TN_Rare_Species_By

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Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation
Division of Natural Areas - Natural Heritage Program
Davy Crockett Tower, 8th Floor
500 James Robertson Parkway
Nashville, Tennessee 37243
615-532-0431

For detailed step by step instructions, click here.

This webpage is designed with a map to help you locate the watershed containing your rare species search area. The federal government (US Geological Survey and Environmental Protection Agency) has created standardized categories and names for watersheds known as hydrologic units (more info). The Tennessee Natural Heritage program lists rare species by hydrologic unit codes (HUCs) because watersheds are more representative of ecological boundaries than more artificial boundaries like counties or quadrangles.

The map on this webpage uses the two most common HUC categories, known as the HUC 8 and HUC 12 watersheds. HUC 8 watersheds are roughly the size of a county while HUC 12 watersheds are smaller, and roughly cover the area of a medium-sized town.

To use the webpage, you pan around and zoom into the map to find your search area. You then click on a point within that search area and the map will display both the HUC 8 and HUC 12 watersheds for that point. The website uses these selected watersheds to generate a filter for the list of rare species below the map. The list is contained in an interactive report that provides many tools for displaying, sorting, and downloading your data. You can even download the entire dataset for Tennessee as a comma separated values file (csv) compatible with Microsoft Excel and other spreadsheet applications.

Lists of rare species are most useful in determining what sensitive habitat types to search for on a given development site. If it is difficult to rule out whether suitable habitat may exist on a particular development site, it may be necessary for a qualified biologist to perform a survey for rare species during the appropriate growing season(s). If rare plants are found on a site, we ask that development activity be coordinated with our office. If rare, state-listed animals are known to exist, land disturbance activities should be coordinated with the
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, the state's regulatory authority for animal wildlife. If federally listed species may be impacted, project planners should contact the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Cookeville, Tennessee Field Office
to establish protective measures.

Please keep in mind that not all areas of Tennessee have been surveyed and that a lack of records for any particular area is not a statement that rare species are absent from that area.

Contact the Natural Heritage Data Manager, Dillon Blankenship, at Dillon.Blankenship@tn.gov

