Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Initiation of 5-Year Status Reviews of 50 Species in California, Nevada, and the Klamath Basin of Oregon

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of initiation of reviews; request for information.

SUMMARY:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are initiating 5-year status reviews of 50 species in California, Nevada, and the Klamath Basin of Oregon under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). A 5-year review is based on the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of the review; therefore, we are requesting submission of any new information on these species that has become available since the last review.

DATES:

To ensure consideration in our reviews, we are requesting submission of new information no later than August 17, 2018. However, we will continue to accept new information about any species at any time.

ADDRESSES:

For how and where to send information, see Request for New Information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For whom to contact for species-specific information, see Request for New Information. Individuals who are hearing impaired or speech impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8337 for TTY assistance.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Why do we conduct 5-year reviews?

Under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), we maintain lists of endangered and threatened wildlife and plant species (referred to as the List) in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17.11 (for wildlife) and 17.12 (for plants). Section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act requires us to review each listed species' status at least once every 5 years. For additional information about 5-year reviews, refer to our factsheet at http://www.fws.gov/endangered/what-we-do/recovery-overview.html.

What information do we consider in our review?

A 5-year review considers all new information available at the time of the review. In conducting these reviews, we consider the best scientific and commercial data that have become available since the listing determination or most recent status review, such as:

(A) Species biology, including but not limited to population trends, distribution, abundance, demographics, and genetics;

(B) Habitat conditions, including but not limited to amount, distribution, and suitability;

(C) Conservation measures that have been implemented to benefit the species;

(D) Threat status and trends in relation to the five listing factors (as defined in section 4(a)(1) of the Act); and

(E) Other new information, data, or corrections, including but not limited to taxonomic or nomenclatural changes, identification of erroneous information contained in the List, and improved analytical methods.

Any new information will be considered during the 5-year review and will also be useful in evaluating the ongoing recovery programs for the species.

Which species are under review?

This notice announces our active review of the species listed in the table below.

What is a Distinct Population Segment?

Yellow-billed cuckoo, mountain yellow-legged frog, and western snowy plover were each listed as a Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of a vertebrate taxon. A DPS is defined in the February 7, 1996, Policy Regarding the Recognition of Distinct Vertebrate Population Segments (61 FR 4722). For a population to be listed under the Act as a distinct vertebrate population segment, three elements are considered: (1) The discreteness of the population segment in relation to the remainder of the species to which it belongs; (2) the significance of the population segment to the species to which it belongs; and (3) the population segment's conservation status in relation to the Act's standards for listing (i.e., is the population segment endangered or threatened?). Distinct population segments of vertebrate species, as well as subspecies of all listed species, may be proposed for separate reclassification or for removal from the list. We will apply the DPS policy during the 5-year review.

Request for New Information

To ensure that a 5-year review is complete and based on the best available scientific and commercial information, we request new information from all sources. See What Information Do We Consider in Our Review? for specific criteria. If you submit information, please support it with documentation such as maps, bibliographic references, methods used to gather and analyze the data, and/or copies of any pertinent publications, reports, or letters by knowledgeable sources.

To get more information on a species, submit information on a species; or review information we receive, please use the following contact information, depending on the Lead Fish and Wildlife Office for the species specified in the table above.

Arcata Fish and Wildlife Office: Kathleen Brubaker, 707-822-7201 (phone); Kathleen_brubaker@fws.gov (email); or 1655 Heindon Road, Arcata, CA 952121 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office: Bradd Baskerville-Bridges, 760-431-9440 (phone); fw8cfwocomments@fws.gov (email); or 2177 Salk Avenue, Suite 250, Carlsbad, CA 92008 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

Klamath Falls Fish and Wildlife Office: Daniel Blake, 541-885-2512 (phone); daniel_blake@fws.gov (email); or 1936 California Ave., Klamath Falls, OR 97601 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

Reno Fish and Wildlife Office: Erin Nordin, 760-872-5020 (phone); erin_nordin@fws.gov (email); or 351 Pacu Lane, Bishop, California 93514 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office: Josh Hull, 916-414-6742 (phone); josh_hull@fws.gov (email); or 2800 Cottage Way, Suite W2605, Sacramento, California 95825 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

San Francisco Bay-Delta Fish and Wildlife Office: Steven Detwiler, 916-930-2640 (phone); steven_detwiler@fws.gov (email); or 650 Capitol Mall, Sacramento, CA 95814 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

Southern Nevada Fish and Wildlife Office: James Harter, 702-515-5230 (phone); james_harter@fws.gov (email; or 4701 N. Torrey Pines Dr., Las Vegas, NV 89130 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office: Cat Darst, 805-677-3318 (phone); cat_darst@fws.gov (email); or 2493 Portola Road, Suite B, Ventura CA 93003 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents);

Yreka Fish and Wildlife Office: Nadine Kanim, 530-841-3108 (phone); nadine_kanim@fws.gov (email); or 1829 S Oregon Street, Yreka, California 96097 (U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or in-person review of documents).

Public Availability of Comments

Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Comments and materials received will be available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the offices to which the comments are submitted.

Authority

This document is published under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).