Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 181 / Tuesday, September 20, 2005 / Notices 55157 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife 

and Plants; 5-Year Review of 14 

Southeastern Species 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service (Service) announces a 5-year 

review of the red wolf (Canis rufus), 

Appalachian elktoe (Alasmidonta 

raveneliana), Cumberland elktoe 

(Alasmidonta atropurpurea), 

Cumberland monkeyface (Quadrula 

intermedia), Cumberlandian combshell 

(Epioblasma brevidens), green blossom 

(Epioblasma torulosa gubernaculum), 

oyster mussel (Epioblasma 

capsaeformis), tubercled blossom 

(Epioblasma torulosa torulosa), turgid 

blossom (Epioblasma turgidula), yellow 

blossom (Epioblasma florentina 

florentina), painted snake coiled forest 

snail (Anguispira picta), dwarf-flowered 

heartleaf (Hexastylis naniflora), 

Schweinitz’s sunflower (Helianthus 

schweinitzii), and seabeach amaranth 

(Amaranthus pumilus) under section 

4(c)(2) of the Endangered Species Act of 

1973, as amended (Act). The purpose of 

reviews conducted under this section of 

the Act is to ensure that the 

classification of species as threatened or 

endangered on the List of Endangered 

and Threatened Wildlife and Plants (50 

CFR 17.11 and 17.12) is accurate. The 5- 

year review is an assessment of the best 

scientific and commercial data available 

at the time of the review. 

DATES: To allow us adequate time to 

conduct this review, information 

submitted for our consideration must be 

received on or before November 21, 

2005. However, we will continue to 

accept new information about any listed 

species at any time. 

ADDRESSES: Information submitted on 

the red wolf should be sent to the U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service, Alligator 

River National Wildlife Refuge, P.O. Box 

1969, Manteo, North Carolina 27954. 

Information submitted on the 

Appalachian elktoe, Cumberland 

monkeyface, dwarf-flowered heartleaf, 

Schweinitz’s sunflower, or the tubercled 

blossom should be sent to the Field 

Supervisor, Asheville Field Office, U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service, 160 Zillicoa 

Street, Asheville, North Carolina 28801. 

Information submitted on the 

Cumberland elktoe, Cumberlandian 

combshell, green blossom, oyster 

mussel, painted snake coiled forest 

snail, turgid blossom or the yellow 

blossom should be sent to the Field 

Supervisor, Cookeville Field Office, U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service, 446 Neal 

Street, Cookeville, Tennessee 38501. 

Information on the seabeach amaranth 

should be sent to the Field Supervisor, 

Raleigh Field Office, P. O. Box 33726, 

Raleigh, North Carolina 27636–3726. 

Information received in response to this 

notice of review will be available for 

public inspection by appointment, 

during normal business hours, at the 

same addresses. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Buddy Fazio, Alligator River National 

Wildlife Refuge, North Carolina, address 

above for the red wolf (telephone (252) 

473–1131), John Fridell at the Asheville, 

North Carolina address above for the 

Appalachian elktoe (telephone (828) 

258–3939), Robert Butler at the 

Asheville, North Carolina address above 

for the Cumberland monkeyface or the 

tubercled blossom (telephone (828) 258–

3939), Carolyn Wells at the Asheville, 

North Carolina address above for dwarfflowered heartleaf or Schweinitz’s 

sunflower (telephone (828) 258–3939), 

Tim Merritt at the Cookeville, 

Tennessee address above for the 

Cumberland elktoe, Cumberlandian 

combshell, green blossom, oyster 

mussel, painted snake coiled forest 

snail, turgid blossom or the yellow 

blossom (telephone (931) 528–6481), 

and Dale Suiter at the Raleigh, North 

Carolina address above for the seabeach 

amaranth (telephone (919) 856–4520). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the 

