Red-cockaded woodpeckers no longer federally endangered for first time since 1970

November 25, 2024

After decades of conservation efforts in South Carolina and elsewhere in the Southeast, the red-cockaded woodpecker is no longer listed as federally endangered.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the down-listing of the red-cockaded woodpecker from endangered to threatened status under the Endangered Species Act ; the changes take effect today, Nov. 25. This recovery milestone reflects the decades-long conservation work of countless cooperators from both public and private sectors. Recovery of the red-cockaded woodpecker has been dependent on many people who have devoted their time, resources and even their careers to reestablishing robust populations throughout the Southeast.

"We are celebrating a remarkable conservation milestone," said Emily Cope, deputy director of the S.C. Department of Natural Resources Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division. "While this is a moment of progress, it also serves as a reminder that nature’s recovery is a shared responsibility, one that requires persistence, collaboration, and a deep commitment to the landscapes we all rely on. The future of the red-cockaded woodpecker—and the ecosystem it represents—is brighter today thanks to the efforts of those who never gave up."

There are few species so intricately tied to mature southeastern pine forests as the red-cockaded woodpecker. Unlike other woodpecker species, the red-cockaded woodpecker excavates cavities into living pine trees. The process can take years, but the resulting cavities can provide shelter for the woodpeckers and numerous other animal species for decades. Red-cockaded woodpeckers each sleep in their own cavity every night and nest in the best available cavity annually. The birds are cooperative breeders, meaning they live and spend their time in family groups. Many young birds remain at their natal territory, where they help raise successive generations while waiting to fill a breeding role.

When European settlers first arrived in what is now the southeastern United States, they encountered huge expanses of open, park-like pine forest. The mature pines towered over diverse forest floors of grasses, shrubs and wildflowers. Regular low-intensity wildfires that kept the hardwoods and shrubs at bay maintained this open forest structure. Habitat like this once covered an estimated 90 million acres of the Southeast and provided immense stretches of habitat for the red-cockaded woodpecker. Settlement created a huge demand for both pine timber and the products produced from pine pitch, including turpentine, rosin and tar. In the centuries following settlement, these pine forests were whittled down to a tiny fraction of their original range. The red-cockaded woodpecker’s decline followed.

Red-cockaded woodpeckers were recognized as endangered in 1970 and were given protection under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. The population estimate at the passing of the bill was fewer than 10,000 birds. Though the red-cockaded woodpecker will continue to receive a similar level of protection, the downlisting and new rule under Section 4(d) of the Endangered Species Act aims to remove barriers to certain land management practices that help restore and maintain red-cockaded woodpecker habitat.

The hard work and persistence of many individuals and agencies over the past 50 years has allowed red-cockaded woodpeckers to reoccupy habitat throughout their range. Many programs have contributed to this success.

In 1998, the S.C. Department of Natural Resources initiated its hugely successful RCW Safe Harbor Program. The Safe Harbor program encourages private landowners to enter voluntary agreements under which the landowners provide and improve habitat for red-cockaded woodpeckers without incurring land-use restrictions if the management activities attract more of the birds.

The downlisting will not change the RCW Safe Harbor Program or any benefits to enrollment. The program currently has roughly 200 enrolled landowners whose properties comprise over 360,000 acres and nearly 500 red-cockaded woodpecker family groups. In addition to the Safe Harbor program, SCDNR has 118 active red-cockaded woodpecker clusters on 12 properties, with staff regularly working to expand these populations.

Though the story of red-cockaded woodpecker conservation is not yet over, the recent down-listing marks a substantial progress towards the species’ recovery. Continued land management that supports the species and mature pine ecosystems will allow for the birds to persist into the future.

More information on the red-cockaded woodpecker and the South Carolina RCW Safe Harbor Program can be found at https://www.dnr.sc.gov/wildlife/rcw.html

The downlisting announcement and corresponding 4(d) rule published by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service can be found at https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2024-23786.