Tuesday, April 13, 2010 Part II Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 17 Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Determination of Endangered Status for 48 Species on Kauai and Designation of Critical Habitat; Final Rule VerDate Nov<24>2008 18:47 Apr 12, 2010 Jkt 220001 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4717 Sfmt 4717 E:\FR\FM\13APR2.SGM 13APR2 sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with RULES 18960 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 70 / Tuesday, April 13, 2010 / Rules and Regulations DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR taxa for which the Service has sufficient threatened species. According to the information on their biological status petitioners, the akikiki and akekee Fish and Wildlife Service and threats to list as endangered or warrant listing under the Act because threatened under the Endangered they have small populations; occur in 50 CFR Part 17 Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act; small geographic ranges; are undergoing 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), but for which rapid population and range declines; [FWS–R1–ES–2008–0046] the development of a listing regulation and face numerous imminent and [MO 92210–0–0008] has been precluded to date by other significant threats including, but not RIN 1018–AV48 higher priority listing activities. limited to, habitat loss and degradation The candidates addressed in this final by alien plants and nonnative ungulates, Endangered and Threatened Wildlife listing rule include the plants Astelia diseases spread by alien mosquitoes, and Plants; Determination of waialealae (painiu), Canavalia predation by alien mammals, and Endangered Status for 48 Species on napaliensis (awikiwiki), Chamaesyce catastrophic events such as hurricanes Kauai and Designation of Critical eleanoriae (akoko), Chamaesyce remyi (VanderWerf and American Bird Habitat var. kauaiensis (akoko), Chamaesyce Conservancy 2007). The petitioners also remyi var. remyi (akoko), Charpentiera cite the inadequacy of regulatory AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, densiflora (papala), Cyanea eleeleensis mechanisms as a threat, noting that as Interior. (haha), Cyanea kuhihewa (also haha), members of the subfamily Drepanidinae ACTION: Final rule. Cyrtandra oenobarba (hiiwale), (Hawaiian honeycreepers), the akikiki Dubautia imbricata subspecies (ssp). and akekee are not protected under the SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and imbricata (naenae), Dubautia Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 U.S.C. Wildlife Service (Service), determine plantaginea ssp. magnifolia (also 703–712; see 71 FR 50205, August 24, endangered status for 48 species on the naenae), Dubautia waialealae (naenae), 2006). The akikiki was already a island of Kauai in the Hawaiian Islands Geranium kauaiense (nohoanu), candidate species (59 FR 58982, under the Endangered Species Act of Keysseria erici (no common name November 15, 1994). The proposed rule 1973, as amended (Act). We also (ncn)), Keysseria helenae (ncn), (73 FR 62592, October 21, 2008) and designate 26,582 acres (ac) (10,757 Labordia helleri (kamakahala), Labordia this final designation constitute our hectares (ha)) of critical habitat for 47 of pumila (also kamakahala), Lysimachia response to the October 11, 2007, these species. The critical habitat is daphnoides (lehua makanoe), Melicope petition. located in Kauai County, Hawaii. degeneri (alani), Melicope paniculata Critical habitat designation was (also alani), Melicope puberula (alani), In addition to the 31 candidate determined to be not prudent for one Myrsine mezii (kolea), Pittosporum species and the akekee, we are listing species, Pritchardia hardyi (a palm), napaliense (hoawa), Platydesma and designating critical habitat for the which is threatened by over collection rostrata (pilo kea lau li i), Pritchardia following 16 species of plants endemic and vandalism. hardyi (loulu), Psychotria grandiflora to Kauai: Cyanea kolekoleensis, Cyanea dolichopoda, Cyrtandra paliku, Diellia DATES: This rule becomes effective on (kopiko), Psychotria hobdyi (kopiko), mannii, Doryopteris angelica, Dryopteris May 13, 2010. Schiedea attenuata (ncn), and crinalis var. podosorus, Dubautia ADDRESSES: This final rule and Stenogyne kealiae (ncn); the bird, akikiki (Oreomystis bairdi); and the kalalauensis, Dubautia kenwoodii, economic impact analysis are available Lysimachia iniki, Lysimachia pendens, on the Internet at http:// picture-wing fly, Drosophila attigua (now D. sharpi, see explanation under Lysimachia scopulensis, Lysimachia www.regulations.gov. Comments and venosa, Myrsine knudsenii, Phyllostegia materials received, as well as supporting ‘‘Description of the 48 Species’’ below). The candidate status of all of these renovans, Tetraplasandra bisattenuata, documentation used in preparing this species was most recently assessed and and Tetraplasandra flynnii. These 16 final are available for public