[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 228 (Tuesday, November 26, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 70525-70527]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-28171]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
[Docket No. FWS-R6-ES-2013-0120; 4500030113]
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Initiation of
Status Review of Arctic Grayling in the Upper Missouri River System
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of initiation of status review.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), under the
authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act),
announce the initiation of a status review of the Arctic grayling
(Thymallus arcticus) upper Missouri River system distinct population
segment (DPS). We conduct status reviews to determine whether the
entity meets the definition of an endangered or threatened species
under the Act. Following this status review, we will issue a proposed
listing rule or a not warranted finding for the Arctic grayling upper
Missouri River system DPS. Through this document, we encourage all
interested parties to provide us information regarding the Arctic
grayling in the upper Missouri River basin.
DATES: To allow us adequate time to conduct this review, we request
that we receive information no later than December 26, 2013.
Information submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking
Portal (see ADDRESSES section, below) must be received by 11:59 p.m.
Eastern Time on the closing date. After December 26, 2013, you must
submit information using the U.S. mail or hand-delivery option provided
in the ADDRESSES section below. Please note that we may not be able to
address or incorporate information that we receive after the above
requested date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit information by one of the following methods:
(1) Electronically: Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. In the Search box, enter FWS-R6-ES-2013-0120,
which is the docket number for this rulemaking. Then, in the Search
panel on the left side of the screen, under the Document Type heading,
click on the Proposed Rules link to locate this document. You may
submit a comment by clicking on ``Comment Now!''
(2) By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public
Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R6-ES-2013-0120; Division of Policy and
Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 N. Fairfax
Drive, MS 2042-PDM; Arlington, VA 22203.
We request that you send information only by the methods described
above. We will post all submissions on http://www.regulations.gov. This
generally means that we will post any personal information you provide
us (see the Request for Information section below for more
information).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jodi Bush, Field Supervisor, Montana
Field Office, 585 Shepard Way, Suite 1, Helena, MT 59601; telephone
(406) 449-5225, extension 205. If you use a telecommunications device
for the deaf (TDD), please call the Federal Information Relay Service
(FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 70526]]
Background
The Arctic grayling is a fish belonging to the family Salmonidae
(salmon, trout, charr, whitefishes), subfamily Thymallinae (graylings),
and is represented by a single genus, Thymallus (Scott and Crossman
1973, pp. 301-302; Behnke 2002, pp. 327-331). Arctic grayling have
long, thin bodies with deeply forked tails, and adults typically
average 254 to 330 millimeters (10 to 13 inches) in length. Coloration
varies from silvery or iridescent blue and lavender, to dark blue
(Behnke 2002, pp. 327-328). Arctic grayling have a prominent sail-like
dorsal fin, which is large and vividly colored with rows of orange to
bright green spots, and often has an orange border. Dark spots often
appear on the body toward the head (Behnke 2002, pp. 327-328).
Arctic grayling are native to Arctic Ocean drainages of
northwestern Canada and Alaska; the Peace, Saskatchewan, and Athabasca
River drainages in Alberta, eastward to Hudson Bay and westward to the
Bering Straits; and eastern Siberia and northern Eurasia (Scott and
Crossman 1973, pp. 301-302). Arctic grayling also are native to Pacific
coast drainages of Alaska and Canada as far south as the Stikine River
in British Columbia (Scott and Crossman 1973, pp. 301-302; Nelson and
Paetz 1991, pp. 253-256; Behnke 2002, pp. 327-331).
Pleistocene glaciations isolated two North American populations of
Arctic grayling outside of Canada and Alaska (Vincent 1962, pp. 23-31).
One population occurred in streams and rivers of the Great Lakes region
of northern Michigan, but was extirpated in the 1930s (Hubbs and Lagler
1949, p. 44; Scott and Crossman 1973, p. 301). The second population
(Arctic grayling of the upper Missouri River) inhabits watersheds in
the upper Missouri River basin upstream of Great Falls, Montana. This
population is the subject of our status review.
