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2-98
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Jim Nickles 916/414-6572, 501-6885 (cell)
CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT MAY BE REMOVED FROM ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed removing the Truckee barberry, a California native plant, from the Federal list of Threatened and Endangered Species. This plant is a small evergreen shrub found only in a 280-yard reach of privately-owned floodplain along the Truckee River within the town of Truckee in Nevada County.
The Fish and Wildlife Service listed the Truckee barberry (Berberis sonnei) as an endangered species on November 8, 1979, citing urbanization, further modification of streamside habitat, removal of plants for ornamental use, and low seed set and seed viability as major threats to the plant's continuing existence. However, recent work by plant taxonomists indicates that this species is not distinct from a common variety of barberry that ranges from the mountains of southern California north to British Columbia and Alberta and east to the Great Plains.
According to Steve Thompson, Manager of the Service's California/Nevada Operations Office, "In light of these studies, the Truckee barberry cannot be considered a discrete entity and consequently no longer meets the definition of 'species' under the Endangered Species Act." Thompson noted that there are no significant threats to the common species of barberry. If made final, he said, this proposal would eliminate all Federal Endangered Species Act protections for this plant.
The Service welcomes comments on this proposal to delist the Truckee barberry until November 4, 2002. Comments should be sent to the Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, 2800 Cottage Way, Rm W- 2605, Sacramento, California 95825-1846. Comments may also be sent by e-mail to the following address: fw1_barberry@fws.gov . A complete description of this proposal appears in today's Federal Register.
The U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for
conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats
for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the
93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System comprised of more than 500
national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands, and other special
management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fish and
wildlife management assistance offices and 78 ecological services field stations.
The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species
Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries,
conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign
governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal
Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes
on fishing and hunting equipment to state wildlife agencies.
Truckee Barberry (Berberis [=Mahonia) sonnei is a small, colonial evergreen shrub in the barberry family and is known from one location along the Truckee River in the town of Truckee in Nevada County, California. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the Truckee barberry (Berberis sonnei) as an endangered species on November 8, 1979, citing urbanization, further modification of streamside habitat, removal of plants for ornamental use and low seed set and seed viability as major threats to the plant's continuing existence.
However, recent work by plant taxonomists indicates that this species is not distinct from a common variety of barberry that ranges from the mountain of southern California north to British Columbia and Alberta and east to the Great Plains. Various recovery activities have taken place including propagation in a botanic garden and the taxonomic evaluations that resulted in its being considered as "synonymous" with the more common barberry.
Q. What
is meant by "Delisting"?
A. Delisting simply means the removal of a species from the list of
threatened and endangered species and protection under the Endangered Species
Act (ESA) is no longer warranted. Delisting is a formal rulemaking process
that requires publication in the Federal Register of a proposal announcing
the Fish and Wildlife Service's intention to remove the species from the list
followed by a public comment period. Once the Service reviews information
received during the public comment period and makes its decision on whether
to delist the species, its decision is then also published in the Federal
Register.
Q. What is the current status of this plant? Why is this plant
being proposed for delisting as an endangered species?
A. Truckee barberry is currently listed as an endangered species.
Under the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), a species is considered endangered
when it is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion
of its range.
We have reviewed all available data which indicated that this plant is not a discrete taxonomic entity and no longer meets the definition of a species as defined by the ESA.
Consequently, we
are proposing to remove it from ESA protection
Q. What is the difference between a proposed rule and final rule?
A. The main difference between a proposed rule and a final rule is
that a proposed rule requires public review. Before any species is listed
or delisted under the ESA, the Service requests information and comments on
it to help determine whether a listing or delisting is warranted. Once that
determination is made, a final rule is published with no further public comment.
Because Truckee
barberry is being proposed for delisting, all information and comments, whether
written or oral, received by the close of the comment period, November 4,
2002, will be considered by the Service in making the final delisting decision.
Q. What is the purpose of the public comment period?
A. The purpose of the public comment period is to allow for public
review of the proposal and to solicit comments and information on it from
the public, other concerned government agencies, the scientific community,
industry or any interested parties. The public comment period provides an
opportunity for the Service to solicit the best available information in its
rulemaking.
Q. What type of information would be most important and useful during the comment period?
A.
The Service will take into consideration all information received during the
public comment period in determining its final action on this proposal. Of
particular interest would be comments concerning taxonomic information.
Q. Will the Service's final action from the proposal?
A.
This proposal was written and based on a review of the best available scientific
and commercial information regarding this plant. If new information is received
during the public comment period, it may lead to a final regulation that differs
from this proposal.
Q. Will the Fish and Wildlife Service monitor this plant if and when
it is delisted?
A.
Because this plant is being proposed for delisting due new taxonomy information,
rather than recovery, the ESA does not require us to monitor it following
its delisting.
Q. When can we expect a final decision from the Service?
A. The Endangered Species Act allows the Service one year from the
date of a proposal to determine the final status of the species.
Q. What is the listing history of the Truckee barberry?
A. The Service proposed this plant as an endangered species in June
1976, along with approximately 1,700 plants. This plant list was assembled
on the basis of comments and data received by the Smithsonian Institute and
the Service, as a result of a list prepared by the Smithsonian of plants considered
to be endangered, threatened or extinct in the United States. The final rule
listing the Truckee barberry as endangered was published in the Federal
Register in November 1979.
In January 1997,
the Service received a petition to delist this plant from the National Wilderness
Institute. However, a one-year Congressional moratorium in April 1995 on all
listing actions, a subsequent backlog of needed listing actions and funding
limitations delayed this and other delisting actions. Under this new system,
the priority went to species most in need, and actions on behalf of these
species have delayed processing of the Truckee barberry delisting proposal
until now.
Q. Did the Service err in listing this plant?
A. No. Based on the best information available at the
time the Service proposed the plant for listing, Truckee barberry met all
the standards for protection outlined in the ESA, and had been recommended
for protection by the Smithsonian Institute. Further field work and a comprehensive
taxonomic review, however, led us to reassess this species and based on the
best scientific and commercial information now available regarding the taxonomic
classification of this species, we have concluded that the previous classification
is not taxonomically correct and therefore the species doesn't meet the definition
of "species" as defined in the ESA.
The Truckee barberry
is also listed as endangered by the State of California, which has indicated
it may prepare a proposal to delist it sometime in the future.
Q. Is the Service considering delisting other plants and animals in California?
A. The Service has proposed delisting Hoover's woolly-star, a plant native to the San Joaquin Valley. The bald eagle has also been proposed for delisting, and, in 2001, the Service delisted the Aleutian Canada goose, which had recovered primarily due to partnership efforts to increase its habitat.
Contact
us: Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, 2800 Cottage Way, Room W-2605,
Sacramento, California 95825
Phone (916) 414-6600 ~ FAX (916) 414-6713 ~ email: fw1sacweb@fws.gov
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is a part of the United States Government
Department of Interior
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