[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 201 (Friday, October 17, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 54018-54020]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-27547]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 227


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 90-Day Finding for 
a Petition To List the Atlantic Sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrhinchus 
oxyrhinchus) in the United States as Endangered or Threatened

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior; National Marine Fisheries 
Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of 90-day petition finding and request for information.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine 
Fisheries Service (collectively the ``Services'') announce a 90-day 
finding for a petition to add the Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser 
oxyrhinchus oxyrhinchus), where it continues to exist in the United 
States, to the List of Threatened and Endangered Wildlife and to 
designate critical habitat. The Services find that the petition 
presents substantial information indicating that the petitioned action 
to list Atlantic sturgeon may be warranted. The Services are now 
initiating a status review to determine whether listing of the Atlantic 
sturgeon in its North American range, including Atlantic Canada, is 
warranted, and to prepare a 12-month finding. To assure that the review 
is comprehensive, the Services are soliciting information and data on 
this species.

DATES: The finding announced in this document was made on October 2, 
1997. Comments and materials related to this petition finding must be 
submitted to National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Region, 
Habitat and Protected Resources Division, at the ADDRESS below, by 
December 16, 1997, to be considered in the 12-month finding.

ADDRESSES: Information, comments or questions concerning the Atlantic 
sturgeon petition should be submitted to Christopher Mantzaris, Chief, 
Habitat and Protected Resources Division, National Marine Fisheries 
Service, One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, Massachusetts 01930. The 
petition, finding, supporting data, and comments are available for 
public inspection by appointment during normal business hours at the 
above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Colligan (508-281-9116) or Ray 
Santos (508-281-9103) at the above address, or Anne Hecht of the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service (508-443-4325).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended (ESA) (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544) requires that the Services 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. To the maximum extent 
practicable, this finding is to be made within 90 days of the receipt 
of the petition, and the finding is to be published promptly in the 
Federal Register. If the finding is positive, the Services are required 
to commence a status review of Atlantic sturgeon and to disclose their 
findings within 12 months of receipt of the petition (12-month 
finding).
    On June 2, 1997, a petition dated May 29, 1997, was received by the 
Services from the Biodiversity Legal Foundation. The petitioner 
requested the Services to list Atlantic sturgeon, in the United States 
where it continues to exist, as threatened or endangered and to 
designate critical habitat within a reasonable period of time following 
the listing. The petitioner submitted biological, distributional, and 
historical information on Atlantic sturgeon populations and identified 
potential threats including commercial fishing (directed and 
incidental), river damming, habitat loss, and water quality. Also, the 
petitioner cited scientific references in support of the petition.
    There are two subspecies of Atlantic sturgeon. The first 
subspecies, Acipenser oxyrhinchus desotoi, known as Gulf sturgeon, 
occurs from the Mississippi River to Tampa Bay, Florida. This 
subspecies was listed in 1991 as threatened under the ESA. The petition 
and this finding address the second subspecies, Acipenser oxyrhinchus 
oxyrhinchus, known as the Atlantic sturgeon, which is distributed in 
the western North Atlantic from Hamilton Inlet, Labrador, south to the 
St. Lucie River, Florida.
    Atlantic sturgeon are anadromous fish that may live up to 60 years, 
reach lengths of up to 4 meters (m) (14 feet (ft)), and weigh over 363 
kilograms (kg) (800 pounds (lb)). They are distinguished by armor-like 
plates and a long protruding snout. Ventrally located on the snout is a 
protruding mouth with four barbels crossing in front. Sturgeon are 
omnivorous benthic feeders eating opportunistically and filtering 
quantities of mud along with their food. Adult sturgeon diets include 
mollusks, gastropods, amphipods, isopods, and fish. Juvenile sturgeon 
feed on aquatic insects and other invertebrates.
    Depending on geographic location and sex, sturgeon reach sexual 
maturity at different ages. Males tend to reach maturity faster than 
females and the average age of maturity for both males and females 
increases with increasing latitude along the Atlantic coast. Age at 
sexual maturity for males ranges from 5 to 24 years, and for females, 
from 7 to 30 years (ASMFC 1990). Sexually mature sturgeon begin their 
spawning run as early as March (in the southern Atlantic coast) and as 
late as July (in the higher latitudes). Spawning occurs in flowing 
fresh or estuarine waters with a hard bottom, where the extremely 
adhesive eggs stick together in clusters. After hatching, juveniles may 
remain in

[[Page 54019]]

