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Endangered and Threatened Wildlife Section 4(B)(3)(A) of the Act (16 the Five Listing Factors Because We Did and Plants; 12-Month Finding on a U.S.C

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Endangered and Threatened Wildlife Section 4(B)(3)(A) of the Act (16 the Five Listing Factors Because We Did and Plants; 12-Month Finding on a U.S.C 9722 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (787) 851–7297; or by facsimile at (787) of A. eggersiana and S. conocarpum was 851–7440. Persons who use a not warranted, because we did not have Fish and Wildlife Service telecommunications device for the deaf sufficient information to determine the (TDD) may call the Federal Information true status of either A. eggersiana or S. 50 CFR Part 17 Relay Service (FIRS) at 800–877–8339. conocarpum in the wild. Further, we [Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2010–0092; MO SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: could not determine if either species 92210–0–0008–B2] met the definition of threatened or Background endangered according to one or more of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Act (16 the five listing factors because we did and Plants; 12-Month Finding on a U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) requires that, for not have sufficient evidence of which Petition To List Solanum conocarpum any petition to revise the Federal Lists threats, if any, were affecting these (marron bacora) as Endangered of Threatened and Endangered Wildlife species. and Plants that contains substantial On September 9, 2008, the Center for AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, scientific or commercial information Biological Diversity filed another Interior. that listing a species may be warranted, complaint challenging our 12-month ACTION: Notice of 12-month petition we make a finding within 12 months of finding (Center for Biological Diversity finding. the date of receipt of the petition. In this v. Hamilton, Case No. 1:08–CV–02830– finding, we determine whether the CAP). In a settlement agreement SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife petitioned action is: (a) Not warranted, approved by the Court on August 21, Service (Service), announce a 12-month (b) warranted, or (c) warranted, but 2009, the Service agreed to submit to the finding on a petition to list the plant immediate proposal of a regulation Federal Register a new 12-month Solanum conocarpum (marron bacora) implementing the petitioned action is finding for Solanum conocarpum by as endangered under the Endangered precluded by other pending proposals to February 15, 2011. This notice Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). determine whether species are constitutes the 12-month finding on the After review of all available scientific threatened or endangered, and 1996 petition to list S. conocarpum as and commercial information, we find expeditious progress is being made to endangered. that listing S. conocarpum is warranted. add or remove qualified species from Currently, however, listing S. the Federal Lists of Endangered and Species Information conocarpum is precluded by higher Threatened Wildlife and Plants. Section Taxonomy and Species Description priority actions to amend the Lists of 4(b)(3)(C) of the Act requires that we Endangered and Threatened Wildlife treat a petition for which the requested Solanum conocarpum is a dry-forest and Plants. Upon publication of this 12- action is found to be warranted but shrub of the Solanaceae, or tomato, month petition finding, we will add S. precluded as though resubmitted on the family that may attain 3 meters (m) (9.8 conocarpum to our candidate species date of such finding, that is, requiring a feet (ft)) in height. Its leaves are oblong- list. We will develop a proposed rule to subsequent finding to be made within elliptic or oblanceolate (broader at the list S. conocarpum as our priorities 12 months. We must publish these 12- distal third than the middle), range in allow. We will make any determination month findings in the Federal Register. size from 3.5 to 7 centimeters (cm) (0.62 on critical habitat during development to 1.5 inches (in) wide, are coriaceous of the proposed listing rule. In any Previous Federal Actions (leathery texture) and glabrous (no interim period, the status of the On November 21, 1996, we received hairs), and have a conspicuous candidate taxon will be addressed a petition from the U.S. Virgin Islands yellowish midvein. The flowers are through our annual Candidate Notice of (VI) Department of Planning and Natural usually paired in nearly sessile (not Review (CNOR). Resources (DPNR) requesting that we stalked) lateral or terminal cymes (flat- DATES: The finding announced in this list Agave eggersiana and Solanum topped flower cluster). The corolla document was made on February 22, conocarpum as endangered. On consists of five separate petals that are 2011. November 16, 1998, we published in the light violet, greenish at the base, and Federal Register (63 FR 63659) our about 2 cm (0.78 in) wide. The fruit, a ADDRESSES: This finding is available on finding that the petition to list