A guide to North Carolina's wildlife protections

In August, 200 new light fixtures were installed at Jennette's Pier, a North Carolina Aquariums recreational facilitythat educates visitors about the environment.

The light fixtures emit a soft amber light which will be less disruptive to insects, birds and sea turtles, Mike Remige, the director of Jennette's Pier, said in a press release by the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

The new light fixtures are the latest measure put in place to protect the state’s diverse habitats and wildlife.

Species in North Carolina

The state's coast is home to various endangered and threatened plants and animals, including all five species of sea turtles that live in the state. 

“North Carolina is an incredible state," Scott Pohlman, the nature preserve property manager for the Natural Heritage Program said. "It's incredible in terms of the biodiversity and the different types of habitats."

Flora and fauna listed under the North Carolina Endangered Species Act — which prohibits removing listed species from their habitats — receive strict protections that prevent habitat destruction and ownership of threatened and endangered species in the state. 

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission operates a safe harbor program for the red-cockaded woodpecker, a species listed under the N.C. Endangered Species Act. The safe harbor program allows private landowners to have additional flexibility in land management in exchange for practices that protect the woodpecker.

To protect species in lands that are not publicly owned, North Carolina's Natural Heritage Program works with private landowners to provide guidance on how to best conserve particular species, Pohlman said.

He said the program looks at three main factors to designate natural areas, including habitat size, condition and the land's ability to meet the needs of flora and fauna.

Federal lands such as Croatan National Forest and Camp Lejeune protect habitats that are vital to endangered species, including the red-cockaded woodpecker and the Venus flytrap.

Other areas set aside for protection include North Carolina Botanical Garden’s Mason Farm Biological Preserve, Eno River State Park and Duke Forest. 

Protections for species

In 2023, the N.C. Department of Transportation entered a memorandum of understanding with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission to reduce environmental impacts from transportation-related projects.

The N.C. General Assembly also reserved $2 million in 2023 for wildlife connectivity along portions of U.S. Interstate 40 in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Pigeon River Gorge, David McHenry, the Western habitat coordinator for the N.C. Wildlife Commission, said.

In an effort to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions along U.S. I-40, there is extra space by the road for wildlife passage as NCDOT rebuilds bridges, Manley Fuller, the vice president of conservation policy for the North Carolina Wildlife Federation, said.

According to a press release from the Center for Biological Diversity, four red wolves were killed during a 10-month timespan along U.S. Route 64.

“There are needs to do wildlife crossings all over the state, but we have to build the programs so they can do more,” Fuller said.

The Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge is one location being considered for a wildlife crossing. The refuge is home to the only wild population of red wolves in the United States.

NCDOT has submitted an application for a federal grant to help cover the cost of new wildlife crossings in the refuge, McHenry said. 

"That's something we keep in the back of our mind when we're looking at roadway projects, new bridge projects — whether those species might be affected based on habitat," McHenry said.

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