New York advocates are celebrating wildlife protections ahead of Endangered Species Day.
This year marks the 21st anniversary of Endangered Species Day and recognizes species saved by the Endangered Species Act, including New York’s piping plover and the bald eagle. Advocates say more work remains, however, with 55 endangered species still found across the state.
Tara Thornton, director of institutional engagement for the Endangered Species Coalition, said New Yorkers can help protect vulnerable wildlife through local conservation efforts and by planting native species that support pollinators.
“Volunteer with some of these local organizations and help them out with what they do,” Thornton said. “Plant some native plants in your garden this year, helping out those pollinators. They could use a lot of help as well.”
New York has also taken steps in recent years to help prevent additional species from becoming endangered. In 2025, the state approved legislation directing the Department of Environmental Conservation to regulate horseshoe crab management and ban their harvest for commercial and biomedical purposes.
At the federal level, advocates say some endangered species protections have been weakened. Earlier this year, the Trump administration’s Endangered Species Committee approved exemptions allowing oil and gas companies to bypass certain Endangered Species Act protections during drilling and exploratory work in the Gulf of Mexico.
Thornton said the decision could impact several endangered species in the region, including the critically endangered Rice’s whale.
“There’s twentysomething endangered species in the Gulf,” Thornton said. “Including the Rice’s whale, which is probably one of the most, if not the most, endangered whale with only 51 left in the wild that call the Gulf home.”
The Endangered Species Act could also face funding challenges under the White House’s proposed 2027 budget, which includes significant cuts to conservation and endangered species programs.
Story by Edwin J. Viera, New York News Connection