A. berry, is ovoid-conical (teardrop the Internet at http:// eggersiana and S. conocarpum shaped), 2 to 3 cm (0.78 to 1.2 in) long, www.regulations.gov at Docket Number presented substantial information and turns from green with white [FWS–R4–ES–2010–0092]. Supporting indicating that the requested action may striations to golden yellow when ripe documentation we used in preparing be warranted and initiated a status (Acevedo-Rodrı´guez 1996, p. 415). Little this finding is available for public review on these two plants. is known about the natural history, inspection, by appointment, during On September 1, 2004, the Center for reproductive biology, and effects of normal business hours at the U.S. Fish Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit herbivory on the species (Ray and and Wildlife Service, Caribbean against the Department of the Interior Stanford 2003, p. 3). Ecological Services Field Office, Road and the Service alleging that the Service The petition suggests that Solanum 301, Km. 5.1, Boquero´n, PR 00622. failed to publish a 12-month finding for conocarpum might be functionally Please submit any new information, Agave eggersiana and Solanum dioecious (requiring male and female materials, comments, or questions conocarpum (Center for Biological flowers from different plants to concerning this species or this finding Diversity v. Norton, Civil Action No. outcross). However, P. Acevedo- to the above internet address or the 1:04–CV–2553 CAP). In a stipulated Rodrı´guez (pers. comm. 2002) mailing address listed under FOR settlement agreement resolving that documented flowers and fruits in a FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. case, signed April 27, 2005, we agreed solitary wild plant he discovered in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. to submit our 12-month finding for A. White Cliff area (Reef Bay general area). Marelisa Rivera, Assistant Field eggersiana and S. conocarpum to the He further suggested that S. Supervisor, Caribbean Ecological Federal Register by February 28, 2006. conocarpum may have less reproductive Services Field Office, P.O. Box 491, On March 7, 2006, we published our 12- fitness due to selfing (self-pollination). Boquero´n, PR 00622; by telephone at month finding (71 FR 11367) that listing Later, Ray and Stanford (2005, p. 5) VerDate Mar<15>2010 16:42 Feb 18, 2011 Jkt 223001 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\22FEP1.SGM 22FEP1 mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with PROPOSALS Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules 9723 conducted some pollination studies in a 2008, p. 1). A habitat suitability model boundaries, leaving only two controlled environment that indicate suggests that the vast majority of S. populations on private lands (Friis Bay that the species might be an obligate conocarpum habitat is found in the and Sabbat Point). outcrosser (plant has both male and lower elevation coastal scrub forest The largest population of Solanum female parts, but it needs to outcross (Vilella and Palumbo 2010, p. 10). conocarpum is located at Nanny Point. with other individuals to produce fruits Acevedo-Rodrı´guez (1996, p. 415) As a result of potential urban and due to self-incompatibility) with referenced the possibility of the species tourism development at Nanny Point, complete self-incompatibility. This being present on St. Thomas, and most of the natural population has been study was conducted because, prior to mentioned a collection of a sterile transferred to the VINP. About 22 2003, a lack of natural recruitment was specimen from Virgin Gorda (British percent of the S. conocarpum observed in the wild (Ray and Stanford Virgin Islands (BVI)). Pedro Acevedo- population at Nanny Point was located 2003, p. 3; J. Saliva, Service, pers. obs. Rodrı´guez (pers. comm. 2002) believes within a 30-ft access corridor to a 2004; O. Monsegur, Service, pers. obs. that the specimen from Virgin Gorda private property (Carper, pers. comm. 2010; Vilella and Palumbo 2010, pp. 4– belongs to a different species, Cestrum 2005); however, these adult plants were 7). laurifolium. Omar Monsegur, Service transplanted to an adjacent location on DNA sampling of the majority of the biologist, recently conducted a site visit the VINP to avoid potential impacts populations suggests that most to the John Folly population and from development (Carper, pers. comm. populations have been long isolated identified several Cestrum laurifolium 2010). A site visit to the population in (Ray and Stanford 2005, p. 18). adjacent to individuals of Solanum May 2010 showed that approximately Additionally, genetic work performed conocarpum. Both plants (Cestrum 90 percent of the transplanted (adult by Dr. A. Stanford at the University of laurifolium and S. conocarpum) look plants) were dead or stressed due to lack the Virgin Islands has shown low very similar, and it is common to of water (Monsegur, Service, heterozygosity (A measure of the allele confuse the two species (O. Monsegur, unpublished data 2010). Additionally, frequency or genetic diversity) (Ray pers. comm. 2010). Appropriate surveys observation of other S. conocarpum pers.
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