Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 147 / Wednesday, August 4, 2021 / Proposed Rules 41935 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 223 

[RTID 0648–XB130] 

Receipt of Receipt of a Petition To 

Issue Protective Regulations for 

Banggai Cardinalfish Under 

Endangered Species Act 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Receipt of petition for 

rulemaking; request for information. 

SUMMARY: We, NMFS, announce receipt 

of a petition to promulgate a rulemaking 

under the Endangered Species Act 

(ESA) to provide for the conservation of 

the Banggai cardinalfish (Pterapogon 

kauderni). Specifically, the petition 

requests that we extend the prohibitions 

of the ESA to this species, including 

prohibitions on import, export, and all 

commercial activities for both wild and 

captive-bred populations. We solicit 

information and comments that may be 

relevant to our analysis of protective 

regulations. 

DATES: Written comments and 

information must be received by 

October 4, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit 

information on this document, 

identified by NOAA–NMFS–2021–0060, 

by the following method: 

• Electronic Submission: Submit 

electronic information via the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to 

www.regulations.gov and enter NOAA– 

NMFS–2021–0060. Click on the 

‘‘Comment’’ icon and complete the 

required fields. Enter or attach your 

comments. 

Instructions: Comments sent by any 

other method or received after the end 

of the specified period, may not be 

considered. All comments received are 

a part of the public record and will 

generally be posted for public viewing 

on www.regulations.gov without change. 

All personal identifying information 

(e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential 

business information, or otherwise 

sensitive or protected information 

submitted voluntarily by the sender will 

be publicly accessible. NMFS will 

accept anonymous submissions (enter 

‘‘N/A’’ in the required fields if you wish 

to remain anonymous). Attachments to 

electronic comments will be accepted in 

Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe 

portable electronic file (PDF) formats 

only. 

The petition and previous rulemaking 

documents related to the listing of the 

species can be obtained electronically 

on the NMFS website at: https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/ 

banggai-cardinalfish#conservationmanagement. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Stephania Bolden by phone at (727 551– 

5768) or email at Stephania.Bolden@

noaa.gov; or Erin Markin by phone at 

(301 427–8416) or email at 

Erin.Markin@noaa.gov, NMFS, Office of 

Protected Resources. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Section 4(d) of the ESA provides that, 

whenever a species is listed as 

threatened, the Secretary of Commerce 

(Secretary) shall issue such regulations 

as the Secretary deems necessary and 

advisable to provide for the 

conservation of the species (16 U.S.C. 

1533(d)). Under section 4(d), the 

Secretary may by regulation extend to 

any threatened species any or all of the 

prohibitions in ESA section 9(a)(1), 

which apply automatically to fish or 

wildlife species listed as endangered (16 

U.S.C. 1538(a)(1)). Section 9(a)(1) makes 

it unlawful, with limited specified 

exceptions, for any person subject to the 

jurisdiction of the United States to: (A) 

Import any such species into, or export 

any such species from the United States; 

(B) take any such species within the 

United States or the territorial sea of the 

United States; (C) take any such species 

upon the high seas; (D) possess, sell, 

deliver, carry, transport, or ship, by any 

means whatsoever, any such species 

taken in violation of subparagraphs (B) 

and (C); (E) deliver, receive, carry, 

transport, or ship in interstate or foreign 

commerce, by any means whatsoever 

and in the course of a commercial 

activity, any such species; (F) sell or 

offer for sale in interstate or foreign 

commerce any such species; or (G) 

violate any regulation pertaining to such 

species or to any threatened species of 

fish or wildlife listed pursuant to 

section 4 of the ESA and promulgated 

by the Secretary pursuant to authority 

provided by the ESA. 

On January 20, 2016, we published a 

final rule listing Banggai cardinalfish as 

threatened under the ESA (81 FR 3023). 

The final listing rule provides a 

summary of our conclusions regarding 

the threats to the species, and the 2015 

status review summarized the scientific 

information that informed the listing 

decision. These documents are available 

on the NMFS website (see ADDRESSES). 

On March 29, 2021, we published a 

notice announcing the initiation of a 5- 

year review of the Banggai cardinalfish 

and requested information on the 

species, particularly information on the 

status, threats, and recovery of the 

species that has become available since 

its listing (86 FR 16326). On the basis 

of this review, as required under section 

4(c)(2)(B) of the ESA, we will determine 

whether the listing classification for this 

species remains accurate, or whether the 

species should be reclassified (from 

threatened to endangered) or delisted 

(16 U.S.C. 1533(c)(2)(B)). 

Information in the Petition 

On April 22, 2021, we received a 

petition from the Center for Biological 

Diversity, Animal Welfare Institute, and 

the Defenders of Wildlife requesting we 

promulgate a rulemaking under section 

4(d) of the ESA to provide for the 

conservation of the Banggai 

cardinalfish. The petition states that the 

Banggai cardinalfish are particularly 

vulnerable to extinction from collection 

for the aquarium trade, and that since 

the species’ listing in 2016, populations 

have continued to decline, with 

collection from the wild still occurring 

to supply the aquarium trade. The 

petition also alleges the ecosystem the 

Banggai cardinalfish depend on is 

becoming unsuitable due to loss of key 

microhabitat species (corals, sea 

urchins, and sea anemones), coral 

bleaching events, and climate change. 

The petition states that between the loss 

of habitat and ‘‘the decrease in the 

species’ population abundance and 

fitness resulting from decades of 

overexploitation, Banggai cardinalfish 

cannot withstand continued, high levels 

of take from the wild.’’ The petition 

concludes that an ESA section 4(d) rule 

is both ‘‘necessary and advisable’’ for 

the conservation of the species, and 

requests that we initiate rulemaking, 

specifically recommending we apply the 

prohibitions under ESA sections 

9(a)(1)(A) and 9(a)(1)(E) through 

9(a)(1)(G) (see Background) and require 

a threatened species permit for import 

or export of specimens, products, and 

live Banggai cardinalfish, including for 

introduced populations and captivebred fish unless accompanied by a preAct Certificate of Exemption (50 CFR 

222.201–222.205). The petition is 

available on the NMFS website (see 

ADDRESSES). 

Information Solicited 

NMFS will consider public comments 

and information received in evaluating 

the request by the petitioners (see DATES

and ADDRESSES). In addition to 

comments and information pertaining to 

any aspect of the petition, NMFS 


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41936 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 147 / Wednesday, August 4, 2021 / Proposed Rules 

specifically requests information 

regarding: 

• The adequacy of existing measures 

regulating collection and trade of the 

Banggai cardinalfish throughout its 

range; 

• Availability and efficacy of captivebred fish for aquaria trade both domestic 

and international; 

• Information on the collection/ 

harvest (including, but not limited to, 

number, location, mortality rate), and 

trade (import/export data, value, transit 

mortality rates) of wild fish for aquaria 

trade; and 

• Implementation and efficacy of 

Indonesia’s National Plan of Action 

(NPOA) (2017–2021) for Banggai 

cardinalfish and adequacy of 

enforcement of Banggai cardinalfish 

regulations. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16220 Filed 8–3–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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