The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today released a Final Rule and Record of Decision that will allow more flexibility in the control of double-crested cormorants where they are causing damage to aquaculture and public resources such as fisheries, vegetation and other birds.
The rule expands an aquaculture depredation order that has been in place in 13 states since 1998 to allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services division to conduct winter roost control. It also establishes a public resource depredation order to allow state wildlife agencies, tribes and USDA Wildlife Services in 24 states to conduct cormorant control for the protection of public resources. Without these depredation orders, agencies and individuals would not be able to control cormorants without a federal permit.
The final rule establishes the regulations that implement the preferred alternative, Alternative D, outlined in the final Environmental Impact Statement that the Service published on August 22, 2003.
Double-crested cormorants are colonial waterbirds whose numbers have increased substantially in the past 30 years. They have been documented to have caused localized, but sometimes significant, negative impacts on resources such as commercial aquaculture, recreational fisheries, vegetation and the habitat of other colonially-nesting birds.
Through the new rule, the Service will authorize states, tribes and USDA Wildlife Services to manage and control double-crested cormorants to protect public resources (fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats). The rule applies to the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Agencies acting under the order must have landowner permission, may not adversely affect other migratory bird species or threatened and endangered species and must satisfy annual reporting and evaluation requirements. The Service will ensure the long-term conservation of cormorant populations through annual assessments of agency reports and through regular population monitoring.
Additionally, the Service has modified the 1998 aquaculture depredation order to allow control of cormorants at winter roosts near fish farms and to allow fish hatcheries to protect their stock from cormorant predation. This added authority applies only to the original 13 states (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas) under the order and, in the case of roost control, may be conducted only by officials of U.S. Department of Agricultures Wildlife Services.
Cormorants have been protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act since 1972 after their populations dropped precipitously as a result of factors such as use of the pesticide DDT. Today, the population is at historic highs in many areas due in large part to the presence of ample food in their summer and winter ranges, federal and state protection, and reduced contaminant levels. The total estimated population of double-crested cormorants in North America is approximately 2 million birds.
The final rule and related documents may be downloaded from the Division of Migratory Bird Management web site at <http://migratorybirds.fws.gov/issues/cormorant/cormorant.html>. Requests for copies of the final rule, Record of Decision or the final EIS may be mailed to: Division of Migratory Bird Management, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MBSP-4107, Arlington, Virginia 22203. For further information, call the division at 703/358-1714.2
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 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 542 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource 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.
