Office of Environmental Management

Protected Species and Habitat

Protected Species and Habitat Resources

This page provides resources and guidance for evaluating potential effects of transportation projects on protected species and habitat.
FDOT Programmatic Approaches Minor Transportation Activities FDOT Programmatic Approach for Minor Transportation Activities - July 2021 Concurrence letter from US Fish and Wildlife Service - September 2021 Support letter from Florida Department of Environmental Protection - April 2021 Support letter from Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission - April 2021 Programmatic Approach for Transportation Activities and SWEPT Tool Training (Webinar Recording)) - June 2022 Freshwater Mussel Programmatic Approach - January 2024 Panama City Crayfish Programmatic Approach - June 2022 FDOT and USFWS Partnership for recovery of the Panama City Crayfish - May 2023 FDOT Conservation Plan for the Florida Panther Conservation Plan - February 2024 USFWS Letter of Support
Gopher Tortoise Relocation Agreements Florida Forest Service Florida Forest Service Gopher Tortoise Memorandum of Understanding - 2015 Amended Florida Forest Service Gopher Tortoise Memorandum of Understanding - Jan 2022 Florida Department of Environmental Protection Gopher Tortoise Memorandum of Understanding - July 2023
Consultation Guidance Documents Natural Resources Evaluation Guidance - August 2022 ESA Lead Agency Consultation Correspondence - April 2019 FDOT Use of Programmatic Effect Determination Keys - December 2019 NMFS ESA and EFH Consultation Request Submission Process - April 2024
Wildlife Guidance Documents Gopher Tortoise Guidance - September 2021 Wildlife Crossing Guidelines - February 2023 Bat Exclusion Handbook - August 2023 Bat Exclusion Handbook: Common Exclusion Techniques - August 2023 FDOT Bat Roost Inspection Form
Plant Guidance Documents FDOT Resources FDOT Native Florida Plant Coordination Guidance - April 2021 Florida Native Plant Society Plant Lists for Consideration North Florida Genera Peninsular Florida Genera Stakeholder Resources Stakeholder Guidance for Native Florida Plants - April 2021 EST Quick Guide for Plants on Public Site - 2021 ETDM Notifications Tutorial - 2021 Resources Page for Stakeholders -2021 FDOT Contact List - 2021
Construction Guidance for Species Interactions Gopher Tortoise Factsheet - 2022 Sandhill Crane Factsheet - 2023
Legacy Documents Freshwater Mussel Programmatic Approach - May 2018 Essential Fish Habitat (ESA) Finding among NMFS, FHWA, and FDOT - July 2000 FDOT Designated by NMFS to complete Informal Consultation under Section 7 of ESA FDOT Designated by USFWS to complete Informal Consultation under Section 7 of ESA
Other Resources Caracara Species Conservation Guidelines - 2004 Snail Kite Management Guidelines - 2006 WOST Nest Colonies Forage Areas with Buffers - 2007 Eastern Indigo Snake Standard Protection Measures - 2022 Florida Scrub Jay Conservation Guidelines - 2004 Federally listed species keys (USACE Source Book)
Data Tools Turtle Lighting - GIS and Google Earth layers for marine turtle lighting buffer areas created by the FWC's Imperiled Species Management Section, these data layers are intended for planning purposes only and include the minimum recommended area where wildlife-sensitive lighting should be considered. Buffers include roadways along sandy beaches identified as sea turtle nesting habitat in accordance with Florida Administrative Code Rule. (Zip File) Caracara Data Layer - Google Earth layer showing the generalized locations of non-breeding communal roosts and gathering places for caracara (Caracara cheriway) as documented by the USFWS. The data is intended to be used with FDOT’s Programmatic Approach for Minor Transportation Projects to indicate areas that have had known occurrences of communal roosts or gathering areas. (Zip File) Research Underwater Noise Level Study During Impact Pile Driving (completed by University of North Florida) Environmental DNA Detection for Endangered Freshwater Mussels Choctawhatchee River Basin
On-demand Training Sand Skink/ Blue Tailed Mole Skink Survey Training Video (3/8/23) Crested Caracara Survey Training (10/17/2022) Natural Resources Evaluation Webinar OEM Training Program - Track 5: Environmental Coordination, Consultation and Permitting Training
For more information, please contact Katasha Cornwell, State Environmental Process Administrator.