Act (16 U.S.C. 1533 et seq.), the Service 

maintains a list of endangered and 

threatened wildlife and plant species at 

50 CFR 17.11 (for wildlife) and 17.12 

(for plants) (collectively referred to as 

the List). Section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act 

requires that we conduct a review of 

listed species at least once every five 

years. On the basis of such review, 

under section 4(c)(2)(B), we determine 

whether or not species should be 

removed from the List (delisted), or 

reclassified from endangered to 

threatened or from threatened to 

endangered. Delisting a species must be 

supported by the best scientific and 

commercial data available and only 

considered if such data substantiate that 

the species is neither endangered nor 

threatened for one or more of the 

following reasons: (1) The species is 

considered extinct; (2) the species is 

considered to be recovered; and/or (3) 

the original data available when the 

species was listed, or the interpretation 

of such data, were in error. Any change 

in Federal classification would require a 

separate rulemaking process. The 

regulations at 50 CFR 424.21 require 

that we publish a notice in the Federal 

Register announcing those species 

currently under active review. This 

notice announces our active review of 

the following species that are currently 

federally listed as endangered: 

Appalachian elktoe, red wolf, 

Cumberland monkeyface, Cumberland 

elktoe, Cumberlandian combshell, green 

blossom, oyster mussel, tubercled 

blossom, turgid blossom, yellow 

blossom, and Schweinitz’s sunflower. 

This notice announces our active review 

of the following species that are 

currently federally listed as threatened: 

painted snake coiled forest snail, dwarfflowered heartleaf and seabeach 

amaranth. 

The List is found at 50 CFR 17.11 

(wildlife) and 17.12 (plants) and is also 

available on our Internet site at http:// 

endangered.fws.gov/ 

wildlife.html#Species. Amendments to 

the List through final rules are 

published in the Federal Register. 

What Information Is Considered in the 

Review? 

A 5-year review considers all new 

information available at the time of the 

review. A 5-year review will consider 

the best scientific and commercial data 

that have become available since the 

current listing determination or most 

recent status review of each species, 

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 (see five 

factors under heading ‘‘How do we 

determine whether a species is 

endangered or threatened?’’); 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. 

Specific Information Requested for the 

Green Blossom, Yellow Blossom, and 

Turgid Blossom 

Because collection of live or fresh 

dead individuals of all three species has 

not been reported for more than 20 

years, we are especially interested in 

obtaining evidence of extant 

populations. We specifically request 

information regarding recent surveys in 

the following streams: 

55158 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 181 / Tuesday, September 20, 2005 / Notices 

Virginia (green blossom): Clinch River, 

Powell River, North Fork Holston 

River, and North Fork Clinch River. 

Tennessee (green blossom): Clinch 

River, Powell River, Holston River, 

Nolichucky River, and North Fork 

Clinch River. 

Arkansas (turgid-blossom): Spring 

Creek, Black River, and White River. 

Missouri (turgid-blossom): White River. 

Alabama (turgid-blossom): Shoal Creek 

and Bear Creek. 

Tennessee (turgid-blossom): Tennessee 

River, Elk River, Duck River, Holston 

River, Clinch River, Emory River, and 

Cumberland River. 

Alabama (yellow-blossom): Flint River, 

Hurricane Creek, Limestone Creek, 

Bear Creek, and Cypress Creek. 

Tennessee (yellow-blossom): Tennessee 

River, Elk River, Duck River, Holston 

River, Little Tennessee River, Citico 

Creek, Clinch River, and Cumberland 

River. 

We also request information 

concerning changes in habitat 

conditions in the above-listed streams 

since the last reported collection of the 

green-blossom, yellow-blossom, and 

turgid-blossom. This information will 

enable us to determine whether or not 

populations of the species may still 

exist in one or more of those streams. 

Specific Information Requested for the 

Cumberland Elktoe, Cumberlandian 

Combshell, and Oyster Mussel 

We are especially interested in 

information on surviving populations of 

the Cumberland elktoe, Cumberlandian 

combshell and oyster mussel. We 

specifically request any recent 

information regarding the collection of 

live or fresh dead shells of these species, 

as well as information on their location, 

numbers, habitats and/or threats. 

