[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 239 (Wednesday, December 12, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73986-73987]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-29971]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XC371
Marine Mammals; Issuance of Permits
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of permits.
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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that individuals and institutions have
been issued Letters of Confirmation for activities conducted under the
General Authorization for Scientific Research on marine mammals. See
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for a list of names and address of
recipients.
ADDRESSES: The Letters of Confirmation and related documents are
available for review upon written request or by appointment in the
following office:
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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Protected Resources, Permits
and Conservation Division, (301)427-8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The requested Letters of Confirmation have
been issued under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), and the regulations
governing the taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216).
The General Authorization allows for bona fide scientific research that
may result only in taking by level B harassment of marine mammals. The
following Letters of Confirmation (LOC) were issued in Fiscal Year
2012.
File No. 809-1902: Issued to the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science
Center Foundation, Virginia Beach, VA on February 21, 2007, was
extended on March 8, 2012. The purpose of the research is to collect
and maintain a long-term record of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops
truncatus) in the coastal waters of Virginia and to test the current
stock hypothesis for Atlantic coastal dolphins. The expiration date of
the LOC was extended from February 28, 2012 to November 30, 2012.
File No. 13427: Issued to Gregory D. Kaufman, Pacific Whale
Foundation,
[[Page 73987]]
Wailuku, HI on March 26, 2012, authorized an amendment to LOC No.
13427-03 to change the Principal Investigator to Itana Silva. This
replaced version 13427-03, issued on July 26, 2011. A subsequent
amendment to LOC No. 13427 was issued on July 9, 2012 to change the
Principal Investigator to Emmanuelle Martinez. The LOC expires on June
15, 2013.
File No. 17263: Issued to the Alaska SeaLife Center, Seward, AK
(Responsible Party: Tara Reimer Jones, Ph.D.), on June 1, 2012, for
research on harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) in Alaska. Activities include
(1) remote video monitoring of seals (installation, removal, repair,
and maintenance of remote video cameras that require vessel and
helicopter access), (2) aerial surveys and photo-ID of seals on land
and ice haulouts, and (3) oceanographic surveys in ice habitats.
Surveys may be conducted along the coastline on the southern Kenai
Peninsula and western Prince William Sound, Alaska. Other marine
mammals that may be harassed during surveys include: Dall's porpoise
(Phocoenoides dalli); harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena); killer whale
(Orcinus orca), excluding the endangered Southern resident distinct
population segment; minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata); and gray
whale (Eschrichtius robustus), excluding the endangered Western North
Pacific population. The LOC expires on May 31, 2017.
File No. 17245: Issued to John H. Schacke, Ph.D., Georgia Dolphin
Ecology Program, Commerce, GA on June 4, 2012, to construct and
supplement catalogs of individually identifiable bottlenose dolphins in
the southeastern United States; to record behavioral observations of
individual animals; and to document how bottlenose dolphins use the
estuarine and near-shore waters of the Georgia coast. Research will
occur within the coastal waters of Georgia, primarily between St.
Catherine's and Altamaha Sounds, including embayments, rivers, and
estuaries. Bottlenose dolphins of the Western North Atlantic South
Carolina/Georgia Coastal Stock, Northern Georgia/Southern South
Carolina Estuarine System Stock, and Southern Georgia Estuarine System
Stock will be taken. The LOC expires on June 30, 2017.
File No. 17259: Issued to Paul Webb, Department of Biology, Roger
Williams University, Bristol, RI on June 5, 2012, for level B
harassment of Western North Atlantic stocks of harbor seals (Phoca
vitulina concolor), gray seals (Halichoerus grypus), and harp seals
(Pagophilus groenlandica) resulting from close approach, behavioral
observations, and scat collection. The purpose of the research is to
examine the demographic structure of the local populations and factors
affecting the haul-out behavior of harbor seals at sites in
Narragansett Bay. The LOC expires on June 15, 2017.
File No. 17260: Issued to Kayla Causey, Ph.D., California State
University, Fullerton, CA, on June 11, 2012, to conduct photo-
identification, observations, passive acoustic recordings, underwater
videography, and focal follows during vessel surveys of the California
coastal stock of bottlenose dolphins within Newport Harbor and the
surrounding Orange County coastline of California. The purpose of the
research is to (1) develop an activity budget of dolphins in Newport
Harbor for comparison to dolphins in surrounding coastal zones; (2)
provide a better understanding of the temporal scale of site fidelity
in Newport Harbor and the Orange County region for a population of
dolphins known to engage in long-shore reversals; (3) gain insight into
dolphin social dynamics, structure, information transfer, and cognition
using underwater observation; and (4) determine how dolphins respond to
vessels and people in the region. Other marine mammals that may be
harassed during surveys include: California sea lions (Zalophus
californianus), harbor seals, common dolphins (Delphinus delphis and D.
capensis), and Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus). The LOC expires on
June 15, 2017.
In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a final determination has been made that the
activities are categorically excluded from the requirement to prepare
an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.
Dated: December 7, 2012.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-29971 Filed 12-11-12; 8:45 am]
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