[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 30 (Tuesday, February 14, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 8342-8343]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-3620]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018-AC99


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Extension of 
Comment Period on Proposed Endangered Status for Four Plants and 
Threatened Status for Six Plants From the Foothills of the Sierra 
Nevada Mountains of California

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) provides notice that 
the comment period on the proposed determination of endangered status 
for four plants and threatened status for six plants from the foothills 
of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California is extended. The species 
proposed for endangered status are Brodiaea pallida, Calyptridium 
pulchellum, Lupinus citrinus var. deflexus, and Mimulus shevockii, 
while the species proposed for threatened status are Allium 
tuolumnense, Carpenteria californica, Clarkia springvillensis, 
Fritillaria striata, Navarretia setiloba, and Verbena californica.

DATES: The comment period, which originally closed on December 5, 1994, 
and was reopened and extended to February 13, 1995, now closes on June 
4, 1995. Any comments received by the closing date will be considered 
in the final decision on this proposal.

ADDRESSES: Comments and materials should be submitted to the U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service, Sacramento Field Office, 2800 Cottage Way, E-
1803, Sacramento, California 95825-1846. Comments and materials 
received will be available for public inspection during normal business 
hours, by appointment, at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ken Fuller (see ADDRESSES section) or 
at 916/979-2120.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Allium tuolumnense (Rawhide Hill onion), Brodiaea pallida (Chinese 
Camp brodiaea), Calyptridium pulchellum (Mariposa pussypaws), 
Carpenteria californica (carpenteria), Clarkia springvillensis 
(Springville clarkia), Fritillaria striata (Greenhorn adobe lily), 
Lupinus citrinus var. deflexus (Mariposa lupine), Mimulus shevockii 
(Kelso Creek monkeyflower), Navarretia setiloba (Piute Mountains 
navarretia), and Verbena californica (Red Hills vervain) are plant 
species found in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of 
California. These ten plants are restricted to various substrate-
specific habitats in Fresno, Kern, Madera, Mariposa, Tulare, and 
Tuolumne Counties. These plants face ongoing threats from one or more 
of the following: urbanization, inadequate regulatory mechanisms, 
random stochastic events, off-highway vehicle use, logging, 
overgrazing, illegal dumping, alteration of natural fire regimes, 
maintenance of roads and rights-of-ways, insect predation, agricultural 
land conversion, mining, proposed highway projects, and competition 
from brush species and nonnative grass species.
    On October 4, 1994, the Service published a proposed rule to list 
Brodiaea pallida, Calyptridium pulchellum, Lupinus citrinus var. 
deflexus, and Mimulus shevockii as endangered, and list Allium 
tuolumnense, Carpenteria californica, Clarkia springvillensis, 
Fritillaria striata, Navarretia setiloba, and Verbena californica as 
threatened (59 FR 50540). The comment period on this proposal 
originally closed on December 5, 1994. [[Page 8343]] On December 29, 
1994, the Service reopened and extended the public comment period until 
February 13, 1995, to accommodate a public hearing held on January 31, 
1995, in Bakersfield, California (59 FR 67268). In response to a letter 
dated January 25, 1995, from Congressmen Richard Pombo and William M. 
Thomas of California requesting an extension in the public comment 
period until June and several other similar requests made in writing or 
given in testimony at the public hearing, the Service extends the 
comment period to allow for the collection of additional data during 
1995 field season on the status and distribution of the proposed 
plants. Written comments may now be submitted until June 4, 1995, to 
the Service in the ADDRESSES section.

Author

    The primary author of this notice is Jim A. Bartel, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Ecological Services, 911 N.E. 11th Avenue, Portland, 
Oregon 97232-4181.

Authority

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

    Dated: February 8, 1995.
Mollie H. Beattie,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 95-3620 Filed 2-13-95; 8:45 am]
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