[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 6 (Tuesday, January 10, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 2638-2639]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-523]
[[Page 2637]]
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Part IV
Department of the Interior
_______________________________________________________________________
Fish and Wildlife Service
_______________________________________________________________________
50 CFR Part 17
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 6-Month Extension and
Reopening of Comment Period on the Proposed Rule to List the Sacramento
Splittail as Threatened; Proposed Rule
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 6 / Tuesday, January 10, 1995 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 2638]]
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 6-Month Extension
and Reopening of Comment Period on the Proposed Rule to List the
Sacramento Splittail as Threatened
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of 6-month extension and reopening of comment period on
proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) extends for not
more than 6 months the time to make a decision on its proposal to list
the Sacramento splittail (Pogonichthys macrolepidotus). On January 6,
1994, the Service published a proposal to list the Sacramento splittail
as a threatened species pursuant to the Endangered Species Act, as
amended (Act). The Act requires the Service to make a final
determination on such a proposal within 12 months, but provides for a
6-month extension if substantial disagreement exists regarding the
sufficiency or accuracy of the available data relevant to that
determination. The Service finds that there is substantial disagreement
regarding sufficiency or accuracy of the available data and, therefore,
extends the deadline with respect to the decision to list the species.
DATES: The deadline for final action on the proposal is now July 6,
1995. The public comment period is reopened for 45 days and comments
must be received by February 24, 1995.
ADDRESSES: Comments and materials should be submitted to the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, Sacramento Field Office, 2800 Cottage Way, E-
1803, Sacramento, California 95825-1846.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Lesa Meng at the address listed
above (telephone (916) 979-2725 or facsimile (916) 979-2723).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Sacramento splittail (Pogonichthys macrolepidotus), the only extant
species in its genus, is a large cyprinid that can exceed 40
centimeters (16 inches) in length (Moyle 1976). Adults are
characterized by an elongated body, distinct nuchal hump, and small,
blunt head, usually with barbels at the corners of the subterminal
mouth. The enlarged dorsal lobe of the caudal fin distinguishes the
splittail from other minnows in the Central Valley of California.
Splittail are dull, silvery-gold on the sides and olive-gray dorsally.
During spawning season, pectoral, pelvic, and caudal fins are tinged
with an orange-red color. Males develop small white nuptial tubercles
on the head.
Splittail are endemic to California's Central Valley, where they
were once widely distributed (Moyle 1976). Historically, splittail were
found as far north as Redding on the Sacramento River, as far south as
the present-day site of Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River, and as far
upstream as the current Oroville Dam site on the Feather River and
Folsom Dam site on the American River (Rutter 1908). Recreational
anglers in Sacramento reported catches of 50 or more splittail per day
prior to damming of these rivers (Caywood 1974). The species was used
as part of the Central Valley Native American diet (Caywood 1974).
In recent times, dams and diversions have increasingly prevented
upstream access to large rivers, and the species is now apparently
restricted to a small portion of its former range (Moyle and Yoshiyama
1992). Splittail enter the lower reaches of the Feather (Jones and
Stokes 1993) and American Rivers (Charles Hanson, State Water
Contractors, in litt., 1993) on occasion; however, the species now is
largely confined to the Delta, Suisun Bay, Suisun Marsh, and Napa
Marsh. The ``Delta'' refers to all tidal waters contained within the
legal definition of the San Francisco Bay-Sacramento-San Joaquin River
Delta, as delineated by section 12220 of the State of California's
Water Code of 1969. Generally, the Delta is contained within a
triangular area that extends south from the City of Sacramento to the
confluence of the Stanislaus and San Joaquin Rivers at the southeast
corner and Chipps Island in Suisun Bay.
In recent years, splittail have been found most often in slow
moving sections of rivers and sloughs and dead-end sloughs (Moyle et
al. 1982, Daniels and Moyle 1983). Reports from the 1950s, however,
mention Sacramento River spawning migrations and catches of splittail
during fast tides in Suisun Bay (Caywood 1974). California Department
of Fish and Game survey data from the last 15 years indicate that the
highest catches occurred in shallow areas of Suisun and Grizzly Bays.
