[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 241 (Tuesday, December 15, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 81216-81218]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-27542]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R2-ES-2020-N079; FXES11130200000-201-FF02ENEH00]
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Recovery
Plan for Texas Hornshell
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the
availability of our draft recovery plan for Texas hornshell, a medium
sized freshwater mussel that is listed as endangered under the
Endangered Species Act. This species is native to the Rio Grande
drainage in Texas, New Mexico, and Mexico. We provide this notice to
seek comments from the public and Federal, Tribal, State, and local
governments.
DATES: To ensure consideration, we must receive written comments on or
before February 16, 2021. However, we will accept information about any
species at any time.
ADDRESSES:
Reviewing document: You may obtain a copy of the draft recovery
plan, the recovery implementation strategy, and the species status
assessment by any one of the following methods:
Internet: Download a copy at https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/profile/speciesProfile?sId=919 or https://www.fws.gov/southwest/es/TexasCoastal/.
U.S. mail: Send a request to U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Texas Coastal Ecological Services Field Office, 17629 El
Camino Real, #211, Houston, TX 77058.
Telephone: 281-286-8282.
Submitting comments: Submit your comments on the draft recovery
plan in writing by any one of the following methods:
U.S. mail: Project Leader, at the above U.S. mail address;
Email: houstonesfo@fws.gov.
For additional information about submitting comments, see Request
for Public Comments and Public Availability of Comments under
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chuck Ardizzone, Field Supervisor, at
the above address and phone number, or by email at houstonesfo@fws.gov.
Individuals who are hearing or speech impaired may call the Federal
Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339 for TTY assistance.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
announce the availability of our draft recovery plan for Texas
hornshell (Popenaias popeii), a freshwater mussel species listed as
endangered under the Endangered Species Act, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.). We request review and comment on this plan from local,
State, and Federal agencies; Tribes; and the public. We will also
accept any new information on the status of Texas hornshell throughout
the species' range to assist in finalizing the recovery plan.
Texas hornshell is a medium-sized freshwater mussel species native
to the Rio Grande drainage in Texas, New Mexico, and Mexico. Currently,
five known populations of Texas hornshell remain in the United States:
Black River (Eddy County, New Mexico), Pecos River (Val Verde County,
Texas), Devils River (Val Verde County, Texas), Lower Canyons of the
Rio Grande (Brewster and Terrell Counties, Texas), and Lower Rio Grande
near Laredo (Webb County, Texas). After the species was listed, a small
population was discovered in the confluence of Rio San Diego in Mexico.
The draft recovery plan includes specific recovery objectives and
criteria that, when achieved, will enable us to consider removing the
Texas hornshell from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened
Wildlife (List).
Background
Recovery of endangered or threatened animals and plants to the
point at which they are again secure, self-sustaining members of their
ecosystems is a primary goal of the ESA and our endangered species
program. Recovery means improvement of the status of listed species to
the point at which listing is no longer appropriate under the criteria
set out in section 4(a)(1) of the ESA. The ESA requires the development
of recovery plans for listed species, unless such a plan would not
promote the conservation of a particular species.
We used a streamlined approach to recovery planning and
implementation by first conducting a species status assessment (SSA) of
Texas hornshell (Service 2018). An SSA is a
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comprehensive analysis of the species' needs, current condition,
threats, and future viability. The information in the SSA provides the
biological background, a threats assessment, and a basis for a strategy
for recovery of Texas hornshell. We then used this information to
prepare an abbreviated draft recovery plan for Texas hornshell that
includes prioritized recovery actions, criteria for reclassifying the
species from endangered to threatened, criteria for removing the
species from the List, and the estimated time and cost to recovery.
Summary of Species Information
We published the final rule to list the Texas hornshell as
endangered (83 FR 5720) under the ESA on February 9, 2018. The Texas
hornshell historically ranged throughout the Rio Grande drainage in the
United States (New Mexico and Texas) and Mexico. Overall distribution
has declined significantly, with the species currently occupying
approximately 15 percent of its historical range in the United States.
The resulting remnant stream populations occupy relatively shorter
reaches compared to presumed historical stream populations, and they
are isolated from one another primarily by reservoirs and unsuitable
water quality (i.e., saline waters). There are five known populations
within the species' historical range in the United States (Black River,
Lower Pecos River, Rio Grande--Lower Canyons, Rio Grande--Laredo, and
Devils River), and one in Mexico (Rio San Diego).
Texas hornshell need seams of fine sediment in crevices, undercut
riverbanks, travertine shelves, and large boulders in riverine
ecosystems with flowing water and periodic cleansing flows to keep the
substrate free of excess fine sediment accumulation. They need water
quality parameters to be within a suitable range (Randklev et al. 2017,
p. 5) (i.e., dissolved oxygen above 3 milligrams/liter (mg/L), salinity
below 0.9 parts per thousand, and ammonia below 0.7 mg/L (Sparks and
Strayer 1998, p. 132; Augspurger et al. 2003, p. 2574; Augspurger et
al. 2007, p. 2025; Carman 2007, p. 6)), and phytoplankton and bacteria
as food. Finally, Texas hornshell need host fishes to be present during
times of spawning.
