[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 168 (Wednesday, August 31, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-21517]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: August 31, 1994]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 90-Day Finding on
a Petition to Remove the Northern Spotted Owl in California From the
List of Threatened and Endangered Species
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of petition finding.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces a 90-
day finding on a petition to remove the northern spotted owl (Strix
occidentalis caurina) in California from the list of species protected
under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The Service
finds that the petition does not present substantial information
indicating the requested action may be warranted.
ADDRESSES: Data, information, comments or questions concerning the
status of the petitioned subspecies described below should be submitted
to the Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2800 Cottage
Way, Room E-1803, Sacramento, California 95825-1846. The petition,
finding, supporting data, and comments are available for public
inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the above
address.
DATES: The finding announced in this notice was made on August 3, 1994.
Comments and materials related to this petition finding may be
submitted to the Field Supervisor at the above address until further
notice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Phillip J. Detrich at the above
address (916/978-4866).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1533) requires that the
Service make a finding on whether a petition to list, delist, or
reclassify a species presents substantial scientific or commercial
information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted. To
the maximum extent practicable, this finding is to be made within 90
days of the receipt of the petition, and the finding is to be published
promptly in the Federal Register. If the Service finds that a petition
presents substantial information indicating that the requested action
may be warranted, the Service then initiates a status review on that
species. Section 4(b)(3)(B) of the Act requires the Service to make a
finding as to whether or not the petitioned action is warranted within
1 year of the receipt of a petition that presents substantial
information.
On October 7, 1993, the U.S. Department of Interior received a
petition from the California Forestry Association, Sacramento,
California, requesting removal of the northern spotted owl in
California from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. The
petition, supporting documentation, and other documents have been
reviewed to determine whether substantial information has been
presented indicating that the requested action may be warranted.
The northern spotted owl is a subspecies found in forested
environments of western Washington, western Oregon, and northwestern
California. On June 26, 1990, the Service published a final rule in the
Federal Register listing the subspecies as threatened (55 FR 26114).
The subspecies was listed because of widespread destruction and
modification of its habitat and existing regulatory mechanisms were
inadequate to control further habitat loss. Critical habitat for the
subspecies was designated on January 15, 1992 (57 FR 1796).
Detailed descriptions of the biology of the subspecies may be found
in the listing notices cited above, in Thomas et al. (1990), and in the
draft recovery plan for the species (USDI 1992). The known habitat for
the northern spotted owl in most of its range is old-growth coniferous
forest, which was found to have declined substantially due to timber
harvest. As recognized in the final rule, northern spotted owls also
were found in managed, second-growth forests in limited portions of the
range, particularly in the coastal region of California, where coastal
redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) is the dominant coniferous species.
However, because the coastal redwood region constitutes only about 7
percent of the range of the subspecies and because available scientific
studies indicated that the owl was primarily found in old-growth or
mature stands in most of its range, these limited occurrences in
managed timberlands were not of sufficient importance to prevent the
listing of the subspecies. Recent surveys indicate that over 40 percent
of the subspecies' known population in California is found in managed
timberlands.
The petition to delist was submitted based on regulations at 50 CFR
424.11(d)(3), which state that a species may be delisted when
``Subsequent investigations may show that the best scientific or
commercial data available when the species was listed, or the
interpretation of such data, were in error.'' The petitioner contends
that ``(1) the northern spotted owl in California is a delistable unit;
(2) the population is large and well-distributed; (3) the habitat used
by the population is stable and likely to increase; (4) models used to
analyze trends at the time of the listing are oversimplified and
misleading; and (5) a detailed model (prepared by the petitioner)
predicts that the population is stable and the forests of northern
California are completely packed with owl territories.''
The Act defines the term ``species'' to include any subspecies of
fish, wildlife or plants, and any distinct population segment of any
species of vertebrate fish or wildlife that interbreeds when mature.
Although the Service has used international boundaries to define
distinct vertebrate population segments, the Service has recently
denied petitions to list species within certain states on the grounds
that the requested listing did not involve a distinct vertebrate
population segment--for example, the northern goshawk (Accipiter
gentilis) in New Mexico and Arizona (57 FR 28474) and the lynx (Felis
lynx canadensis) in the north Cascades of Washington (58 FR 36924).
The Service determines that substantial information has not been
presented indicating that the requested action may be warranted. This
conclusion is based upon the following: the northern spotted owls in
California do not constitute a distinct vertebrate population segment
(a discrete group that is markedly separated from other populations of
the same taxon). In large part because California Forest Practice Rules
seem to be providing habitat that supports large numbers of the
subspecies, the Service may propose to lift prohibitions against
incidental take of northern spotted owls, where timber harvest is
conducted in accordance with California law. The Service conducts
ongoing status reviews for all listed species and will continue to
evaluate the information provided by the petitioner as part of the
status review on the northern spotted owl. This finding is based on
scientific information contained in the petition and on information
otherwise available to the Service at this time.
References Cited
Detrich, P.J., G.I. Gould, Jr., and D.M. Solis. In press. Status of
spotted owl populations and management efforts in California. Trans.
West. Sec. Wildl. Soc. Vol. 29. Sacramento, California.
Smith, R. N. 1992. Declaration to U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of
Appeals. Marbled Murrelet v. Lujan, 92-36705. September 22, 1992.
Thomas, J.W., E.D. Forsman, J.B. Lint, E.C. Meslow, B.R. Noon, and
J. Verner. 1990. A conservation strategy for the northern spotted
owl. Washington, D.C: U.S. Govt. Printing Off.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, and U.S. Department
of Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 1993. Draft environmental
impact statement on management of habitat for late-successional and
old-growth forest related species within the range of the northern
spotted owl. Portland, Oregon.
U.S. Dept. of Interior. 1992. Final draft recovery plan for the
northern spotted owl. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Govt. Printing Off.
Author
The primary author of this notice is Phillip J. Detrich (see
ADDRESSES section).
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 17
Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, and Transportation.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1361-1407; 16 U.S.C. 1531-1544; 16 U.S.C.
4201-4245; Public Law 99-625, 100 Stat. 3500; unless otherwise
noted.
Dated: August 3, 1994.
Mollie H. Beattie,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 94-21517 Filed 8-30-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P