Because they require flooded vegetation for spawning and rearing,
splittail are frequently found in areas subject to flooding.
Historically, major flood basins, distributed throughout the Sacramento
and San Joaquin Valleys, provided spawning and rearing habitat. These
flood basins have all be reclaimed or modified into flood control
structures (bypasses). Although primarily a freshwater species,
splittail can tolerate salinities as high as 10 to 18 parts per
thousand (Moyle 1976, Moyle and Yoshiyama 1992).
Section 4(b)(6) of the Act requires the Service to take one of
three alternative actions within 1 year of a listing proposal: (1)
Publish a final regulation listing the species, (2) publish a notice
that the listing proposal is being withdrawn, or (3) publish a notice
that the 1-year time period is being extended under section
4(b)(6)(B)(i). That section as implemented by regulation at 50 CFR
424.17(a)(1)(iv), provides that the Service may extend the 1-year
period for not more than 6 months because there is ``substantial
disagreement among scientists knowledgeable about the species concerned
regarding the sufficiency or accuracy of the available data relevant to
the determination.''
On August 3 and 31, 1994, the State Water Contractors and Central
Valley Project Water Association, respectively, wrote the Service
requesting a 6-month extension alleging scientific disagreement with
the listing proposal. Additionally, in a letter dated September 8,
1994, from the Secretary of the Resources Agency, the State requested
more time for the Service to consider information developed for the
Biological Assessment for the Central Valley Project/State Water
Project operations and for the California Department of Fish and Game
to complete a survey of splittail distribution and abundance. The
survey was conducted to determine whether a resident splittail
population occurred outside the Suisun Bay-Delta region. The State's
letter stated that completed study results would be available to the
Service in January 1995.
The Service finds that there is substantial disagreement regarding
the possibility of a resident splittail population upstream of the
Delta. Such a population would significantly expand the range of the
splittail reported in the proposed rule. As a result, the Service
extends until July 6, 1995, the period within which to make a final
listing determination on this species. This extension will enable the
Service to receive and analyze the State's final study results
scheduled for release in January 1995. In addition, the Service
solicits additional data regarding the status of the Sacramento
splittail upstream of the Delta until February 24, 1995.
[[Page 2639]]
References
Caywood, M.L. 1974. Contributions to the life history of the splittail
Pogonichthys macrolepidotus (Ayres). M.S. Thesis. California State
University, Sacramento.
Daniels, R.A., and P.B. Moyle. 1983. Life history of the splittail
(Cyprinidae: Pogonichthys macrolepidotus) in the Sacramento-San Joaquin
estuary. Fish. Bull. 84:105-117.
Jones and Stokes Assoc., Inc. 1993. Sutter Bypass fisheries technical
memorandum II: Potential entrapment of juvenile chinook salmon in the
proposed gravel mining pond. May 27, 1993. (JSA 91-272). Sacramento,
California. Prepared for Teichert Aggregates, Sacramento, California.
31 pp + Appendix.
Moyle, P.B. 1976. Inland Fishes of California. University of California
Press, Berkeley, California. 405 pp.
Moyle, P.B., J.J. Smith, R.A. Daniels, and D.M. Baltz. 1982.
Distribution and ecology of stream fishes of the Sacramento-San Joaquin
Drainage System, California: A review. Univ. Calif. Publ. Zool.
115:225-256.
Moyle, P.B., and R.M. Yoshiyama. 1992. Fishes, aquatic diversity
management areas, and endangered species: A plan to protect
California's native aquatic biota. Draft report prepared for California
Policy Seminar, Univ. of Calif., Berkeley, California. July 1992. 196
pp.
Rutter, C. 1908. The fishes of the Sacramento-San Joaquin basin, with a
study of their distribution and variation. U.S. Bur. Fish. Bull.
27:103-152.
Authority
The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of
1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)
Dated: January 3, 1995.
Mollie H. Beattie,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 95-523 Filed 1-9-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-M