70876 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 225 / Wednesday, November 23, 2005 / Notices 

Permit No. TE–114262 

Applicant: Stelle & Associates, Inc., 

Tulsa, Oklahoma. 

Applicant requests a new permit for 

research and recovery purposes to 

conduct presence/absence surveys for 

American burying beetle (Nicrophorus 

americanus) within Oklahoma. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531, et seq. 

Dated: November 4, 2005. 

Bryan Arroyo, 

Acting Regional Director, Region 2, 

Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

[FR Doc. 05–23160 Filed 11–22–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

Draft Post-Delisting Monitoring Plan 

for the Douglas County Distinct 

Population Segment of the Columbian 

White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus 

virginianus leucurus) 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of document availability 

for review and comment. 

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, announce the 

availability of the Draft Post-delisting 

Monitoring Plan for the Douglas County 

Distinct Population Segment of the 

Columbian White-tailed Deer 

(Odocoileus virginianus leucurus) 

(Monitoring Plan). The status of the 

Douglas County distinct population 

segment of the Columbian white-tailed 

deer will be monitored over a 5-year 

period through spring and fall 

population trend monitoring surveys, 

regular disease outbreak monitoring, 

and an annual habitat status review. We 

solicit review and comment on this 

Monitoring Plan from local, State and 

Federal agencies, and the public. 

DATES: We will accept and consider all 

public comments received on or before 

December 23, 2005. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Monitoring 

Plan are available by request from the 

State Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, Oregon Fish and Wildlife 

Office, 2600 SE. 98th Avenue, Suite 100, 

Portland, Oregon 97266 (telephone: 

503–231–6179; fax: 503–231–6195). 

This Monitoring Plan is also available 

on the World Wide Web at http:// 

www.fws.gov/oregonfwo/EndSpp/ESAActions/PDMonitorCWTDeer-05.htm. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cat 

Brown, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, at 

the above Portland address. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Douglas County distinct 

population segment of the Columbian 

white-tailed deer was removed from the 

Federal List of Threatened and 

Endangered Wildlife and Plants on July 

24, 2003 (68 FR 43647). We determined 

it was recovered due to robust 

population growth and amelioration of 

threats to its survival. Section 4(g)(1) of 

the Endangered Species Act (Act) (16 

U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) requires that we 

implement a system, in cooperation 

with the States, to monitor for no fewer 

than 5 years the status of all species that 

have recovered and no longer need the 

protection of the Act. 

The Columbian white-tailed deer is 

the westernmost representative of 30 

subspecies of white-tailed deer in North 

and Central America (Halls 1978; Baker 

1984). The subspecies was formerly 

distributed throughout the bottomlands 

and prairie woodlands of the lower 

Columbia, Willamette, and Umpqua 

River basins in Oregon and southern 

Washington (Bailey 1936; Verts and 

Carraway 1998). It currently exists in 

two distinct population segments, one 

in Douglas County, Oregon, and the 

other along the lower Columbia River in 

Oregon and Washington. The Columbia 

River distinct population segment 

remains listed as endangered. 

We propose to monitor the status of 

the Columbian white-tailed deer over a 

5-year period in cooperation with the 

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife 

and the Bureau of Land Management, 

through spring and fall population trend 

monitoring surveys, regular disease 

outbreak monitoring, and an annual 

habitat status review. We will compile 

annual reports, in cooperation with the 

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife 

and the Bureau of Land Management. If 

data from this monitoring effort, or some 

other source, indicate that the 

Columbian white-tailed deer is 

experiencing significant declines in 

abundance or distribution, or that it 

requires protective status under the Act 

for some other reason, we can initiate 

listing procedures including, if 

appropriate, emergency listing. 

In April 2004, we contacted three 

experts on the white-tailed deer, asking 

for scientific review of the draft 

Monitoring Plan. We received two 

responses to our request. We carefully 

considered the comments of the 

reviewers and used them to improve the 

Monitoring Plan. 

Public Comments Solicited 

We will accept written comments and 

information during this comment 

period. If you wish to comment, you 

may submit your comments and 

materials concerning this Monitoring 

Plan by any of these methods: 

1. You may submit written comments 

and information by mail, facsimile, or in 

person to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife 

Office at the above address (see 

ADDRESSES). 

2. You may send comments by 

electronic mail (e-mail) to: 

cwtdeerplan@fws.gov. If you submit 

comments by e-mail, please submit 

them as an ASCII file and avoid the use 

of special characters and any form of 

encryption. Please also include your 

name and return address in your e-mail 

message. 

Comments and materials received, as 

well as supporting documentation used 

in preparation of the Monitoring Plan, 

will be available for inspection, during 

normal business hours at the above 

Portland address (see ADDRESSES). 

References Cited 

Bailey, V. 1936. The mammals and life 

zones of Oregon. U.S. Government Printing 

Office, Washington, DC. 416 pp. 

Baker, R.H. 1984. Origin, classification and 

distribution. Pages 1–18 in: Halls, L. K., 

editor. White-tailed Deer: Ecology and 

Management. Stackpole Books, Harrisburg, 

Pennsylvania. 

Halls, L. K. 1978. White-tailed Deer. Pages 

43–65 in: Schmidt, J. L. and D. L. Gilbert, 

editors. Big Game of North America: Ecology 

and Management. Stackpole books, 

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. 

Verts, B. J. and L. N. Carraway. 1998. Land 

mammals of Oregon. University of California 

Press, Berkeley, California. 668 pp. 

Author 

The primary author of this document 

is Cat Brown, Oregon Fish and Wildlife 

Office (see ADDRESSES). 

Authority 

The authority for this action is the 

Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

Dated: October 24, 2005. 

David J. Wesley, 

Acting Regional Director, Region 1, U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service. 

[FR Doc. 05–23157 Filed 11–22–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P