The factors influencing the current and future health of
populations include increased fine sediment, changes in water quality,
loss of flowing water, and barriers to fish movement. These influences
pose the largest risks to the future viability of this species and are
primarily related to habitat changes such as the accretion of fine
sediments, low water flows, and poor water quality. Furthermore, each
of these factors is exacerbated by changing climatic conditions.
Recovery Plan Goals
The objective of a recovery plan is to provide a framework for the
recovery of a species so that protection under the ESA is no longer
necessary. A recovery plan includes scientific information about the
species and provides criteria and actions necessary for us to be able
to reclassify the species to threatened status or remove it from the
List. Recovery plans help guide our recovery efforts by describing
actions we consider necessary for the species' conservation and by
estimating time and costs for implementing needed recovery measures.
The recovery strategy for the Texas hornshell involves stemming any
further range contraction in extant stream populations, restoring and
managing watersheds and stream habitat to support additional resilient
stream populations, and increasing redundancy and representation within
those stream populations. The recovery strategy primarily focuses on
habitat restoration and preservation, and is based on an increased
understanding of the relationship of Texas hornshell life history
requirements within the physical, chemical, and ecological conditions
of their environments. Information on this species and its habitats
(e.g. population dynamics, alterations in stream flow, and/or responses
to identified threats) is important for providing for future science-
based management decisions and conservation actions. Implementation of
the recovery plan will necessitate adaptive management strategies to
use the most up-to-date information as it becomes available.
Texas hornshell recovery will involve cooperation among Federal,
State, and local agencies, private landowners, academia, and other
stakeholders. Therefore, the success of the recovery strategy presented
below will rely heavily on the implementation of recovery actions
conducted by, and through coordination with, our conservation partners
in Texas, New Mexico, and Mexico.
The recovery objectives of this plan are to ensure long-term
viability of the Texas hornshell by stabilizing and protecting existing
and new Texas hornshell stream populations, host fish populations, and
stream population and habitat connectivity, and restoring and enhancing
the habitats and watersheds necessary to support resilient Texas
hornshell stream populations.
The criteria for removing the species from the List are based on
the following:
Protect and expand existing populations and establish at
least one additional population so that there are at least seven stream
populations (four with high resiliency and three with moderate to high
resiliency).
Each of these populations should exhibit evidence of
recruitment, persistence, and positive or stable population trends over
six generations (90 years).
Ensure there are adequate stream flows and habitat
features supporting both the Texas hornshell and its host fishes,
within each of the populations.
Ensure surface and ground water quality through compliance
with water quality standards and implementation of water quality
controls within each of the populations.
Increase connectivity by incorporating fish passages and
removal of anthropogenic barriers within each population to allow for
the free movement of all life stages of Texas hornshell host fishes.
Recovery of these species through implementation of recovery
actions is estimated to occur in 2110; total costs for all partners are
estimated at approximately $783 million over the next 90 years.
Request for Public Comments
Section 4(f) of the ESA requires us to provide public notice and an
opportunity for public review and comment during recovery plan
development. It is also our policy to request peer review of recovery
plans (July 1, 1994; 59 FR 34270). In an appendix to the final recovery
plan, we will summarize and respond to the issues raised by the public
and peer reviewers. Comments may or may not result in changes to the
recovery plan; comments regarding recovery plan implementation will be
forwarded as appropriate to Federal or other entities so that they can
be taken into account during the course of implementation of recovery
actions. Responses to individual commenters will not be provided, but
we will provide a summary of how we addressed substantive comments in
an appendix to the final recovery plan.
We invite written comments on this draft recovery plan. In
particular, we are interested in additional information regarding the
current threats to the species, ongoing beneficial management efforts,
and the costs associated with implementing the recommended recovery
actions. The species status assessment and recovery implementation
strategy are accessible
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as supporting documents for the draft recovery plan, but we are not
seeking comments on those documents.
Public Availability of Comments
All comments received, including names and addresses, will become
part of the administrative record and will be available to the public.
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other
personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware
that your entire comment--including your personal identifying
information--will be publicly available. If you submit a hard copy
comment that includes personal identifying information, you may request
at the top of your document that we withhold this information from
public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do
so. Comments and materials we receive will be available, by
appointment, for public inspection during normal business hours at our
office (see ADDRESSES).
Authority
We developed our draft recovery plan and publish this notice under
the authority of section 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
Amy L. Lueders,
Regional Director, Southwest Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-27542 Filed 12-14-20; 8:45 am]
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