The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed to designate 2,306 acres as critical habitat for Yadons piperia (Piperia yadonii), a perennial orchid found in Monterey County, California. The plant is currently listed as endangered under the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). Publication of the proposal in the October 18, 2006 Federal Register opens a 60-day comment period.
Approximately 80 percent of the proposed critical habitat consists of private land on the Monterey Peninsula and other county areas. State lands comprise 11 percent of the proposal, and 9 percent consists of local agency lands. Of the private lands, about 23 percent are owned or managed by the non-profit Elkhorn Slough Foundation and the Del Monte Forest Foundation.
Public comments on the proposed rule will be accepted until Dec. 18, 2006. The Service encourages public input on specific elements of the proposal to help ensure that the final critical habitat designation is as accurate as possible. The Service is particularly interested in comments on potential economic impacts, the number and distribution of the plant, and identifying habitat areas that contribute to conservation of the species.
Comments on the proposal may be submitted in writing to: Field Supervisor, Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office; 2493 Portola Road, Suite B; Ventura, Calif. 93003, or may be submitted via e-mail to: fw8piya@fws.gov"> . They may also be faxed to: 805/644-3958.
Yadons piperia has small white flowers on a slender stalk. The plant grows primarily in Monterey pine forests of the Monterey Peninsula. It also occurs in the Bishop pine and Gowen cypress forests of the Peninsula and in maritime chaparral. An estimated one-third to half of the Monterey pine forests that existed historically in the Monterey Bay area have been destroyed.
The plant was listed as endangered under the ESA in August 1998 but the Service did not designate critical habitat at that time. The greatest threat to the species is alteration or loss of habitat due to urban, agricultural, and intensive recreational development such as golf courses and other manicured fields.
This critical habitat proposal was completed in response to a lawsuit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity. Todays announcement is in compliance with a December 2004 court order to propose critical habitat for the species by Oct. 5, 2006. Copies of the proposal and related materials can be downloaded from: http://ventura.fws.gov .
Native plants are important for their ecological, economic, and aesthetic values. They play an important role in development of crops that resist disease, insects, and drought. At least 25 percent of prescription drugs contain ingredients derived from plant compounds, including medicine to treat cancer, heart disease, juvenile leukemia, and malaria, and to assist in organ transplants. Plants are also used to develop natural pesticides.
Critical habitat is a term in the ESA. It identifies geographic areas containing features essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species and may require special management considerations or protection. Federal agencies that undertake, fund or permit activities that may affect critical habitat are required to consult with the Service to ensure such actions do not adversely modify or destroy designated critical habitat. The designation does not affect purely private or state actions on private or state lands, nor require non-federal lands to be positively managed for conservation.
For private and non-federal landowners, consultations with the Service are required when activities involving a protected plant require federal funding or permitting. Landowners must still comply with state laws protecting imperiled plants. California landowners who may have this plant on their property are encouraged to contact the state Department of Fish and Game for further guidance.
The Service is preparing a draft economic analysis of the proposed critical habitat that will be released for public review and comment at a later date.
