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Monday, April 23, 2007 Part II Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 17 Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions for Foreign Species; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions; Proposed Rule VerDate Aug<31>2005 19:36 Apr 20, 2007 Jkt 211001 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4717 Sfmt 4717 E:\FR\FM\23APP2.SGM 23APP2 rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with PROPOSAL_2 20184 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 77 / Monday, April 23, 2007 / Proposed Rules DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the above immediate publication of a proposed address. rule to list a species is precluded by Fish and Wildlife Service FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: higher-priority listing proposals, and Marie T. Maltese at the above address, expeditious progress is being made to 50 CFR Part 17 or by telephone, 703–358–1708; fax, add and remove species from the Lists, as appropriate. Endangered and Threatened Wildlife 703–358–2276; or e-mail, [email protected]; or through Pursuant to section 4(b)(3)(C)(i) of the and Plants; Annual Notice of Findings Act, when, in response to a petition, we on Resubmitted Petitions for Foreign the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. find that listing a species is warranted Species; Annual Description of but precluded, we must make a new 12- Progress on Listing Actions SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: month finding annually until we publish a proposed rule or make a AGENCY: Background Fish and Wildlife Service, determination that listing is not Interior. The Endangered Species Act of 1973, warranted. These subsequent 12-month ACTION: Review of findings on petitions. as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1531 et findings are referred to as ‘‘resubmitted’’ seq.), provides two mechanisms for petition findings. This notice contains SUMMARY: In this review, we announce considering species for listing. First, we our resubmitted petition findings for all our annual petition findings for foreign can identify and propose for listing foreign species that are currently the species, as required under section those species that are endangered or subject of outstanding petitions. 4(b)(3)(C)(i) of the Endangered Species threatened based on the factors Act of 1973, as amended. When, in contained in section 4(a)(1). We Previous Notices response to a petition, we find that implement this through the candidate The species discussed in this review listing a species is warranted but program. Candidate taxa are those taxa were the result of three separate precluded, we must complete a new for which we have sufficient petitions submitted to the Service to list status review each year until we publish information on file relating to biological a number of foreign bird and butterfly a proposed rule or make a determination vulnerability and threats to support a species as threatened or endangered that listing is not warranted. These proposal to list the taxa as endangered under the Act. We received petitions to subsequent status reviews and the or threatened, but for which preparation list foreign bird species on November accompanying 12-month findings are and publication of a proposed rule is 28, 1980, and April 30, 1991 (46 FR referred to as ‘‘resubmitted’’ petition precluded by higher-priority listing 26464 and 56 FR 58664 respectively). findings. actions. None of the species covered by On January 10, 1994, we received a Information contained in this review this review were assessed through the petition to list 7 butterfly species as describes our status review of 56 foreign candidate program; they were the result threatened or endangered (59 FR 24117). taxa that were the subjects of previous of public petitions to add species to the We took several actions on these warranted-but-precluded findings. Lists of Endangered and Threatened petitions, and to notify the public, we Based on our review, we find that 50 Wildlife and Plants (Lists), which is the published earlier petition findings, species continue to warrant listing, but other mechanism for considering status reviews, and petition finding that their listing remains precluded by species for listing. Under section reviews that included foreign species in higher-priority listing actions (see Table 4(b)(3)(A), when we receive such a the Federal Register on May 12, 1981 1). For six species previously found to petition, we must determine within 90 (46 FR 26464); January 20, 1984 (49 FR be warranted but precluded, listing is days, to the maximum extent 2485); May 10, 1985 (50 FR 19761); now warranted. We will promptly practicable, whether the petition January 9, 1986 (51 FR 996); July 7, 1988 publish a listing proposal for those six presents substantial scientific or (53 FR 25511); December 29, 1988 (53 species. commercial information indicating that FR 52747); January 6, 1989 (54 FR 554); With this review, we are requesting the petitioned action may be warranted November 21, 1991 (56 FR 58664); additional status information for the 50 (90-day