Rare and Endangered Vertebrates of Ohio

This paper, an annotated list of Ohio's rare and endangered vertebrate species, was compiled to supplement a similar national list and includes 10 mammals, 62 birds, 10 reptiles, 4 amphibians, and 33 fishes. Where possible, suggestions are made both as to causes of the rare or endangered status of these species and as to means of halting the trend. Ratings of "endangered," "rare," "peripheral," or "undetermined," as defined for the national classification, are given for each species. Most critical of these species are those rated endangered. The Ohio list includes 1 mammal (Indiana Myotis Bat), 1 bird (Northern Bald Eagle), 1 snake (Northern Copperbelly), and 13 fishes. No reason is known for the decreasing numbers of the bat; population losses of the Bald Eagle are believed to be due to the effects of pesticides on their eggs, and losses of the Northern Copperbelly appear to relate to drainage of ponds and marshes. Reductions in populations of all the species of endangered fish are uniformly attributed to increased turbidities and siltation, in places related to the effects of ever more intensive land use.