Department of the Interior June 30, 2017 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of our Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) Draft Recovery Plan, First Revision (draft recovery plan). The Mexican wolf is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act), and is currently found in Arizona and New Mexico, in the United States, and in Chihuahua, Mexico. The draft recovery plan includes specific recovery criteria to be met to enable us to remove this species from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. The first Mexican wolf recovery plan was completed in 1982. We request review and comment on the revised plan from local, State, and Federal agencies; Tribes; and the public, in both the United States and Mexico. We will also accept any new information on the Mexican wolf's status throughout its range to assist in finalizing the recovery plan.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are initiating 5-year status reviews of 23 species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We conduct these reviews to ensure that the classification of species as threatened or endangered on the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants is accurate. A 5-year review is an assessment of the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of the review. Therefore, we are requesting submission of information that has become available since the last review of each of these species.

Oberlin College has completed an inventory of human remains in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and present-day Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of these human remains should submit a written request to Oberlin College. If no additional requestors come forward, transfer of control of the human remains to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

The Texas State University, Center for Archaeological Studies and Department of Anthropology, has completed an inventory of human remains, in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there is no cultural affiliation between the human remains and any present-day Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of these human remains should submit a written request to the Texas State University, Center for Archaeological Studies and Department of Anthropology. If no additional requestors come forward, the human remains may be reinterred.

The Museum of Natural History and Planetarium, Roger Williams Park, has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects, in consultation with the appropriate Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and present-day Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of these human remains and associated funerary objects should submit a written request to the Museum of Natural History and Planetarium, Roger Williams Park. If no additional requestors come forward, transfer of control of the human remains and associated funerary objects to the lineal descendants, Indian tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Anthropology, has completed an inventory of human remains, in consultation with the appropriate Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and present-day Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of these human remains should submit a written request to the Department of Anthropology at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. If no additional requestors come forward, transfer of control of the human remains to the lineal descendants, Indian tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

The best available scientific and commercial data indicate that the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) population of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) is a valid distinct population segment (DPS) and that this DPS has recovered and no longer meets the definition of an endangered or threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, as amended (Act). Therefore, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), hereby revise the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife, under the authority of the Act, by establishing a DPS and removing the GYE grizzly bear DPS. The Service has determined that the GYE grizzly bear population has increased in size and more than tripled its occupied range since being listed as threatened under the Act in 1975 and that threats to the population are sufficiently minimized. The participating States of Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming and Federal agencies have adopted the necessary post-delisting plans and regulations, which adequately ensure that the GYE population of grizzly bears remains recovered. Concurrent to this final rule, we are appending the Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan Supplement: Revised Demographic Criteria to the 1993 Recovery Plan. Moreover, prior to publication of this final rule, the Yellowstone Ecosystem Subcommittee finalized the 2016 Conservation Strategy that will guide post-delisting monitoring and management of the grizzly bear in the GYE. Additionally, the U.S. Forest Service finalized in 2006 the Forest Plan Amendment for Grizzly Bear Conservation for the GYE National Forests and made a decision to incorporate this Amendment into the affected National Forests' Land Management Plans. Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park appended the habitat standards to their Park Superintendent's Compendia, thereby ensuring that these national parks would manage habitat in accordance with the habitat standards. The States of Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming have signed a Tri-State Memorandum of Agreement and enacted regulatory mechanisms to ensure that State management of mortality limits is consistent with the demographic recovery criteria.