Endangered Species; Marine Mammals; Receipt of Applications for Permit, 2408-2409 [2011-654]

Agencies

• Fish and Wildlife Service
• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 9 (Thursday, January 13, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2408-2409]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-654]



[[Page 2408]]

=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R9-IA-2011-N002; 96300-1671-0000-P5]


Endangered Species; Marine Mammals; Receipt of Applications for 
Permit

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Receipt of Applications for permit.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to 
comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities 
with endangered species, marine mammals, or both. With some exceptions, 
the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Marine Mammal Protection Act 
(MMPA) prohibit activities with listed species unless a Federal permit 
is issued that allows such activities. Both laws require that we invite 
public comment before issuing these permits.

DATES: We must receive comments or requests for documents on or before 
February 14, 2011. We must receive requests for marine mammal permit 
public hearings, in writing, at the address shown in the ADDRESSES 
section by February 14, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Brenda Tapia, Division of Management Authority, U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 212, Arlington, VA 
22203; fax (703) 358-2280; or e-mail DMAFR@fws.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brenda Tapia, (703) 358-2104 
(telephone); (703) 358-2280 (fax); DMAFR@fws.gov (e-mail).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Public Comment Procedures

A. How do I request copies of applications or comment on submitted 
applications?

    Send your request for copies of applications or comments and 
materials concerning any of the applications to the contact listed 
under ADDRESSES. Please include the Federal Register notice publication 
date, the PRT-number, and the name of the applicant in your request or 
submission. We will not consider requests or comments sent to an e-mail 
or address not listed under ADDRESSES. If you provide an e-mail address 
in your request for copies of applications, we will attempt to respond 
to your request electronically.
    Please make your requests or comments as specific as possible. 
Please confine your comments to issues for which we seek comments in 
this notice, and explain the basis for your comments. Include 
sufficient information with your comments to allow us to authenticate 
any scientific or commercial data you include.
    The comments and recommendations that will be most useful and 
likely to influence agency decisions are: (1) Those supported by 
quantitative information or studies; and (2) Those that include 
citations to, and analyses of, the applicable laws and regulations. We 
will not consider or include in our administrative record comments we 
receive after the close of the comment period (see DATES) or comments 
delivered to an address other than those listed above (see ADDRESSES).

B. May I review comments submitted by others?

    Comments, including names and street addresses of respondents, will 
be available for public review at the address listed under ADDRESSES. 
The public may review documents and other information applicants have 
sent in support of the application unless our allowing viewing would 
violate the Privacy Act or Freedom of Information Act. Before including 
your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal 
identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your 
entire comment--including your personal identifying information--may be 
made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your 
comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public 
review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

II. Background

    To help us carry out our conservation responsibilities for affected 
species, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, section 10(a)(1)(A), as 
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and our regulations in the Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17, the Marine Mammal Protection 
Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), and our regulations 
in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 18 require that we 
invite public comment before final action on these permit applications. 
Under the MMPA, you may request a hearing on any MMPA application 
received. If you request a hearing, give specific reasons why a hearing 
would be appropriate. The holding of such a hearing is at the 
discretion of the Service Director.

III. Permit Applications

A. Endangered Species

Applicant: U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety 
and Applied Nutrition, College Park, MD; PRT-30984A
    The applicant requests a permit to import biological specimens from 
hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata), that were obtained from 
the wild in Thailand for the purpose of scientific research.
Applicant: Zoological Society of Escondido, CA; PRT-31183A
    The applicant requests a permit to import one captive born female 
dhole (Cuon alpinus), from the Toronto Zoo, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 
for the purpose of enhancement of the survival of the species.
Applicant: Zoo New England, Boston, MA; PRT-31106A
    The applicant requests a permit to import one captive-bred female 
snow leopard (Uncia uncia), from the Toronto Zoo, Toronto, Ontario, 
Canada, for the purpose of enhancement of the survival of the species.
Applicant: Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, Virginia Beach, 
VA; PRT-27787A
    The applicant requests a permit to export one captive-hatched 
female Komodo monitor (Varanus komodoensis), to the Toronto Zoo, 
Toronto, Ontario, Canada, for the purpose of enhancement of the 
survival of the species.
Multiple Applicants
    The following applicants each request a permit to import the sport-
hunted trophy of one male bontebok (Damaliscus pygargus pygargus), 
culled from a captive herd maintained under the management program of 
the Republic of South Africa, for the purpose of enhancement of the 
survival of the species.
Applicant: Gary Bartels, St. Elmo, IL; PRT-31829A
Applicant: William Minore, Loves Park, IL; PRT-25354A

B. Endangered Marine Mammals and Marine Mammals

Applicant: Floragenex, Inc., Eugene, OR; PRT-28829A
    The applicant requests a permit to import an unlimited number of 
biological specimens obtained from wild polar bears (Ursus maritimus), 
in Canada for the purpose of scientific

[[Page 2409]]

research. This notification covers activities to be conducted by the 
applicant over a 5-year period.
Applicant: Texas A&M University, Dr. Randall Davis, Galveston, TX; PRT-
078744
    The applicant requests renewal of a permit to authorize take by 
harassment, behavior monitoring, and photo-identification activities of 
up to 200 wild northern sea otters (Enhydra lutris kenyoni), and 
opportunistic salvage and necropsy of sea otter carcasses, for the 
purpose of scientific research. This notification covers activities to 
be conducted by the applicant over a 5-year period.
    Concurrent with publishing this notice in the Federal Register, we 
are forwarding copies of the above applications to the Marine Mammal 
Commission and the Committee of Scientific Advisors for their review.

    Dated: January 7, 2011.
Brenda Tapia,
Program Analyst/Data Administrator, Branch of Permits, Division of 
Management Authority.
[FR Doc. 2011-654 Filed 1-12-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P