[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 165 (Friday, August 26, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-21077]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: August 26, 1994]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
50 CFR Part 17
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 90-Day Finding for
a Petition to List as Endangered or Threatened the Contiguous United
States Population of the Canada Lynx and to Emergency List a Southern
Rocky Mountain Population
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of 90-day petition finding.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces a 90-
day finding for a petition to add the contiguous United States
population of the Canada lynx (Lynx lynx canadensis) to the List of
Threatened and Endangered Species (List) and to add a southern Rocky
Mountain population to the List via an emergency listing. The Service
finds the petition presents substantial information indicating the
requested action for the contiguous population may be warranted, but
there is not substantial information to indicate that an emergency
listing of a southern Rocky Mountain population may be warranted. As a
result of a previous court settlement, a formal status review is
underway.
DATES: The finding announced in this document was made on August 19,
1994. Comments and materials need to be submitted to the Service by
October 1, 1994, to be considered in the 12-month finding.
ADDRESSES: Data, information, comments, or questions concerning this
petition should be submitted to the Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, 100 North Park Avenue, Suite 320, Helena, Montana
59601. The petition, 90-day finding, supporting data, and comments are
available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal business
hours at the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Kemper McMaster, Field Supervisor, at the above address, telephone
(406) 449-5225.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Endangered Species Act (Act) of 1973 as
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), requires that the Service make a
finding on whether a petition to list, delist, or reclassify a species
presents substantial scientific or commercial information to indicate
that the petitioned action may be warranted. This finding is to be
based on all information available to the Service at the time the
finding is made. To the maximum extent practicable, this finding is to
be made within 90 days of the date the petition was received, and a
notice regarding the finding is to be published promptly in the Federal
Register. If the finding is that substantial information was presented,
the Service also is required to promptly commence a review of the
status of the species involved if one has not already been initiated
under the Service's internal candidate assessment process.
This document meets the requirement that a notice be published for
the 90-day finding made earlier for the petition discussed below.
Information contained in this document is a summary of the information
in the 90-day finding, which is the Service's decision document. A
status review has been ongoing since the species was classified as a
category 2 candidate species in the December 30, 1982, Vertebrate
Notice of Review (47 FR 58454)
A petition dated April 23, 1994, was received by the Service from
the Biodiversity Legal Foundation, Evan Frost, Mark Skatrud, Craig
Coonrad, and Michael J. Polly on April 27, 1994. The petition requested
that the conterminous United States population of the ``North
American'' lynx (Felis lynx canadensis) be listed as a threatened or
endangered species. Additionally, the petitioners requested that the
southern Rocky Mountain population of the ``North American'' lynx in
Wyoming and Colorado be emergency listed.
This species is now recognized as Lynx lynx canadensis (Jones et
al. 1992) and is often referred to as the Canada lynx. The Service
accepts both of these names.
The petitioners assert that the Canada lynx population in the
contiguous United States should be added to the List of Threatened and
Endangered Species because of the following factors: 1. Intensive
logging that eliminates foraging and denning habitat for Canada lynx
and snowshoe hare until the vegetation has regrown sufficiently,
creates openings in the forest that Canada lynx avoid, and causes
habitat fragmentation that creates barriers to dispersal and
colonization; 2. Logging roads allow human accessibility that may
increase incidental trapping of Canada lynx and disrupt Canada lynx
travel and hunting; 3. Forest fire suppression adversely affects Canada
lynx through the reduction of hare habitat; 4. Few comprehensive
management plans for Canada lynx have been developed or implemented by
government agencies; 5. State agencies have not adequately modified
their furbearer regulations; 6. The Canada lynx's inherent
characteristics, including naturally low population densities,
specialized prey requirements, and large home ranges, make it
vulnerable to extinction; and 7. The southern Rockies population is
further threatened by ski area developments that may reduce habitat and
prey base and increase human disturbance and accidental trapping. The
petitioners requested that the southern Rocky Mountain population of
the lynx be protected by emergency listing because it is severally
imperiled, the population level is low, and it is reproductively
isolated.
Listing Factors
The following are the five listing criteria as set forth in section
4(a)(1) of the Act and regulations (50 CFR Part 424) promulgated to
implement the listing provisions of the Act and their applicability to
the current status of the Canada lynx.
A. The Present or Threatened Destruction, Modification, or Curtailment
of Its Habitat or Range
The suppression of forest fires and intensive logging prescriptions
have had a detrimental effect on Canada lynx habitat, and logging roads
have increased human accessibility to the species.
B. Overutilization for Commercial, Recreational, Scientific, or
Educational Purposes
Past overharvest has had a detrimental effect on Canada lynx
populations.
C. Disease or Predation
Canada lynx may be displaced or eliminated when competitors, such
as the bobcat (Lynx rufus) or coyote (Canis latrans), expand into the
range of the Canada lynx.
D. The Inadequacy of Existing Regulatory Mechanisms
States managed the Canada lynx as a furbearer in the past, but as a
result of declining Canada lynx populations, Canada lynx are classified
as threatened or endangered in Colorado, Michigan, New Hampshire,
Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. It is also fully protected from
harvest in Maine, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.
Only Idaho and Montana currently allow the harvest of Canada lynx. The
above States either prohibit or control the ``take'' of Canada Lynx,
but their laws are relative ineffective in controlling the loss or
modification of the species' habitat.
E. Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting Its Continued Existence
Human development has had a determinental effect on the Canada lynx
habitat and population.
Finding
The Service may issue an emergency rule when there is an emergency
posing a significant risk to the well-being of a species. Although the
Canada lynx population in the southern Rockies may be small, the
Service is not aware of any actions that immediately threaten the
population. The petition did not present substantial information to
indicate that emergency listing is warranted.
After finding that a 1991 petition to list the North Cascades
population of the Canada lynx as endangered was not warranted, the
Service concluded that a rangewide status review of the Canada lynx
should be conducted (58 FR 36924). As a result of a court settlement in
November 1993, the Service is now in the process of formally reviewing
the status of the contiguous United States population of the Canada
lynx to determine whether it should be added to the List of Threatened
and Endangered Species. On February 2, 1994, the Service published a
notice (50 FR 4887) announcing a continuation of the status review
initiated in 1982. The findings from this review, which must be
published by the court appointed date of November 15, 1994, will
constitute the 12-month finding for this petition. Considering the
language agreed to by the Service in the court settlement, information
provided by the petitioners, and the fact that the Canada lynx is a
category 2 candidate species, the Service finds that there is
substantial information to indicate that listing the contiguous
population of the Canada lynx may be warranted.
The Services' 90-day administrative finding contains more detailed
information regarding the above decisions. A copy may be obtained from
the Service's Helena office (see ADDRESSES section).
References Cited
Jones, J.R., Jr., R.S. Hoffman, D.W. Rice, C. Jones, R.J. Baker,
and M.D. Engstrom, 1992. Revised checklist of North American mammals
north of Mexico, 1991. Occas. Papers Mus. No. 146, Texas Tech Univ.,
Lubbock.
Author
This document was prepared by Lori H. Nordstrom (see ADDRESSES
section).
Authority
The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 17
Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, and Transportation.
Dated: August 19, 1994.
Bruce Blanchard,
Acting Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 94-21077 Filed 8-25-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-M
