Maine’s New State Wildlife Action Plan > Your Land
Every ten years, Maine's Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife publishes something that quietly influences conservation across the state. It's called the State Wildlife Action Plan — and the 2025-2035 edition was released this spring. Private landowner action isn't just helpful — it is structurally essential to the Plan's success.
A Bigger Picture
The first thing that strikes me about the new plan is the scale of what it's tracking. In 2015, Maine identified 378 Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) — wildlife whose populations are stressed enough to warrant coordinated attention. The 2025 plan lists 721.
For the first time, rare plants are included. The Maine Natural Areas Program joined as a full partner, bringing Maine's extraordinary botanical heritage — rare orchids, arctic-alpine plants, Atlantic white cedar groves — into the conservation picture alongside fish, birds, and mammals.
And the birds.
The bobolink used to be a common sight in Maine hayfields — a bubbly, mechanical song coming from a bird that looks like it’s wearing a tuxedo. Populations have dropped sharply across New England as farms consolidate, fields get mowed earlier in the season, and grassland habitat is fragmented. The bobolink is one of several grassland and neotropical migratory birds prominently flagged in the 2025 plan. So are the species that depend on older forests, wetland edges, and coastal shrublands — habitats that exist almost entirely on private land.
Paltry Federal Investment
The federal government allocated only $55 million for wildlife action plan implementation across all 50 states. The estimated need is $1.4 billion. In Maine, that works out to about $818 per species per year. Peanuts. This plan does not work without families deciding to manage their land in ways that protect other living creatures.
On Your Land
The 2025 Wildlife Action Plan is now a living, searchable database rather than a static document. That means when a family is considering a conservation easement, a forest management plan, or simply a decision about how to handle their back forty, they can look up exactly which species and habitats are priority concerns for their specific type of land.
It means a family's decision to protect a vernal pool, maintain a brushy field margin, or keep a riparian buffer isn't just an expression of personal values. It's a measurable contribution to a statewide strategy.
The 2025-2035 Maine Wildlife Action Plan is available at maine.gov/ifw. If you'd like to understand what your property's habitats mean for wildlife in your region, I'm glad to help you start that conversation.