Learn more about the Division of Natural Areas

Key to Status and Ranks

CODE	DESCRIPTION
Global Rank
G1	Extremely rare and critically imperiled in the world with five or fewer occurrences, or very few remaining individuals, or because of some special condition where the species is particularly vulnerable to extinction
G2	Very rare and imperiled within the world, six to twenty occurrences, or few remaining individuals, or because of some factor(s) making it vulnerable to extinction
G3	Rare and uncommon in its range or found locally in a restricted range, generally from 21-100 occurrences
G4	Widespread, abundant, and apparently secure globally, but with cause for long-term concern
G5	Demonstrably widespread and secure globally
GH	Of historical occurrence throughout its range, e.g. formally part of the established biota, with the expectation that it may be rediscovered
GU	Can not be ranked using available information
GX	Believed to be extirpated throughout its range
HYB	Hybrid within its range in Tennessee
SSYN	Synonym for another species
_Q	Questionable taxonomy (GRANKs only)
_T#	Subspecific taxon rank (GRANKs only)
State Rank
CODE	DESCRIPTION
S1	Extremely rare and critically imperiled in the state with five or fewer occurrences, or very few remaining individuals, or because of some special condition where the species is particularly vulnerable to extinction
S2	Very rare and imperiled within the state, six to twenty occurrences, or few remaining individuals, or because of some factor(s) making it vulnerable to extinction
S3	Rare and uncommon in the state, from 21-100 occurrences
S4	Widespread, abundant, and apparently secure within the state, but with cause for long-term concern
S5	Demonstrably widespread and secure in the state
SH	Of historical occurrence in Tennessee, e.g. formally part of the established biota, with the expectation that it may be rediscovered
SU	Can not be ranked using available information
SX	Believed to be extirpated from the state
S#S#	Denotes a ?range rank? because the rarity of the species is uncertain (e.g. S1S3)
S?, S_?	Unranked at this time or rank uncertain
SE	Exotic species established in the state
SE#	Exotic numeric (e.g. the Asian clam Corbicula fluminea would be SE5)
SP	Potentially occurring in Tennessee, but not yet documented by DNH
_N	Occurs in Tennessee in a non-breeding status (mostly applies to vertebrates)
_B	Breeds in Tennessee
SA	Accidental or casual in the state (several birds)
SR	Reported from the state, but insufficient data to assign rank
SRF	Reported falsely from the state
HYB	Hybrid within its range in Tennessee
SSYN	Synonym for another species
_Q	Questionable taxonomy (GRANKs only)
_T#	Subspecific taxon rank (GRANKs only)
Federal Status
CODE	DESCRIPTION
LE, Listed Endangered	Taxon is threatened by extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range
E/SA,Endangered by Similarity of Appearance	Taxon is treated as an endangered species because it may not be easily distinguished from a listed species
LT, Listed Threatened	Taxon is likely to become an endangered species in the foreseeable future
T/SA,Threatened by Similarity of Appearance	Taxon is treated as a threatened species because it may not be easily distinguished from a listed species
PE, Proposed Endangered	Taxon proposed for listing as endangered
PT, Proposed Threatened	Taxon proposed for listing as threatened
C, Candidate species***	Taxon for which the USFWS has sufficient information to support proposals to list the species as threatened or endangered, and for which the Service anticipates a listing proposal
(PS) Partial Status	Taxon which is listed in part of its range, but for which Tennessee subspecies are not included in the Federal designation (based on taxonomy)
(PS:status) Partial Status	Taxon which is listed in part of its range, but for which Tennessee populations are not included in the Federal designation e.g. (PS:LE)(based on political boundaries)
(XN) Non-essential experimental population in portion of range	Taxon which has been introduced or re-introduced in an area from which it has been extirpated, and for which certain provisions of the Act may not apply
State Status, Animals
CODE	DESCRIPTION
E, Endangered	Any species or subspecies whose prospects of survival or recruitment within the state are in jeopardy or are likely to become so within the foreseeable future
T, Threatened	Any species or subspecies that is likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future
D, Deemed in Need of Management	Any species or subspecies of nongame wildlife which the executive director of the TWRA believes should be investigated in order to develop information relating to populations, distribution, habitat needs, limiting factors, and other biological and ecological data to determine management measures necessary for their continued ability to sustain themselves successfully. This category is analogous to Special Concern.
State Status, Plants
CODE	DESCRIPTION
E, Endangered	Any species or subspecies whose prospects of survival or recruitment within the state are in jeopardy or are likely to become so within the foreseeable future
T, Threatened	Any species or subspecies that is likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future
S, Special Concern	Any species or subspecies of plant that is uncommon in Tennessee, or has unique or highly specific habitat requirements or scientific value and therefore requires careful monitoring of its status.
State Status, Plants Modifier
CODE	DESCRIPTION
PE, Proposed Endangered	Any species or subspecies of plant nominated by the Scientific Advisory Committee to be added to the list of Tennessee's endangered species. After approval by the commissioner of the Dept. of Environment & Conservation and the concurrence of the commissioner of Agriculture, these plants will formally become State endangered.
PT, Proposed Threatened	Any species or subspecies of a plant nominated by the Scientific Advisory Committee to be added to the list of Tennessee threatened species. After a public hearing, these plants will formally become State threatened.
E-PT, Endangered-Proposed Threatened	Species which are currently on the state list of endangered plants, but are proposed by the Scientific Advisory Committee to be down-listed to threatened. After approval by the commissioner of the Dept. of Environment & Conservation and the concurrence of the commissioner of Agriculture, these plants will formally become State threatened.
E-PS, Endangered Proposed Special Concern	Species which are currently on the state list of endangered plants, but are proposed by the Scientific Advisory Committee to be down-listed to special concern. After approval by the commissioner of the Dept. of Environment & Conservation and the concurrence of the commissioner of Agriculture, these plants will formally become State special concern.
T-PE, Threatened Proposed Endangered	Species which are currently on the state list of threatened plants, but are proposed by the Scientific Advisory Committee to be listed on the state endangered list. After approval by the commissioner of the Dept. of Environment & Conservation and the concurrence of the commissioner of Agriculture, these plants will formally become State endangered.
T-PS, Threatened Proposed Special Concern	Species which are currently on the state list of threatened plants, but are proposed by the Scientific Advisory Committee to be down-listed to special concern. After a public hearing, these plants will formally become State special concern.
P, Possibly Extirpated	Species or subspecies that have not been seen in Tennessee for the past 20 years. May no longer occur in Tennessee.
C, Commercially Exploited	Due to large numbers being taken from the wild and propagation or cultivation insufficient to meet market demand. These plants are of long-term conservation concern, but the Division of Natural Heritage does not recommend they be included in the normal environmental review process.

