Bicoastal Strategies for Conserving Endangered Salmon Under the Endangered Species Act (USA) and Species at Risk Act (Canada)

The anadromous life histories of Atlantic and Pacific salmon present unusual challenges for management and conservation.  The US Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Canada’s Species at Risk Act (SARA) both have provisions for legal protection of units below the species level.  Units listed (US) or assessed (Canada) as threatened or endangered include 26 Distinct Population Segments of anadromous Pacific salmonids and 1 of Atlantic salmon (US) and 4 Designatable Units (DUs) of Pacific salmon and 6 of Atlantic salmon (Canada). However, of the 10 DUs assessed in Canada (by a science advisory body independent of government), only 1 (Inner Bay of Fundy Atlantic salmon) has been legally listed under SARA. Canada has yet to complete a comprehensive status assessment of anadromous Pacific salmonids.  We use salmonid examples to illustrate similarities and differences in various aspects involved in practical implementation of the two Acts, including the roles of science and policy in listing determinations and prioritization of species for status assessments; flexibility, repeatability, and transparency;  legally-mandated timelines; and recovery planning.