Fish and Wildlife Service 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The public is invited to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species and marine mammals.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on a petition to reclassify the Utah prairie dog (Cynomys parvidens) from threatened to endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We find that the petition does not provide substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that reclassification of the Utah prairie dog from threatened to endangered may be warranted. Therefore, we are not initiating a further status review in response to this petition. We are, however, initiating a 5-year review under section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act for this species because such a review has not been conducted in the last 5 years. We ask the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the status of the Utah prairie dog or threats to the species.

The public is invited to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species.

We announce our receipt of applications to conduct certain activities pertaining to enhancement of survival of endangered species.

We announce our receipt of applications to conduct certain activities pertaining to enhancement of survival of endangered species.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce a public meeting of the Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council (Council).

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the locations and times of combined public meetings that have been scheduled to: (1) Provide information on the 12-month petition finding and proposed rule to list the polar bear (Ursus maritimus) as threatened throughout its range, and (2) Receive verbal public comments on that proposal.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the initiation of a 5-year review of 58 species under section 4(c)(2)(B) of the Endangered Species Act (Act). The purpose of a 5-year review is to ensure that the classification of a species as threatened or endangered on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants is accurate and based on the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of the review. We are requesting submission of any such information that has become available since the original listing of each of these 58 species. Based on the results of these 5-year reviews, we will make the requisite findings under section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act. We also indicate in this notice the 5-year reviews we completed for species in California and Nevada in FY 2006.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on a petition to list the San Felipe gambusia (Gambusia clarkhubbsi) as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We find that the petition does not present substantial information indicating that listing the San Felipe gambusia may be warranted. Therefore, we will not initiate a further status review in response to this petition. We ask the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the status of the San Felipe gambusia or threats to it or its habitat at any time. This information will help us monitor and encourage the conservation of this species.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service, or we), revise the regulations governing the annual Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Contest [also known as the Federal Duck Stamp Contest (contest)]. We now provide a special exemption that allows recent winning artists to submit entries for the 2007 contest only. We also clarify in our regulations our longstanding practice to include artwork from the third round of judging in an art tour for 1 year; early return of the artwork to the artist will make the artist ineligible for the next three contests. Finally, we correct minor grammatical errors in the contest procedures.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a meeting of the Lake Champlain Sea Lamprey Control Alternatives Workgroup (Workgroup). The Workgroup's purpose is to provide, in an advisory capacity, recommendations and advice on research and implementation of sea lamprey control techniques alternative to lampricides that are technically feasible, cost effective, and environmentally safe. The primary objective of the meeting will be to discuss potential focus research initiatives that may enhance alternative sea lamprey control techniques. The meeting is open to the public.

Under the Endangered Species Act (Act), we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to establish a distinct population segment (DPS) of the gray wolf (Canis lupus) in the Northern Rocky Mountains (NRM) of the United States. The proposed NRM DPS of the gray wolf encompasses the eastern one-third of Washington and Oregon, a small part of north-central Utah, and all of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. We are also proposing to remove the gray wolf in the NRM DPS from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife under the Act, because threats will have been reduced or eliminated if Wyoming adopts a State law and wolf management plan that we believe will adequately conserve wolves. The States of Montana and Idaho have adopted State laws and management plans that would conserve a recovered wolf population into the foreseeable future. However, Wyoming State law and its wolf management plan are not sufficient to conserve Wyoming's portion of a recovered NRM wolf population at this time. Therefore, if Wyoming fails to modify its management regime to adequately conserve wolves, we will keep a significant portion of the range in the Wyoming portion of the NRM DPS because there are not adequate regulatory mechanisms in that area. In this situation, wolves in the significant portion of the range in northwestern Wyoming, outside the National Parks, will retain their nonessential experimental status under section 10(j) of the Act. We will remove the remainder of the NRM DPS from the List of Endangered and Threatened Species. Any gray wolves in the remainder of Wyoming outside the National Parks and those portions of Washington, Oregon, and Utah in the NRM DPS, are not essential to conserving the NRM wolf population and these areas do not constitute a significant portion of the range in the DPS. Therefore these areas will not remain listed. We are also soliciting comments regarding our intention to use section 6 agreements to allow States outside the NRM DPS with Service-approved wolf management plans to assume management of listed wolves, including nonlethal and lethal control of problem wolves.

