Under the Endangered Species Act, a critical habitat designation establishes a geographic area that is important for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species and may require special management considerations or protection. However, a designation does not set up a preserve or refuge, nor does it affect the activities of citizens engaged in private activities on their land. Rather, its sole impact is that Federal agencies must consult with the Service on activities they authorize, take or fund that might affect critical habitat, to insure that those activities do not destroy or adversely modify the critical habitat.
"It is important to understand what we are doing in this proposed designation," said David B. Allen, the Services regional director for Alaska. "Our goal is to get this unique Alaskan duck off the road to extinction and onto the road to recovery. A critical habitat designation can help us reach that goal by underscoring the need for Federal agencies to consult with the Service about their activities that affect the birds habitat. It is not expected to affect the lives or livelihoods of rural and Native Alaskans.
"Because the spectacled eider is currently listed for protection as a threatened species, Federal agencies must already consult with the Service to ensure that their activities do not jeopardize the survival and recovery of the spectacled eider. It is unlikely that the critical habitat designation will significantly change the consultation process. Designation of critical habitat only affects federal lands and activities funded, permitted or carried out by the federal government. A designation would have no effect on a private landowner engaged in activities that dont require federal permits or funding."
"While the Service is proposing broad boundaries, the Service will require consultations only in those areas that contain the physical and biological features necessary for the species survival and recovery." Allen said. Existing towns and villages, roads, oil platforms and certain dry uplands within the boundaries are not considered critical habitat. In those places where consultations are required, the Service expects the vast majority of activities to go forward with little or no modification.
The spectacled eider is a large sea duck, one of three species in the genus Somateria found in the United States. In the winter and spring, adult males are in breeding plumage with a black chest, white back, and pale green head with a long sloping forehead and black-rimmed white spectacle-like patches around the eyes. During the late summer and fall, males are mottled brown. Females and juveniles are mottled brown year-round with pale brown eye patches.
The species suffered severe declines from the 1970s to the early 1990s. For example, the population on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta declined by 96 percent from 96,000 birds in the 1970s to fewer than 5,000 in 1992.
Today, biologists estimate that there are about 8,000 breeding spectacled eiders left on the Yukon Delta, and about 10,000 birds left on the North Slope. The main threats to this sea duck on its breeding grounds are thought to include: lead poisoning from eating spent lead shot; predation by foxes, gulls and jaegers; and hunting and other human disturbances. Biologists are not certain what threats the eider faces at sea, but believe threats could possibly be linked to factors that are causing the decline of other Bering Sea species such as the Steller sea lion.
This proposal covers nesting habitat on the Yukon Delta and the North Slope, molting areas in eastern Norton Sound and Ledyard Bay, and the species only known wintering area in the central Bering Sea between St. Lawrence and St. Matthew Islands. The spectacled eider is dependent on those habitats within this area that have the specific characteristics that it requires to support its biological needs for nesting, brood rearing, feeding, molting and wintering. The proposal comes in response to an out-of-court settlement stemming from a lawsuit filed by the Southwest Center for Biological Diversity and the Christians Caring for Creation. The Service did not designate critical habitat for the species when it was originally listed as threatened in 1993.
The Service expects to publish its proposal soon in the Federal Register. The public may provide written comments on the proposal during the 90-day comment period following publication. Comments should submitted to Ann Rappoport, Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services, 605 West 4th Avenue, Room G-62, Anchorage, Alaska 99501.
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.

