Northern Mariana Islands Lists 29 Species As Endangered Or Threatened

Mark
Rabago, RNZ Pacific Commonwealth of the
Northern Marianas correspondent

The Commonwealth of
Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Division of Fish and
Wildlife (DFW) recently disclosed that 29 resident species
in the Northern Marianas are currently protected under the
US Endangered Species Act.

Endangered Species program
manager Carey Demapan said the division is actively engaged
in a variety of projects aimed at enhancing the recovery of
these species, focusing on population monitoring, habitat
restoration, and the mitigation of threats.

“In
relation to mammals (bats), we monitor their population on
Saipan, Tinian, and Rota, and provide rehabilitation care
for injured bats until they can be released.

“In
relation to birds, DFW conducts comprehensive monitoring for
all bird populations on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota and has
several special projects for certain
species.”

Notably, Demapan said DFW created and
instituted the Marianas Avifauna Conservation Plan, which
lays out their goal of creating redundant populations of
CNMI birds to protect against the threat of the brown tree
snake.

“The Rota Bridled White Eye, Nightingale Reed
Warbler, and Mariana Crow are species we hope to benefit
through this program in the future. Numerous non-listed
native birds have already been successfully translocated up
to northern islands of the CNMI, including the Rufous
fantail, Saipan golden white-eye, Bridled white-eye, and the
White-throated ground dove.”

She said the division
also works with a sub-awardee to conduct long-term
population and nest monitoring of the Mariana Crow on
Rota.

This project aims to understand and address
factors that contribute to the species decline. The
sub-awardee also receives additional support, not from DFW,
to conduct captive rear and release of crow chicks to
increase their population.

On Tinian, it is launching
a project to investigate the nesting ecology of the Mariana
Common Moorhen to study the cause of nest failures. They
also have another project on ManagahaIsland to deploy
artificial nest burrows for shearwater birds.

Lastly,
a “Bioinventory” for all listed and locally protected
species is conducted every 10 years by DFW to assess the
status of wildlife populations and their habitat. Aside from
this, Demapan said efforts are also done to control invasive
predators, such as rats, in bird habitats.

In relation
to reptiles, DFW has a long-term sea turtle monitoring
program that conducts weekly surveys on main nesting beaches
on Saipan. At the beach, they are looking for signs of
turtle nesting activities and when present, DFWconducts nest
inventories.

“This data allows us to assess and
estimate the CNMI’s nesting population on a yearly basis.
Rapid beach assessments are done twice a year on Tinian and
Rota. Our staff’s presence on beaches also protects sea
turtles by preventing illegal harvesting from occurring. In
relation to the endangered Slevin’s skink, DFW plans to do a
habitat study in Sarigan to estimate their population and
habitat needs.”

In relation to invertebrates, DFW is
actively monitoring snail colonies and conducting invasive
predator control/removals of rats and flatworms.

In
relation to plants, many of the species listed are found on
Rota. Therefore, on Rota, Demapan said DFW conducts
propagation and outplanting for the following species:
Serianthes nelsonii, Osmoxylon mariannense, Nesogenes
rotensis, Heritiera longipetiolata, Maesa walkeri, and
Tabernaemontana rotensis.

Cycas micronesica will be
incorporated in fiscal year 2026. She said propagation and
outplanting generally involves seed collection, site
maintenance, propagation in the nursery, and outplanting
once an appropriate size is reached. In the field, we also
fence some endangered plants to prevent grazing from
ungulates and apply pesticides, or other natural oils, to
manage infestations.

“Aside from all this, our agency
conducts educational outreach in schools, public events, and
through social media to share about our work and the
importance of these federally listed species. We also review
scientific research applications, and issue licenses when
approved, for external parties to conduct research in the
CNMI. One purpose of this license is to ensure activities do
not impact threatened or endangered species, their habitats,
or introduce anything harmful in the environment.”

To
note, Demapan said, many of these listed endangered species
have recovery plans made by the US Fish and Wildlife
Service. The recovery plan serves as a checklist on how
species can be delisted from the ESA-it outlines specific
tasks required to restore and secure self-sustaining wild
populations.

Endangered
species:

• Sheath-tailed Bat or Payesyes
  (Emballonura semicaudata)
• Nightingale Reed-Warbler
  or Gaga Karisu (Acrocephalus luscinia)
• Mariana
  Swiftlet or Chachaguak (Aerodramus bartschi)
• Mariana
  Crow or Aga (Corvus kubaryi)
• Mariana Common Moorhen
  or Pulattat Gallinula (chloropus guami)
• Micronesian
  Megapode or Sasangat (Megapodius laperouse)
• Rota
  Bridled White-eye or Nosa Luta (Zosterops
  rotensis)
• Slevin Skink (Emoia
  slevini)
• Hawksbill Turtle or Haggan
  (Karai)
• Mariana Eight-spot Butterfly (Hypolimnas
  octoculamarianensi)
• Mariana Wandering Butterfly
  (Vagrans egistina)
• Rota Blue Damselfly (Ischnura
  luta)
• Humped tree snail (Partula
  gibba)
• Langford’s tree snail (Partula
  langfordi)
• Fragile tree snail (Samoana
  fragilis)
• Fire tree or Hayun lagu/ Tronkon guafi
  (Serianthes nelsonii)
• Osmoxylon
  mariannense
• Nesogenes rotensis
• Ufa-halomtano
  (Heritiera longipetiolata)
• Solanum
  guamense

Threatened
species:

• Mariana Fruit Bat or Fanihi (Pteropus
  mariannusmariannus)
• Green Sea Turtle or Haggan
  (Chelonia mydas)
• Bulbophyllum
  guamense
• Fadang (Cycas
  micronesica)
• Dendrobium guamense
• Maesa
  walkeri
• Nervilia jacksoniae
• Tabernaemontana
  rotensis
• Tuberolabium
  guamense

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