Previous Federal Actions
We have reviewed the status of the Arctic grayling several times
since 1982. Most recently, on September 8, 2010, we published a revised
12-month finding for the Arctic grayling (75 FR 54708). In that
finding, we determined that fluvial (stream dwelling) and adfluvial
(residing in lakes and spawning in streams) Arctic grayling of the
upper Missouri River did constitute a DPS under the Act. Therefore, we
found that the upper Missouri River DPS was a listable entity under the
Act, and we further found that listing the DPS was warranted but
precluded by higher priority listing actions.
On May 10, 2011, we filed a multiyear work plan as part of a
proposed settlement agreement with Wild Earth Guardians and others in a
consolidated case in the U.S. District Court for the District of
Columbia. On September 9, 2011, the Court accepted our agreement with
the plaintiffs in Endangered Species Act Section 4 Deadline Litig.,
Misc. Action No. 10-377 (EGS), MDL Docket No. 2165 (D. DC) (known as
the ``MDL case''), which requires the Service to submit to the Federal
Register for publication either a proposed rule or a not-warranted
finding for the Arctic grayling on or before September 30, 2014.
For additional information on the biology or previous Federal
actions on the Arctic grayling, including Federal actions prior to
2010, see the September 8, 2010, revised 12-month finding (75 FR
54708).
Request for Information
To ensure that the status review and, if warranted, our subsequent
listing determination are based on the best available scientific and
commercial information, and to provide an opportunity to any interested
parties to provide information for consideration during the status
assessment, we are requesting information concerning the Arctic
grayling in the upper Missouri River system. We request information
from other concerned governmental agencies, Native American tribes, the
scientific community, industry, and any other interested party.
Specifically, we are seeking:
(1) General information concerning the taxonomy, biology, ecology,
genetics, and status of the Arctic grayling of the upper Missouri River
system.
(2) Specific information on the conservation status of Arctic
grayling in the upper Missouri River system, including information on
distribution, abundance, and population trends.
(3) Specific information on factors that that may affect the
continued existence of the Arctic grayling in the upper Missouri River,
which may include habitat modification or destruction, overutilization,
disease, predation, the inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms,
or other natural or manmade factors.
(4) Specific information on planned and ongoing conservation
actions designed to improve Arctic grayling habitat or reduce threats
to Arctic grayling in the upper Missouri River system.
(5) Habitat selection, use, and any changes or trends in the amount
and distribution of Arctic grayling habitat.
(6) Habitat requirements for feeding, breeding, and sheltering,
including particular physical or biological features that are essential
to the conservation of Arctic grayling and where such physical or
biological features are found.
(7) Whether any of these features may require special management
considerations or protection.
(8) Specific areas outside the geographical area occupied by the
DPS that may be essential for the conservation of the Arctic grayling
in the upper Missouri River system.
(9) The possible benefits and impacts (including economic impacts)
of a possible critical habitat designation for the Arctic grayling.
(10) Whether the designation of critical habitat for the Arctic
grayling would be beneficial to the conservation of the Arctic grayling
in the upper Missouri River system or whether the identification of
specific areas as critical habitat may increase threats to the DPS or
its habitat.
If you submit information, we request you support it with
documentation such as data, maps, bibliographic references, methods
used to gather and analyze the data, or copies of any pertinent
publications, reports, or letters by knowledgeable sources. Section
4(b)(1)(A) of the Act directs that determinations as to whether any
species is an endangered or threatened species must be made ``solely on
the basis of the best scientific and commercial data available.''
You may submit your information concerning this status review by
one of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. If you submit
information that includes personal identifying information, you may
request at the top of your document that we withhold this personal
identifying information from public review. However, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so.
[[Page 70527]]
References Cited
A complete list of all the references cited in this document is
available on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov and upon
request from the Field Supervisor, Montana Field Office (see FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
Authors
The primary authors of this document are staff members of the
Montana Field Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Authority
The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of
1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
Dated: November 12, 2013.
Stephen Guertin,
Acting Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-28171 Filed 11-25-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P