2024 Arctic (Pusa hispida hispida), Okhotsk (Pusa hispida ochotensis), Baltic (Pusa hispida botnica), and Ladoga (Pusa hispida ladogensis) Ringed Seal 5-Year Review: Summary and Evaluation
February 29, 2024
A 5-year review is a periodic analysis of a species’ status conducted to ensure that the listing classification of a species as threatened or endangered on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants is accurate.
Under section 4(c)(2) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), we are required to conduct a review of all listed species at least once every 5 years to assess whether the current listing status is accurate. In 2012, we published a final rule to list the Arctic, Okhotsk, and Baltic ringed seal as threatened and the Ladoga ringed seal as endangered under the ESA. In 2020, we initiated the 5-year review, which was led by the NOAA Fisheries Alaska Fisheries Science Center. Based on the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of this review, we recommend that the Arctic, Okhotsk, and Baltic ringed seal remain classified as threatened and the Ladoga ringed seal remain classified as endangered.