02-9685. Endangered Species; Permits

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Receipt of an application for a research permit (1377).

SUMMARY:

Notice is hereby given of the following actions regarding permits for takes of endangered and threatened species for the purposes of scientific research and/or enhancement under the Endangered Species Act (ESA): NMFS has received an application for a scientific research permit from Ms. Tracey Mueller, of Mote Marine Laboratory.

DATES:

Written comments or requests for a public hearing on this new application must be received at the appropriate address or fax number no later than 5 p.m. eastern standard time on May 20, 2002.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments on the new application request should be sent to the appropriate office as indicated below. Comments may also be sent via fax to the number indicated for the application. Comments will not be accepted if submitted via e-mail or the Internet. The application and related documents are available for review in the indicated office, by appointment:

Permits, Conservation and Education Division, F/PR1, 1315 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 (phone: [phone], fax: [phone]).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Lillian Becker, Silver Spring, MD (phone: [phone], fax: [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority

Issuance of permits and permit modifications, as required by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531-1543) (ESA), is based on a finding that such permits/modifications: (1) are applied for in good faith; (2) would not operate to the disadvantage of the listed species which are the subject of the permits; and (3) are consistent with the purposes and policies set forth in section 2 of the ESA. Scientific research and/or enhancement permits are issued under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA. Authority to take listed species is subject to conditions set forth in the permits. Permits and modifications are issued in accordance with and are subject to the ESA and NMFS regulations governing listed fish and wildlife permits (50 CFR parts 222-226).

Those individuals requesting a hearing on an application listed in this notice should set out the specific reasons why a hearing on that application would be appropriate (see ADDRESSES). The holding of such hearing is at the discretion of the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA. All statements and opinions contained in the permit action summaries are those of the applicant and do not necessarily reflect the views of NMFS.

Species Covered in This Notice

The following species are covered in this notice:

Sea turtles

Threatened and endangered Green turtle (Chelonia mydas)

Endangered Hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata)

Endangered Kemp's ridley turtle (Lepidochelys kempii)

Threatened Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta)

Application 1377

The applicant wishes to conduct a 5-year population assessment of the juvenile sea turtles inhabiting Charlotte Harbor on the west coast of Florida. The applicant plans to capture green, Kemp's ridley, loggerhead and hawksbill sea turtles employing tangle net, encircling net, rodeo and dip net methodologies. Up to 150 green and Kemp's ridley, 100 loggerhead and 5 hawksbill sea turtles will be captured, weighed, measured, flipper and PIT tagged, blood and tissue sampled and released each year. Up to 10 green, Kemp's ridley and loggerhead and 5 hawksbill sea turtles will also be collected incidentally to the Center for Shark Research gill netting for sharks in the areas of Pine Island Sound and the Gulf waters near Crystal River, FL. These will be captured, measured, flipper tagged and released. In the second through fifth year, up to 5 green and/or Kemp's ridley sea turtles will be sampled as above, satellite tagged and released.

Dated: April 12, 2002.

Ann Terbush,

Chief, Permits, Conservation, and Education Division, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.