The Adirondack Almanack is reporting the New York Department of Environmental Conservation is planning to amend state regulations and designations for protecting endangered and threatened species, removing 19 species from its endangered and threatened species list. The Eastern cougar will be taken off the list, because it is now extinct in New York. The grey wolf will also be removed and renamed simply wolf, indicating a new understanding of that species based on recent DNA studies. Other species proposed for removal from the list: the osprey and Cooper's hawk. Peregrine falcons and bald eagles would now be re-designated of special concern. The Spruce grouse would remain endangered. Species to be added to the list: the American eel, Atlantic sturgeon, several species of mussels and other mollusks, several bats and more. When a species is listed as threatened or endangered under the state’s Endangered Species Law, it is expected to be a priority for DEC monitoring and management programs. The species is also protected through a permit requirement for projects likely to cause them harm. Read the full story in the Adirondack Almanack.