Introduction 

Delaware’s Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) and their habitats face numerous issues that may adversely affect them and compromise their status in the state. Some issues are global or national in scale, while others may be regional, statewide, or local. Identifying issues affecting Delaware’s SGCN and habitats is an important to develop effective conservation actions. Once identified, issues can be addressed through actions that the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) Division of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) and its partners have developed throughout the Delaware Wildlife Action Plan (DEWAP) process. The previous two sections identified Delaware’s SGCN (Element 1) and their habitats (Element 2); this section addresses the issues affecting these important conservation targets (Element 3). 

All State Wildlife Action Plans (WAPs) are required to identify the issues that may adversely affect SGCN and their habitats. The words issue and threat are used in this document as umbrella terms referring to all aspects of the process by which human actions or natural events may jeopardize fish and wildlife species and their habitats. Issues may be species-specific, affecting a species by a direct action or through indirect impacts by limitation of a particular habitat condition or limiting factor. Issues also include threats that stress fish and wildlife species and habitats, and management challenges such as data deficiencies or resource deficiencies for a particular species or habitat.  

The DEWAP uses the Conservation Measures Partnership threat classification system (Salafsky et al. 2008) to describe and present issues in a consistent way, as recommended by the Northeast Lexicon and Synthesis (Crisfield and NEFWDTC 2022; Terwilliger Consulting, Inc. and NEFWDTC 2023). 

All fish and wildlife are impacted by human activities in some way. Some species have taken advantage of the conditions found in developed areas; alien and invasive species such as European Starling, Rock Pigeon, Tree-of-heaven, and many others, have thrived. A few opportunistic native species, such as the Common Nighthawk, Chimney Swift, and Peregrine Falcon, have found surrogate habitats in urban areas as natural habitats have diminished. Delaware’s wildlife populations are vulnerable to multiple threats associated with human activities, and the SGCN list identifies the most vulnerable.  

Issues in the Northeast Region 

There is no comprehensive assessment of conservation issues across the northeastern region. However, numerous threats to fish, wildlife, and their habitats have been identified by the northeastern states as part of their individual WAPs. After the completion of the 2015 plans, a synthesis of the 13 northeastern states and the District of Columbia SWAPS (TCI and NEFWDTC 2017) illustrated that the threats shared by most states, affected the greatest number of species and habitats, and were cited most frequently in SWAPs were: 

• Pollution 
• Development
• Natural Systems Modifications
• Invasives & Diseases
• Climate Change

From 2007 to 2023, the top threats have remained largely consistent, although their relative ranks have shifted (Terwilliger Consulting Inc. and NEFWDTC 2023). 

Issues Affecting Species of Greatest Conservation Need and Key Habitats in Delaware 

Conservation issues, including threats or stressors, are human actions that adversely impact wildlife, native plants and natural communities, and the ecological processes that sustain them. Issues in Delaware are grouped and condensed for species suites, habitat associations, or broader taxa applicability. Information about how Issues were are identified can be found in the Review, Revision and Working Together section of the DEWAP, but the general distribution of issues can be seen in the figures below, and discussed at length in this section. 

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