fresh/estuarine waters for several years. Juveniles then head seaward 
to grow to maturity and join the adult migration run which can range 
many miles away from their home rivers.
    Historical records from the early 1800s document large numbers of 
sturgeon in many river systems along the Atlantic coast. It does not 
appear that the historical range has been reduced significantly; 
however, remnant populations in some river systems, if not extirpated, 
are quite small. Systems presently known to support reproducing 
populations are the Hudson River in New York, the Ashepoo-Combahee-
Edisto River system in South Carolina, and the Altamaha and Savannah 
rivers in Georgia (ASMFC 1997). In the Hudson River, numbers of 
juvenile sturgeon were estimated at less than 5,000 during 1994, an 80 
percent decline from the 25,000 juveniles believed to have been in the 
Hudson during the 1970s (New York State Department of Environmental 
Conservation 1996). Recent documentation of gravid females and/or young 
of the year exists for the Delaware River (DE), James River (VA), 
Roanoke/Chowan and Cape Fear rivers (NC), and Santee/Cooper rivers (SC) 
(W. Laney, USFWS, pers. comm., 1997). Additional research is needed to 
determine the extent of reproduction, if any, in these rivers.
    Both commercial fishing and incidental take may have a substantial 
effect on Atlantic sturgeon. Commercial fishing is frequently cited as 
a major reason for the species' decline. Historical commercial landings 
provide the only long-term estimates of stock abundance; unfortunately, 
Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon were probably not differentiated in 
those records. Annual commercial harvest levels reached approximately 3 
million kg (7 million lb) at the end of the nineteenth century. Since 
that time, a severe decline took place with annual United States 
commercial landings not exceeding 136,000 kg (300,000 lb) (ASMFC 1990). 
In addition to directed commercial fishing for sturgeon, incidental 
catches of juvenile and adult sturgeon in State and Federal waters are 
frequently reported as having a substantial impact on stocks. Coast-
wide, the 1987 incidental catch exceeded the directed catch (ASMFC 
1990). Current information indicates that Atlantic sturgeon are taken 
incidentally in every commercial type of fishing gear.
    Prior to 1990, commercial landings averaged between 91,000 and 
136,000 kg (200,000 and 300,000 lb) per year. In 1990, the Atlantic 
States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), developed an Interstate 
Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic sturgeon regulating harvest and 
initiated a coordinated stock assessment from Maine to Florida. The 
goal of the plan is to provide framework for the restoration of 
Atlantic sturgeon to fishable abundance throughout its range. The plan 
recommended that the states control harvests by adopting either--(1) A 
minimum length of 2.4 m (7 ft); (2) a moratorium on all harvest; or (3) 
alternative measures determined to be conservationally equivalent. 
Coast-wide landings fell to less than 45,000 kg (100,000 lb) by 1994; 
but in 1996, the ASMFC determined that the current harvest levels were 
still too large for stock recovery. Subsequently, all but two states 
have banned harvest and those (Delaware and Connecticut) have reported 
no landings. Currently, the ASMFC is considering an amendment to the 
plan to institute a coast-wide moratorium. Due to the current low 
levels of abundance, long life cycle, and sporadic spawning, a 
moratorium would likely have to last decades to allow stock recovery.
    Other threats to Atlantic sturgeon and their habitat include 
habitat loss and degradation, and disease. Dams, mostly constructed 
during the 1800s, destroyed riverine habitat and impeded access to 
upstream areas, and may have played a role in the historic decline of 
this species. Biologists also suspect that siltation and water 
pollution may be factors in recent sturgeon reproduction declines, but 
the extent is unknown (R. St. Pierre, USFWS, pers. comm., 1997). 
Transportation of white sturgeon to the Atlantic coast for the pet 
trade may cause genetic and health impacts (disease) to Atlantic 
sturgeon if released into the wild (Laney, pers. comm., 1997).
    The Services have determined that the petitioners have adequately 
presented information about the status, distribution, and abundance of 
Atlantic sturgeon, in addition to having identified potential threats 
to the species in the United States. After review of the petition and 
information available within the agencies' records, the Services find 
that substantial information has been presented to indicate that the 
petitioned action to list the Atlantic sturgeon may be warranted. A 
status review will now be conducted on the Atlantic sturgeon in North 
America, including Atlantic Canada. While the petition was limited to 
U.S. populations of sturgeon, the Services have decided to expand their 
review to encompass the entire North American range. Existing 
information indicates Atlantic sturgeon undertake long migrations and 
therefore a broader scope is required to understand stock structure 
throughout its range.
    Within one year from the date the petition was received, a finding 
will be made as to whether listing the Atlantic sturgeon is warranted, 
as required by section 4(b)(3)(B) of the ESA. The petitioner also 
requested that critical habitat be designated. If the 12-month finding 
determines that the petitioned action to list the Atlantic sturgeon as 
threatened or endangered is warranted, then the designation of critical 
habitat would be addressed at that time.

Listing Factors and Basis for Determination

    Under section 4(a)(1) of the ESA, a species can be determined to be 
threatened or endangered for any one of the following reasons--(1) 
Present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of 
habitat or range; (2) overutilization for commercial, recreational, 
scientific, or educational purposes; (3) disease or predation; (4) 
inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms; or (5) other natural or 
manmade factors affecting its continued existence. Listing 
determinations are made solely on the best scientific and commercial 
data available.

Information Solicited

    To ensure that the status review is complete and based on the best 
available scientific and commercial data, the Services are soliciting 
information concerning the following--(1) Current and historical 
abundance and distribution of Atlantic sturgeon; (2) existence and 
viability of reproducing populations; (3) threats to the species and 
its habitat (fresh, estuarine, and marine); (4) ongoing efforts to 
protect Atlantic sturgeon and their habitat; and (5) whether or not any 
population is threatened or endangered based upon the above listing 
criteria. The Services request that data, information, and comments be 
accompanied by--(1) Supporting documentation such as maps, 
bibliographic reference, or reprints of pertinent publications; and (2) 
the person's name, address, and any association, institution, or 
business that the person represents. Such information may be submitted 
to the above address.

References Cited

ASMFC Fisheries Focus. 1997. Species profile: Atlantic Sturgeon. 
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, Vol. 6, Iss. 3: pp. 4-
7.
ASMFC Draft Public Information Document. 1996. Amendment 1 to the 
Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Sturgeon. Pp. 1-9.

[[Page 54020]]

ASMFC Fisheries Management Report No. 17. 1990. Fishery Management 
Plan for Atlantic Sturgeon. Atlantic States Marine Fisheries 
Commission, Nov. 1990. 73 pp.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. 1996. DEC 
Announces Emergency Moratorium on Atlantic Sturgeon. News Release 
dated March 22, 1996.

List of Subjects

50 CFR Part 17

    Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.

50 CFR Part 227

    Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Marine 
mammals, Transportation.

    Authority: The authority for this action is the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: September 29, 1997.
Jamie Rappaport Clark,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
    Dated: October 2, 1997.
David L. Evans,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 97-27547 Filed 10-16-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P