NOAA and the USFWS published final regulations for the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument (Monument) on August 29, 2006. The preamble and regulatory text of that notice contained errors pertaining to the electronic mail address for submitting comments on the information collection requirements of that rule, the reference to the dimensions of the outer boundary of the Monument, and the numbering sequence for one paragraph. This final rule corrects those errors. This rule makes no substantive change to the regulations.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to designate critical habitat for Berberis nevinii (Nevin's barberry) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The proposal includes approximately 417 acres (ac) (169 hectares (ha)) of land in Riverside County, California, that meet the definition of critical habitat for B. nevinii. Of this, we propose to exclude 385 ac (156 ha) of non-Federal land from the final designation under section 4(b)(2) of the Act, leaving a proposed final designation of 32 ac (13 ha) of Federal land.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, as lead agencies, announce the fnal Bison and Elk Management Plan (Plan) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the National Elk Refuge and Grand Teton National Park/John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Memorial Parkway (Grand Teton National Park) is available. The final Plan/EIS was prepared pursuant to the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as amended (16 U.S.C. 668dd, et. seq.); the National Park Service Management Policies of 2006; and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The final Plan/EIS was prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS); the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service; the Bureau of Land Management (BLM); and the State of Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD). The final Plan/EIS describes the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's and the National Park Service's proposal for management of the Jackson bison and elk populations within their respective jurisdictions for 15 years, beginning at the issuance of a Record of Decision (ROD) on the final Plan/EIS. The effects of six alternatives for the management of bison and elk populations for the National Elk Refuge and Grand Teton National Park are disclosed in the final Plan/ EIS.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are revising critical habitat for the Alabama beach mouse (Peromyscus polionotus ammobates) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The revised designation encompasses approximately 1,211 acres (ac) (490 hectares (ha)) of coastal dune and scrub habitat in Baldwin County, Alabama.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is preparing a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) and Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex (Complex) located in Humboldt and Del Norte Counties of California. The Complex is comprised of Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge and Castle Rock National Wildlife Refuge. This notice advises the public that the Service intends to gather information necessary to prepare a CCP and EA pursuant to the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as amended, and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The public and other agencies are encouraged to participate in the planning process by sending written comments on management actions that the Service should consider. The Service is also furnishing this notice in compliance with the Service CCP policy to obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues to include in the CCP and EA. Opportunities for public input will be announced throughout the CCP/EA planning and development process.

Pursuant to section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA), we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 5-year review of 10 northeastern species. A 5-year review is a periodic process conducted to ensure that the listing classification of a species is accurate. A 5-year review is based on the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of the review; therefore, we are requesting submission of any such information that has become available since the original listing of the species as endangered or threatened. Based on the results of these 5-year reviews, we will make the requisite findings under section 4(c)(2)(B) of the ESA.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce our intention to conduct rulemaking under the Endangered Species Act (Act) of 1973 as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) for the purpose of removing Astragalus desereticus (Deseret milk-vetch) from the List of Endangered and Threatened Plants in the near future. Specifically, we intend to propose delisting A. desereticus because threats to the species as identified in the final listing rule (64 FR 56590, October 20, 1999) are not as significant as earlier believed and are managed such that the species is not likely to become in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range in the foreseeable future. Upon delisting, A. desereticus would be managed pursuant to a Conservation Agreement among the Service and Utah State agencies. In response to a stipulated settlement agreement we have reconsidered whether designating critical habitat for Astragalus desereticus would be prudent based on this species' current status. We have determined that such a designation is not prudent because, as described in this advanced notice, we believe that designating critical habitat would not be beneficial to the species (50 CFR 424.12). This is because no area meets the definition of ``critical habitat'' (i.e., there are no areas essential to the conservation of the species which require special management considerations, and protections afforded by the species' current listing status appear to be no longer necessary).

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service, we, our) announces that we are re-initiating the preparation of a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) and Environmental Assessment (EA) for Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). Our original notice of intent to prepare a CCP was published in the Federal Register on June 11, 2002. At that time, we also held public scoping meetings. In June 2003, we announced through a special mailing that we were postponing work on the project due to a change in budget and staffing priorities. We are preparing a CCP and EA pursuant to the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as amended by the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. This notice advises other Federal and State agencies and the public of our intent to complete detailed planning on this refuge and to obtain suggestions and information to include in the environmental document. Special mailings, newspaper articles, media announcements, and our Web site will provide information about future opportunities for public involvement in the planning process.

The Fish and Wildlife Service (hereinafter Service) will conduct an open meeting on February 8, 2007, to identify and discuss preliminary issues concerning the 2007-08 migratory bird hunting regulations.

The public is invited to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species.

The following permit was issued.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces the availability for public review of the draft revised Recovery Plan for the Rio Grande Silvery Minnow (Hybognathus amarus). The Rio Grande silvery minnow currently inhabits the Rio Grande in New Mexico. The Service solicits review and comment from the public on this draft revised Recovery Plan.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), again withdraw our July 15, 2002, proposal (67 FR 46441) to list Lepidium papilliferum (slickspot peppergrass) as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The best available data for L. papilliferum indicates that, while its sagebrush-steppe matrix habitat is degraded, there is little evidence of negative impacts on the abundance of L. papilliferum, which inhabits slickspot microsites within this system. Annual abundance of the plant is strongly correlated with spring precipitation, therefore a high degree of variability in annual abundance is to be expected. Data on overall population trends are inconsistent; although recent declines that do not correlate with spring rainfall are noted in one portion of the species' range, range-wide data demonstrate increases in abundance that continue to track consistently with rainfall during those same years. The best available range-wide data indicate that abundance of the population range-wide is strongly correlated with precipitation and has increased in recent years in association with increased rainfall, as expected.