[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 172 (Wednesday, September 5, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54566-54567]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-21852]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA848


Endangered Species; File No. 16134

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Issuance of permit.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Virginia Aquarium and Marine 
Science Center Foundation [Responsible Party: Mark Swingle], 717 
General Booth Blvd., Virginia Beach, VA 23451 has been issued a permit 
to take green (Chelonia mydas), Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), 
hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), 
and loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtles for purposes of scientific 
research.

ADDRESSES: The permit and related documents are available for review 
upon written request or by appointment in the following offices:
    Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910; 
phone (301) 427-8401; fax (301) 713-0376;
    Northeast Region, NMFS, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 
01930; phone (978) 281-9328; fax (978) 281-9394; and

[[Page 54567]]

    Southeast Region, NMFS, 263 13th Ave. South, St. Petersburg, FL 
33701; phone (727) 824-5312; fax (727) 824-5309.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kristy Beard or Amy Hapeman, (301) 
427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On December 9, 2011, notice was published in 
the Federal Register (76 FR 76950) that a request for a scientific 
research permit to take the above-listed species had been submitted by 
the above-named organization. The requested permit has been issued 
under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended 
(ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the regulations governing the taking, 
importing, and exporting of endangered and threatened species (50 CFR 
parts 222-226).
    The five-year permit authorizes research on leatherback, 
loggerhead, green, hawksbill, and Kemp's ridley sea turtles in mid-
Atlantic waters from North Carolina to New Jersey. The purposes of the 
research are to: (1) Update current knowledge of loggerhead and Kemp's 
ridley sea turtle abundance, distribution, health, and nutrition in 
Chesapeake Bay and nearshore Virginia waters, (2) compare the relative 
abundance, size distribution, sex ratio, health parameters and genetic 
diversity of loggerhead and Kemp's ridley sea turtles in U.S. mid-
Atlantic coastal waters, and (3) build baseline data on less common sea 
turtle species in the region. Turtles will be captured using tangle 
nets or hand/dip nets. Subject turtles may also be acquired from other 
legal sources: Virginia pound net fisheries and dredge mitigating 
trawls. The following procedures may be conducted on sea turtles prior 
to release: Epibiota removal, satellite tag, temporarily mark the 
carapace, attach flipper and passive integrated transponder tags, 
measure, photograph, oral swab, weigh, and sample blood, feces, 
keratin, and tissue.
    Issuance of this permit, as required by the ESA, was based on a 
finding that such permit (1) was applied for in good faith, (2) will 
not operate to the disadvantage of such endangered or threatened 
species, and (3) is consistent with the purposes and policies set forth 
in section 2 of the ESA.

    Dated: August 30, 2012.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-21852 Filed 9-4-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P