovery actions. The overall recovery strategy is to maintain existing partnerships and build new partners to reduce or manage threats to the subspecies. Specific recovery actions include working with partners to effectively manage forest habitats to minimize large-scale insect outbreaks and high-severity wildfires, increase research on the squirrel and its habitat, develop a successful captive breeding program, and expand education and outreach activities for use by conservation partners, including the public.
Ongoing conservation efforts for the Mount Graham red squirrel continue. The Service, Arizona Game and Fish Department, Phoenix Zoo, University of Arizona, USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and U.S. Forest Service are working together to help manage, monitor and conserve the squirrel. In addition, the Coronado National Forest management guidelines support the conservation of the subspecies.
The Service, in collaboration with tribes, stakeholders and partners, develops and implements recovery plans to support the conservation and recovery of endangered and threatened species. These are not regulatory documents, and implementation of actions is not required by the ESA. Instead, recovery plans serve as road maps with specific management actions to foster cooperation in conservation for listed species and their ecosystems.
The Service encourages the public, federal and state agencies, tribes and other stakeholders to review the draft revised recovery plan for the Mount Graham red squirrel and provide input. Submit comments by mail to the Arizona Ecological Services Field Office, 9828 North 31st Avenue Suite C3, Phoenix, Arizona 85051 or by email at incomingAZcorr@fws.gov.
