2018-04655. U.S. Endangered Species; Recovery Permit Applications

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of receipt of permit applications; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications for a permit to conduct activities intended to recover and enhance endangered species survival. With some exceptions, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA), prohibits certain activities that may impact endangered species unless a Federal permit allows such activity. The ESA also requires that we invite public comment before issuing these permits.

DATES:

To ensure consideration, please send your written comments by April 9, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Request documents or submit comments to Susan Jacobsen, Chief, Classification and Restoration Division, by U.S. mail at Classification and Recovery Division, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 1306, Albuquerque, NM 87103. Please specify the permit you are interested in by number (e.g., Permit No. TE-123456).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Susan Jacobsen, Chief, Classification and Restoration Division, by U.S. mail at P.O. Box 1306, Albuquerque, NM 87103; or by telephone at 505-248-6641.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications for a permit to conduct activities intended to recover and enhance endangered species survival. With some exceptions, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.; ESA), prohibits certain activities that may impact endangered species, unless a Federal permit allows such activity. The ESA also requires that we invite public comment before issuing these permits.

Background

The ESA prohibits certain activities with endangered and threatened species unless a Federal permit authorizes them. The ESA and our implementing regulations in Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) title 50, part 17, provide for issuing such permits and require that we invite public comment before issuing permits for activities involving endangered species.

A recovery permit we issue under the ESA, section 10(a)(1)(A), authorizes the permittee to conduct activities with endangered or threatened species for scientific purposes that promote recovery or enhance the species' propagation or survival. Our regulations implementing section 10(a)(1)(A) for these permits are found at 50 CFR 17.22 for endangered wildlife species, 50 CFR 17.32 for threatened wildlife species, 50 CFR 17.62 for endangered plant species, and 50 CFR 17.72 for threatened plant species.

In accordance with the ESA, section 10(c), we invite public comment on these permit applications before we take final action.

Applications Available for Review and Comment

We invite local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies and the public to comment on the following applications. Please refer to the permit number for the application when submitting comments.

Documents and other information submitted with these applications are available for review by any party who submits a written request to the Program Manager for Restoration and Endangered Species Classification at the address in the ADDRESSES section. Requests must be submitted within 30 days of this notice's publication date. Releasing documents is subject to Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) and Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) requirements.

Permit Applications

Proposed activities in the following permit requests are for the species' recovery and survival enhancement.

Application No.	Applicant	Species	Location	Activity	Type of take	Permit action
TE-58221C	Jorge A. DaSilva, Weslaco, Texas	Manihot walkerae (Walker's manioc)	Texas	Collection of seed and propagation	Harm	New.
TE-55633C	Jacob D. Owen, Austin, Texas	Golden-cheeked warbler (Setophaga chrysoparia), Black-capped vireo (Vireo atricapilla), Georgetown salamander (Eurycea naufragia), Jollyville Plateau salamander (Eurycea tonkawae), Salado salamander (Eurycea chisholmensis), San Marcos salamander (Eurycea nana), Texas blind salamander (Typhlomolge rathbuni), Barton Springs salamander (Eurycea sosorum), and Austin blind salamander (Eurycea waterlooensis)	Texas	Presence/absence surveys; nest monitoring; bird banding	Harm and Harass	New.
TE-099278	Fred Phillips Consulting, Flagstaff, Arizona	Huachuca water umbel (Lilaeopsis schaffneriana var. recurva)	Arizona, New Mexico	Presence/absence surveys	Harm	Amend.
TE-33177C	Newgord, Gary, Austin, Texas	Golden-cheeked warbler (Setophaga chrysoparia), Black-capped vireo (Vireo atricapilla), Houston toad (Bufo houstonensis), Interior least tern (Sterna antillarum), Northern aplomado falcon (Falco femoralis septentrionalis), and Red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis)	Texas, Oklahoma	Presence/absence surveys	Harm	New.
TE-009926	Gulf South Research Corporation, Baton Rouge, Louisiana	Reticulated flatwoods salamander (Ambystoma bishopi)	Florida	Presence/absence surveys	Capture and harass; harm	Amend.
TE-799103	Hicks and Company, Austin, Texas	Houston toad (Bufo houstonensis)	Texas	Live capture and handling	Capture and harass; harm	Amend.
TE-037155	Bio-West, Inc., Round Rock, Texas	Sharpnose shiner (Notropis oxyrhynchus), smalleye shiner (Notropis buccula)	Texas	Presence/absence surveys	Capture and harass; harm	Amend.
TE-59231C	Laurel L. Moulton, Austin, Texas	Golden-cheeked warbler (Setophaga chrysoparia)	Texas	DNA; blood sampling	Capture, harm, and harass	New.
TE-63022C	Nancy Karraker, Kingston, Rhode Island	Jemez Mountains salamander (Plethodon neomexicanus)	New Mexico	Presence/absence surveys	Capture, harm, and harass	New.
TE-48900C	Keith Geluso, Kearney, Nebraska	Lesser long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris curasoae yerbabuenae), Mexican long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris nivalis), northern Mexican gartersnake (Thamnophis eques megalops), narrow-headed gartersnake (Thamnophis rufipunctatus)	Arizona	Presence/absence surveys	Capture, harm, and harass	New.
TE-87818B	Melanie L. Gregory, Austin, Texas	Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis), gray bat (Myotis grisescens)	Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia	Presence/absence surveys	Capture, harm, and harass	Amend.
TE-037155	Bio-West, Inc. Round Rock, Texas	Smalleye shiner, sharpnose shiner	Texas	Presence/absence surveys	Capture, harm, and harass	Amend.

Public Availability of Comments

All comments and materials we receive in response to these requests will be available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the address listed in ADDRESSES.

Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Authority: We provide this notice under section 10 of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

Dated: November 30, 2017.

Amy Lueders,

Regional Director, Southwest Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.