finding). If we make a positive March 28, 1994 (59 FR 14496); May 10, species that remain warranted-but- 90-day finding, we are required to 1994 (59 FR 24117), and January 12, precluded by higher priority listing promptly commence a review of the 1995 (60 FR 2899). Our most recent actions. We will consider this status of the species. Section 4(b)(3)(B) review of petition findings was information in preparing listing of the Act requires that we must make published on May 21, 2004 (69 FR documents and future resubmitted one of three findings within 12 months 29354). petition findings. This information will of the receipt of the petition (12-month Since our last review of petition also help us to monitor the status of the finding). findings we have taken two listing taxa and in conserving them. The first possible 12-month finding is actions related to this notice. On that listing is not warranted, in which December 7, 2004, we published our 12- DATES: We will accept comments on case we need not take any further action month finding on a petition to list seven these resubmitted petition findings at on the petition. The second possibility foreign species of Swallowtail any time. is that we may find that listing is butterflies as threatened or endangered ADDRESSES: Submit any comments, warranted, in which case we must (69 FR 70580). We also published a information, and questions by mail to promptly publish a proposed rule to list proposed rule on November 22, 2006, to the Chief, Division of Scientific the species. Once we publish a list six foreign bird species as Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife proposed rule for a species, section endangered (71 FR 67530). Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 4(b)(5) and (6) govern further 750, Arlington, Virginia 22203; by fax to procedures, regardless of whether or not Findings on Resubmitted Petitions 703–358–2276; or by e-mail to we issued the proposal in response to This review describes our resubmitted [email protected]. Comments the petition. The third possibility is that petition findings for 56 foreign species and supporting information will be we may find that listing is warranted for which we had previously found available for public inspection, by but precluded. A warranted-but- listing to be warranted but precluded. appointment, Monday through Friday precluded finding means that We have considered all of the new VerDate Aug<31>2005 19:36 Apr 20, 2007 Jkt 211001 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4701 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\23APP2.SGM 23APP2 rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with PROPOSAL_2 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 77 / Monday, April 23, 2007 / Proposed Rules 20185 information we have obtained since the on the wing at sea. The only time they Fiji petrel (Pterodroma macgillivrayi) previous findings. As a result of our spend any significant amount of time on The Fiji petrel is a marine species and review, we find that warranted-but- land is to breed and rear young, and presumably pelagic (del Hoyo et al. precluded findings remain appropriate these species require specific islands for 1992). It was originally known from just for 50 species. We emphasize that we reproduction and rearing fledglings. one specimen collected in 1855 on Gau are not proposing these species for Procellarids are long-lived species with Island and more recently from eight listing by this review, but we do low reproductive rates and juvenile records of sightings on the island since anticipate developing and publishing mortality is often high due to predation 1983 (BirdLife International 2000). The proposed listing rules for these species by introduced mammalian species. As is only other record is a reported sighting in the future, with an objective of common for all island nesting avian at sea over 200 km north of Gau progressively and conclusively species, they are vulnerable to (Watling 2000, as cited in BirdLife addressing all 50 foreign species within stochastic events, such as typhoons, International 2000). The Fiji petrel’s a reasonable time-frame. which could result in rapid population breeding grounds have not been Also as a result of this review, we find declines or unforeseen species discovered, but may be located in areas that for six species, listing is warranted. extinctions (Birdlife International 2006). of undisturbed mature forest, on rocky, We will promptly publish proposals to Based on information gathered and mountainous ground, or in the cloud list six species in the Family assessed since May 21, 2004 and forest highlands of Gau Island (del Hoyo Procellariidae (tube-nosed seabirds). December 7, 2004, we have updated our et al. 1992, Rare 2006). The species is These species include: the Fiji petrel determinations of whether listing of classified as Critically Endangered by (Pterodroma macgillivrayi), the these taxa continues to be warranted or the IUCN because it is inferred, given Chatham petrel (Pterodroma axillaris), warranted but precluded, or whether the paucity of recent records, that there Cook’s petrel (Pterodroma cookii), the listing is no longer warranted.