Order Acknowledging Receipt of the Assessments Done Under Subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act (Basking Shark Atlantic Population and 14 Other Wildlife Species): SI/2026-52

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 160, Number 20

Registration
SI/2026-52 October 7, 2026

SPECIES AT RISK ACT

Order Acknowledging Receipt of the Assessments Done Under Subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act (Basking Shark Atlantic Population and 14 Other Wildlife Species)

P.C. 2026-864 September 25, 2026

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, acknowledges receipt, on the making of this Order, of the assessments done under subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act ^{footnote a} by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) with respect to the species set out in the annexed schedule.

SCHEDULE

Endangered Species

Fish

• Darter, River (Percina shumardi) Great Lakes – Upper St. Lawrence populations
  Dard de rivière populations des Grands Lacs et du haut Saint-Laurent
• Porbeagle (Lamna nasus)
  Maraîche
• Sculpin, Coastrange (Cottus aleuticus) Cultus Lake population
  Chabot de la chaîne côtière population du lac Cultus
• Skate, Winter (Leucoraja ocellata) Eastern Scotian Shelf – Newfoundland population
  Raie tachetée population de l’est du plateau néo-écossais et de Terre-Neuve
• Skate, Winter (Leucoraja ocellata) Gulf of St. Lawrence population
  Raie tachetée population du golfe du Saint-Laurent
• Warmouth (Lepomis gulosus)
  Crapet sac-à-lait

Threatened Species

Fish

• Sculpin, Rocky Mountain (Cottus sp.) Missouri River populations
  Chabot des montagnes Rocheuses populations de la rivière Missouri
• Sculpin, Rocky Mountain (Cottus sp.) Saskatchewan – Nelson River populations
  Chabot des montagnes Rocheuses populations de la rivière Saskatchewan et du fleuve Nelson
• Stickleback, Little Quarry Lake Benthic Threespine (Gasterosteus aculeatus)
  Épinoche à trois épines benthique du lac Little Quarry
• Stickleback, Little Quarry Lake Limnetic Threespine (Gasterosteus aculeatus)
  Épinoche à trois épines limnétique du lac Little Quarry

Special Concern

Fish

• Dogfish, North Pacific Spiny (Squalus suckleyi)
  Aiguillat commun du Pacifique Nord
• Dogfish, Spiny (Squalus acanthias) Atlantic population
  Aiguillat commun population de l’Atlantique
• Rockfish, Darkblotched (Sebastes crameri)
  Sébaste tacheté
• Shark, Basking (Cetorhinus maximus) Atlantic population
  Pèlerin population de l’Atlantique
• Skate, Smooth (Malacoraja senta) Laurentian – Scotian population
  Raie à queue de velours population du chenal Laurentien et du plateau néo-écossais

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

The Order Acknowledging Receipt of the Assessments Done Under Subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act (Basking Shark Atlantic Population and 14 Other Wildlife Species) acknowledges receipt by the Governor in Council (GIC) of the assessments with respect to the status of 15 aquatic species, done by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC), in accordance with its functions under paragraph 15(1)(a) of the Species at Risk Act (SARA) and as required under subsection 23(1) of that Act.

Objective

The objective of this Order is for the GIC, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, to acknowledge receipt of the 15 assessments done pursuant to subsection 23(1) of SARA by COSEWIC with respect to the wildlife species set out in the annexed schedule to the Order and to start the nine-month timeline set out in subsection 27(1.1) for the GIC to make a decision on listing.

Background

The purpose of SARA is to prevent wildlife species from being extirpated or becoming extinct; to provide for the recovery of wildlife species that are extirpated, endangered, or threatened as a result of human activity; and to manage species of special concern to prevent them from becoming endangered or threatened. COSEWIC is established under section 14 of SARA, and its functions are set out in section 15 of SARA. Among other functions, COSEWIC provides the Minister of the Environment with assessments of the status of wildlife species that it considers to be at risk.

Implications

Within nine months after receiving COSEWIC’s assessments with respect to the status of the 15 aquatic species, the GIC may review those assessments and may, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, accept the assessments and add the species to the List set out in Schedule 1 to SARA, decide not to add the species to the List, or refer the matter back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration. The GIC may also, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, reclassify or remove a listed species.

Before making a recommendation to the GIC, the Minister of the Environment must take into account COSEWIC’s assessment of the status of the species; consult the competent minister or ministers; and, if a species is found in an area in respect of which a wildlife management board is authorized by a land claims agreement to perform functions in respect of a wildlife species, consult the wildlife management board.

Under subsection 27(3) of SARA, if the GIC has not taken a course of action under subsection 27(1.1) of SARA within nine months after receiving the 15 assessments done by COSEWIC, the Minister of the Environment must, by order, amend the List in accordance with COSEWIC’s assessment.

Contact

Erin Groulx
Director
Species at Risk Program
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
200 Kent Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0E6
Email: SARA_LEP@dfo-mpo.gc.ca