See The Most Endangered Animals In New York

NEW YORK, NY – The most endangered animals in New York are a mussel that buries itself beneath fresh water streams and a bat that's named for a state a long way away.

The Clubshell mussel is found in only 12 streams nationwide – with the Cassadaga Creek south of Buffalo being their only state home, according to the U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service.

Equally rare is the Indiana Bat, a mammal that weighs just a quarter of an ounce but has a wingspan of 11 inches. Only eight areas of New York – all upstate – are known to be their habitat.

Both animals made a list of the most endangered animals by state published by the website 24/7 Wall St.

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Clubshell buries itself up to four inches deep in sand and gravel at the bottom of streams and lives for up to 50 years. Their endangerment is mostly blamed on pollution of waterways from chemicals used in agriculture.

The Indiana Bat was put on the endangered list largely because of huge numbers of deaths caused by their being disturbed during hibernation. They spend their winters in huge groups – up to 50,000 strong - in caves and abandoned mines. Another threat to their population has been a disease called White-Nose Syndrome which is estimated to have killed more than a million since 2006, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

According to the service, New York has 23 threatened or endangered species of animal.

24/7 Wall St. reviewed the service's records to identify the most threatened by state.

Patch reporter Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

Images via U.S Fish and Wildlife Service