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Download Status and Ranks

Watershed Map

Use the mouse to pan and slider bar to zoom to your area of interest. Then click that area to identify the watershed (purple).

Rare Species By Tennessee Watershed

Data is refreshed on or around January and July each year.

1 - 15 of 8,368

Huc 8	Huc 8 Name	Huc 12	Huc 12 Name	Type	Category	Scientific Name	Common Name	Global Rank	State Rank	Fed Status	State Status	Habitat Description	Wet Habitat Flag
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Invertebrate Animal	Mollusc	Villosa nebulosa	Alabama Rainbow	G3	S2	--	Rare, Not State Listed	Creeks-medium size rivers in sand/gravel riffles in mod current; assoc. with Justicia americana; Conasauga R system; Ridge & Valley.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Vertebrate Animal	Fish	Cyprinella caerulea	Blue Shiner	G2G3	S1	LT	T	Cool, clear, small to medium-sized rivers over firm substrates.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Invertebrate Animal	Mollusc	Hamiota altilis	Finelined Pocketbook	G3	S1S2	LT	T	Creeks/small rivers with substrates of sand, mud, & gravel, & mod current; Conasauga River & Coahulla Ck; Polk & Bradley counties.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Vertebrate Animal	Fish	Etheostoma brevirostrum	Holiday Darter	G2	S1	--	T	Bedrock & gravel pools of creeks and small to medium rivers; Conasauga River watershed.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Invertebrate Animal	Mollusc	Elliptio arctata	Delicate Spike	G2G3Q	S2	--	Rare, Not State Listed	In substrates of coarse sand, gravel, and cobble; prefers strong current; Conasauga River; Polk & Bradley counties; Ridge & Valley.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Invertebrate Animal	Mollusc	Ptychobranchus foremanianus	Rayed Kidneyshell (= Triangular Kidneyshell)	G1	S1	LE	E	Medium sized rivers with good current and coarse sand/gravel substrates; Conasauga River; Bradley & Polk counties.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Invertebrate Animal	Mollusc	Villosa vanuxemensis umbrans	Coosa Creekshell	G1	S2	--	Rare, Not State Listed	Riffles of headwater creeks/small rivers in gravel/sand subst.; often assoc. with Justicia amer.; Conasauga R drainage; Ridge & Valley.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Vertebrate Animal	Fish	Phenacobius catostomus	Riffle Minnow	G4	S2	--	D	Gravel and rubble-bottomed runs and riffles of creeks and small to medium rivers; Conasauga River watershed.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Vertebrate Animal	Fish	Notropis stilbius	Silverstripe Shiner	G4	S3	--	Rare, Not State Listed	Still or gently flowing pool areas in the Conasauga River & larger tributaries.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Vertebrate Animal	Fish	Percina kathae	Mobile Logperch	G4	S2S3	--	Rare, Not State Listed	Pool areas, deep riffles, & runs; Conasauga River & its larger tributaries.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Vertebrate Animal	Fish	Notropis chrosomus	Rainbow Shiner	G4	S3	--	D	Small, clear, often spring-fed streams with sand and gravel substrates; Conasauga River watershed.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Vertebrate Animal	Fish	Notropis asperifrons	Burrhead Shiner	G4	S2	--	Rare, Not State Listed	Rocky and sandy pools and runs of clear creeks and small rivers; Conasauga River watershed.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Invertebrate Animal	Mollusc	Strophitus connasaugaensis	Alabama Creekmussel	G3	S1	--	Rare, Not State Listed	Small-medium sized rivers, in shallow areas with current and substrates of of fine gravel, sand, & silt; Conasauga River; Polk County.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010101	Headwaters Conasuaga River	Invertebrate Animal	Mollusc	Villosa vibex	Southern Rainbow	G5	S2	--	Rare, Not State Listed	Mud or soft sand in small rivers & creeks in areas with moderate current; Conasauga, Hatchie, and Wolf (Miss. R.) river systems.	Aquatic
03150101	Conasauga River	031501010102	Jacks River	Vascular Plant	Flowering Plant	Trillium decumbens	Trailing Trillium	G4	S1	--	E	Floodplains And Rocky, Open, Mountain Woods	Possible


	If you have any questions or comments, Email ask.tdec@tn.gov or call at (888) 891-TDEC (8332).