ETWP; Proposed Endangered Status for Four Plants From Southwestern California and Baja California, Mexico

The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) proposes to list Acanthomintha ilicifolia (San Diego thornmint), Dudleya stolonifera (Laguna Beach dudleya), Hemizonia conjugens (Otay tarweed), and Monardella linoides ssp. viminea (willowy monardella) as endangered throughout their respective ranges in southwestern California and northern Baja California, Mexico, pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). These species occur in coastal sage scrub, chaparral, and grassland habitats. The four taxa are threatened by a variety of factors including urban and agricultural development, competition from non-native plant species, off-road vehicle use, mining, grazing, and trampling by hikers. This proposed rule, if made final, would implement the Federal protection and recovery provisions afforded by the Act for these four plant species.