Specific Information Requested for the 

Painted Snake Coiled Forest Snail 

We are especially interested in 

obtaining any data pertaining to 

previously known or newly discovered 

occurrences of the painted snake coiled 

forest snail or biological studies related 

to this species. We specifically request 

information regarding: potential threats 

arising from commercial, industrial, or 

residential development, timber 

harvesting, or other land use activities; 

conservation activities directed towards 

this species; and studies related to life 

history, genetics, and ecology of these 

animals, including sensitivity to seismic 

disturbance or limestone dust 

deposition that could result from 

quarrying operations. 

Specific Information Requested for the 

Seabeach Amaranth 

We are especially interested in 

information on population trends, 

distribution and genetics, as well as, the 

effects of beach nourishment projects on 

seabeach amaranth individuals, 

populations and habitat. 

Definitions Related to This Notice 

The following definitions are 

provided to assist those persons who 

contemplate submitting information 

regarding the species being reviewed: 

A. Species includes any species or 

subspecies of fish, wildlife, or plant, 

and any distinct population segment of 

any species of vertebrate which 

interbreeds when mature. 

B. Endangered means any species that 

is in danger of extinction throughout all 

or a significant portion of its range. 

C. Threatened means any species that 

is likely to become an endangered 

species within the foreseeable future 

throughout all or a significant portion of 

its range. 

How Do We Determine Whether a 

Species Is Endangered or Threatened? 

Section 4(a)(1) of the Act establishes 

that we determine whether a species is 

endangered or threatened based on one 

or more of the following five factors: 

A. The present or threatened 

destruction, modification, or 

curtailment of its habitat or range; 

B. Overutilization for commercial, 

recreational, scientific, or educational 

purposes; 

C. Disease or predation; 

D. The inadequacy of existing 

regulatory mechanisms; or 

E. Other natural or manmade factors 

affecting its continued existence. 

Section 4(a)(1) of the Act requires that 

our determination be made on the basis 

of the best scientific and commercial 

data available. 

What Could Happen as a Result of This 

Review? 

If we find that there is new 

information concerning any of these 14 

species indicating that a change in 

classification may be warranted, we may 

propose a new rule that could do one of 

the following: (a) Reclassify the species 

from endangered to threatened 

(downlist); (b) reclassify the species 

from threatened to endangered (uplist); 

or (c) delist the species. If we determine 

that a change in classification is not 

warranted, then these species will 

remain on the List under their current 

status. 

Public Solicitation of New Information 

We request any new information 

concerning the status of these 14 

species. See ‘‘What information is 

considered in the review?’’ heading for 

specific criteria. Information submitted 

should be supported by 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. Our practice is 

to make comments, including names 

and home addresses of respondents, 

available for public review. Individual 

respondents may request that we 

withhold their home addresses from the 

supporting record, which we will honor 

to the extent allowable by law. There 

also may be circumstances in which we 

may withhold from the supporting 

record a respondent’s identity, as 

allowable by law. If you wish us to 

withhold your name and/or address, 

you must state this prominently at the 

beginning of your comment. We will not 

consider anonymous comments, 

however. We will make all submissions 

from organizations or businesses, and 

from individuals identifying themselves 

as representatives or officials of 

organizations or businesses, available 

for public inspection in their entirety. 

Authority: This document is published 

under the authority of the Endangered 

Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

Dated: August 25, 2005. 

Jeffrey Fleming, 

Acting Regional Director, Southeast Region. 

[FR Doc. 05–18688 Filed 9–19–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

Notice of Availability of a Draft Safe 

Harbor Agreement and Receipt of an 

Application for an Enhancement of 

Survival Permit Associated With 

Proposed Restoration Activities for the 

Karner Blue Butterfly in the West Gary, 

Indiana Recovery Unit 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: The Nature Conservancy 

(Applicant) has applied to the U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service (Service) for an 

Enhancement of Survival Permit 

Associated with proposed restoration 

activities for the Karner blue butterfly 

(Lycaeides melissa samuelis) pursuant 

to section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered 

Species Act of 1973 (U.S.C. 1531 et 

seq.), as amended (Act). This permit