inspection, reaffirmed in the December 10, 2008, Kauai plant species have been identified by appointment, during normal business Notice of Review of Native Species that by the multiagency (Federal, State, and hours, at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife are Candidates or Proposed for Listing private) Plant Extinction Prevention Service, Pacific Islands Fish and as Threatened or Endangered (CNOR) (PEP) program as being among the rarest Wildlife Office, 300 Ala Moana (73 FR 75176, December 10, 2008). of the rare Hawaiian plant species, and Boulevard, Box 50088, Honolulu, HI On May 4, 2004, the Center for in need of immediate conservation. The 96850; telephone 808-792-9400; Biological Diversity petitioned the goal of this program is to prevent the facsimile 808-792-9581. Secretary of the Interior to list 225 extinction of native plant species with FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: species of plants and animals, including fewer than 50 individuals remaining in Loyal Mehrhoff, Field Supervisor, the 31 candidate species listed above, as the wild on the islands of Kauai, Oahu, Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office endangered or threatened under the Maui, Molokai, Lanai, and Hawaii by (see ADDRESSES section). If you use a provisions of the Act. Since then, we establishing a network of multi-island telecommunications device for the deaf have published our annual findings on plant propagation sites and storage (TDD), call the Federal Information the May 4, 2004, petition (including our facilities, and conducting emergency Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339. findings on the 31 candidate species monitoring and genetic sampling of all SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This listed above) in the CNORs dated May PEP species (Hawaii Division of document consists of: (1) a final rule to 11, 2005 (70 FR 24870), September 12, Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) 2007; list 48 species as endangered; and (2) a 2006 (71 FR 53756), December 6, 2007 Service 2007). The Service has provided final critical habitat designation for 47 (72 FR 69033), and December 10, 2008 significant funding to this program since species. (73 FR 75176). 2002, through section 6 (Cooperation On October 11, 2007, we received a with the States) of the Act. We believe Previous Federal Action petition from Dr. Eric VanderWerf and these 16 plant species warrant listing Thirty-one of the Kauai species in this the American Bird Conservancy to list under the Act for the reasons discussed final rule were previously candidate the akikiki and the akekee (Loxops below (‘‘Description of the 48 Species’’ species. Candidate species are those caeruleirostris) as endangered or and ‘‘Summary of Factors Affecting the VerDate Nov<24>2008 18:47 Apr 12, 2010 Jkt 220001 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4701 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\13APR2.SGM 13APR2 sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with RULES Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 70 / Tuesday, April 13, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 18961 Species’’). Since these species occur redundancy. In addition, native species wet, dry cliff, and wet cliff (Table 1). within the same 6 ecosystems and share that share ecosystems often face a suite Although most of these species are common threats with the other 32 of common threat factors that require restricted to a single ecosystem, some species, we have included them here in similar management actions to reduce or are found in multiple ecosystems. For an effort to provide them with Federal eliminate those threats. Effective each species, we identified and protection in an expeditious manner. management of these threat factors often evaluated those factors that threaten the On October 21, 2008, we published a requires implementation of conservation species and that may be common to all proposed rule to list these 48 species as actions at the ecosystem scale to of the species at the ecosystem level. For endangered throughout their ranges, and enhance or restore critical ecological example, the degradation of habitat by to designate critical habitat for 47 of processes and provide for long-term feral ungulates is considered a threat to these species (73 FR 62592). The viability of those species in their native each species within each ecosystem. As comment period for that proposal environment. Thus, by taking this a result, this threat factor is considered opened on October 21, 2008, and closed approach, we hope to not only organize to be a multiple ecosystem-level threat, on December 22, 2008. this final rule effectively, but also to as each individual species within each Background more effectively focus conservation ecosystem faces a threat that is management efforts on the common essentially identical in terms of the An Ecosystem-based Approach threats that occur across these nature of the impact, its severity,