"The delisting of the peregrine falcon is a testament to the Endangered Species Act and to years of effort by the biologists, conservationists, citizens and faloners who have made it work. We want to ensure that their hard work endures by setting management strategies that sustain peregrine falcons and keep them from returning to the endangered species list," said Service Director Jamie Rappaport Clark.
The August 25 delisting decision had the effect of allowing take of wild peregrines for falconry, raptor propagation, scientific collecting, and other purposes permissible under Migratory Bird Treaty Act regulations. However, the Service has continued the prohibition on take of wild peregrines except in very limited circumstances. The prohibition will remain in place until management plans governing take of peregrines from the wild are completed.
"Falconers played an important role in the recovery of this magnificent bird, and the Service supports the capture of falcons for falconry and other legitimate purposes. But we must take great care to evaluate the effects of these captures on population levels to make certain we dont erase the gains of the past three decades," Clark said.
Migrant juvenile peregrines were captured by falconers along the Atlantic coast barrier islands annually for many years prior to 1970, and migrants and nestlings were captured less regularly elsewhere in the United States. Falconers in many States would like to see this traditional use of peregrines resume now that peregrines have met recovery goals. Although captive bred peregrines have been available for falconry since 1983, wild peregrines have not been available due to ESA restrictions, except in Alaska under certain circumstances.
In 1970, the Service listed the American peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus anatum) as endangered under the Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969, the predecessor of the current law. The peregrine population in the eastern United States had completely disappeared, and populations in the west had declined by as much as 80 to 90 percent below historical levels. By 1975, the population reached an all-time low of 324 nesting pairs in North America. The related arctic peregrine (Falco peregrinus tundrius) also was listed as endangered, but was delisted in 1994.
The banning of DDT made the recovery of the peregrine falcon possible. But the protections provided by the Endangered Species Act and the extraordinary partnership efforts of the Service and state wildlife agencies, universities, private ornithological groups, and falcon enthusiasts accelerated the pace of recovery through captive breeding programs, reintroduction efforts and the protection of nest sites during the breeding season. Similar efforts took place in Canada, where the Canadian Wildlife Service and provincial agencies took the lead in a major captive breeding and reintroduction program. Currently, there are at least 1,650 American peregrine breeding pairs in the United States and Canada, well above the overall recovery goal of 631 pairs. Arctic peregrines are even more abundant.
One management plan will address the take of peregrine falcon nestlings in the United States. The other will address the take of immature peregrines that originate in Alaska, Canada, and Greenland, and migrate through the contiguous United States. The plans will be developed cooperatively by the Service and the States. The plan for migrant birds also will require cooperation with the governments of Canada, Greenland, and Mexico. Once the plans are completed, the States will be responsible for managing the species within the framework of the plans. The Services intent is that these management plans will apply only until the Service and the States agree that special management is no longer warranted.
The management plans will provide overall guidance for take of peregrines, including biological criteria for take of peregrines, implementation criteria, and procedures for evaluating and adjusting the take. Within the framework provided by each plan, State wildlife agencies will be responsible for decisions about take of peregrines. The Service has established tentative objectives for the combined plans that include:
-Protecting nestling and dispersing juvenile peregrines originating from breeding areas in eastern Canada and the United States.
-Allowing a conservative and sustainable level of take of migrant juvenile peregrines originating from the Alaskan and Canadian arctic and Greenland.
-Allowing a conservative and sustainable level of take of nestling peregrines from healthy populations in the western United States and Alaska.
The environmental assessments will likely include several alternatives, permitting varying numbers of juvenile peregrines to be captured from particular management groups. Potential alternatives in the environmental assessment may include continued prohibitions on take, take of 5 percent of the annual production of a particular management group, 10 percent of the annual production of a management group, or no restrictions on take beyond the existing falconry regulations.
Additional alternatives may be identified during the public review that begins with todays publication in the Federal Register of a Notice of Intent to prepare two environmental assessments and two management plans. Further public review will be sought once the plans and assessments are drafted.
Public suggestions for the management plans are requested by November 12, 1999. Written comments may be submitted to the Chief, Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 634, Arlington, Virginia 22203. Comments may also be sent via fax to 703-358-2272. For further information, contact the Office of Migratory Bird Management at 703-358-1714.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife and 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 fish and wildlife agencies.
