U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceCritical habitat constitutes areas considered essential for the conservation of a listed species. These areas provide notice to the public and land managers of the importance of the areas to the conservation of this species. Special protections and/or restrictions are possible in areas where Federal funding, permits, licenses, authorizations, or actions occur or are required. The Service is proposing to list the rim rock crowned snake as threatened. The Service is proposing critical habitat and is also proposing a section 4(d) rule for the rim rock crowned snake. The rim rock crowned snake is found in Miami-Dade County, Florida, and in the Florida Keys in Monroe County, Florida (lower Florida Keys, including Key West and Big Pine Key, and upper Florida Keys). After a review of the best available information, the Service has concluded that the rim rock crowned snake is likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future, primarily due to threats from habitat loss resulting from residential and commercial development, fire suppression, and effects associated with climate change, particularly sea level rise and saltwater intrusion. Therefore, the Service is proposing to list the species as threatened with a section 4(d) rule. We are also proposing to designate 6,155 acres of critical habitat in Monroe and Miami-Dade Counties, Florida. Both occupied and unoccupied units are being proposed. Future projections show that by the year 2040, all suitable habitat for rim rock crowned snake in the lower Florida Keys and up to half of suitable habitat in the upper Florida Keys will be affected by sea level rise and saltwater intrusion. As such, the Service is proposing to designate critical habitat in areas that are not currently occupied by the species because only occupied areas would be insufficient for the conservation of the species.ArcGIS FeatureLayerhttps://hub.arcgis.com/datasets/b19e30605d8942d69b07bf25f3096035_0engU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Open DataPublicPCH Tantilla oolitica 20231031 [United States]Web servicesUnited StatesLast Modified: 2024-03-06