Alaska's 2025 State Wildlife Action Plan has been submitted for review!

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) has submitted a final draft of Alaska’s 2025 State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) (PDF 20,407 kB) by the October 1, 2025 deadline. The document is under review by a regional review team, containing members from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as well as another state. Once final approval is made, ADF&G will formally adopt the document, which will supersede the 2015 SWAP currently in place (below).

The 2025 SWAP identifies Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN), key habitats, priority issues/threats, and conservation actions for fish and wildlife in Alaska. Every ten years, ADF&G reviews and revises the SWAP to plan for the next ten years.

The 2025 SWAP represents input on fish and wildlife conservation and management from many individuals over a lengthy planning and revision process, followed by a 30-day public review. Appreciation is extended to the many state and federal agencies, user groups, Tribal entities, nongovernmental organizations, industry professionals, species-specialist groups, and members of the public, who offered thoughtful review and suggestions during the planning and revision process.


Current State Wildlife Action Plan
(2015 SWAP)

Until the 2025 SWAP is approved by the regional review team and adopted by ADF&G, the 2015 SWAP remains in place.

Alaska's distinctive geography and climate have given rise to a remarkable diversity of habitats that support a multitude of plant and animal species. However, due to the sheer size and remoteness of Alaska, the status of most nongame wildlife is largely unknown. Filling key information gaps for species that are known or suspected to be declining, but for which little information is available, helps support the TED Program's efforts to proactively conserve and manage wildlife species. Accomplishing this goal requires extensive collaboration and partnering with local, state and federal agencies to maintain diverse and healthy wildlife populations for the benefit of all Alaskans and visitors. Doing so provides direct ecological, economic, aesthetic, scientific, and recreational benefits.

The TED Program's actions are guided by the Alaska State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP). The SWAP evaluates the status of wildlife populations and recommends actions to conserve wildlife and vital habitat before they become more rare and more costly to protect. Alaska's SWAP is part of an effort by all 50 states and 5 U.S. territories to develop conservation action plans and participate in the State Wildlife Grants (SWG) Program. The SWG Program's purpose is to support state actions that broadly benefit wildlife and habitats, but particularly "Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN)" as identified by each individual state.

SWG funding in Alaska has supported monitoring and research on more than 120 species of greatest conservation need and their habitats

If you have any questions about the SWAP, please contact the Threatened, Endangered, and Diversity Program's Conservation and Management Coordinator, Julie Hagelin (julie.hagelin@alaska.gov).