2638 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 6 / Tuesday, January 10, 1995 / Proposed Rules

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife

and Plants; 6-Month Extension and

Reopening of Comment Period on the

Proposed Rule to List the Sacramento

Splittail as Threatened

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of 6-month extension

and reopening of comment period on

proposed rule.

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service (Service) extends for not more

than 6 months the time to make a

decision on its proposal to list the

Sacramento splittail (Pogonichthys

macrolepidotus). On January 6, 1994,

the Service published a proposal to list

the Sacramento splittail as a threatened

species pursuant to the Endangered

Species Act, as amended (Act). The Act

requires the Service to make a final

determination on such a proposal

within 12 months, but provides for a 6-

month extension if substantial

disagreement exists regarding the

sufficiency or accuracy of the available

data relevant to that determination. The

Service finds that there is substantial

disagreement regarding sufficiency or

accuracy of the available data and,

therefore, extends the deadline with

respect to the decision to list the

species.

DATES: The deadline for final action on

the proposal is now July 6, 1995. The

public comment period is reopened for

45 days and comments must be received

by February 24, 1995.

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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.

Lesa Meng at the address listed above

(telephone (916) 979–2725 or facsimile

(916) 979–2723).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Sacramento splittail (Pogonichthys

macrolepidotus), the only extant species

in its genus, is a large cyprinid that can

exceed 40 centimeters (16 inches) in

length (Moyle 1976). Adults are

characterized by an elongated body,

distinct nuchal hump, and small, blunt

head, usually with barbels at the corners

of the subterminal mouth. The enlarged

dorsal lobe of the caudal fin

distinguishes the splittail from other

minnows in the Central Valley of

California. Splittail are dull, silvery-gold

on the sides and olive-gray dorsally.

During spawning season, pectoral,

pelvic, and caudal fins are tinged with

an orange-red color. Males develop

small white nuptial tubercles on the

head.

Splittail are endemic to California’s

Central Valley, where they were once

widely distributed (Moyle 1976).

Historically, splittail were found as far

north as Redding on the Sacramento

River, as far south as the present-day

site of Friant Dam on the San Joaquin

River, and as far upstream as the current

Oroville Dam site on the Feather River

and Folsom Dam site on the American

River (Rutter 1908). Recreational anglers

in Sacramento reported catches of 50 or

more splittail per day prior to damming

of these rivers (Caywood 1974). The

species was used as part of the Central

Valley Native American diet (Caywood

1974).

In recent times, dams and diversions

have increasingly prevented upstream

access to large rivers, and the species is

now apparently restricted to a small

portion of its former range (Moyle and

Yoshiyama 1992). Splittail enter the

lower reaches of the Feather (Jones and

Stokes 1993) and American Rivers

(Charles Hanson, State Water

Contractors, in litt., 1993) on occasion;

however, the species now is largely

confined to the Delta, Suisun Bay,

Suisun Marsh, and Napa Marsh. The

‘‘Delta’’ refers to all tidal waters

contained within the legal definition of

the San Francisco Bay-Sacramento-San

Joaquin River Delta, as delineated by

section 12220 of the State of California’s

Water Code of 1969. Generally, the Delta

is contained within a triangular area

that extends south from the City of

Sacramento to the confluence of the

Stanislaus and San Joaquin Rivers at the

southeast corner and Chipps Island in

Suisun Bay.

In recent years, splittail have been

found most often in slow moving

sections of rivers and sloughs and deadend sloughs (Moyle et al. 1982, Daniels

and Moyle 1983). Reports from the

1950s, however, mention Sacramento

River spawning migrations and catches

of splittail during fast tides in Suisun

Bay (Caywood 1974). California

Department of Fish and Game survey

data from the last 15 years indicate that

the highest catches occurred in shallow

areas of Suisun and Grizzly Bays.

Because they require flooded vegetation

for spawning and rearing, splittail are

frequently found in areas subject to

flooding. Historically, major flood

basins, distributed throughout the

Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys,

provided spawning and rearing habitat.

These flood basins have all be reclaimed

or modified into flood control structures

(bypasses). Although primarily a

freshwater species, splittail can tolerate

salinities as high as 10 to 18 parts per

thousand (Moyle 1976, Moyle and

Yoshiyama 1992).

Section 4(b)(6) of the Act requires the

Service to take one of three alternative

actions within 1 year of a listing

proposal: (1) Publish a final regulation

listing the species, (2) publish a notice

that the listing proposal is being

withdrawn, or (3) publish a notice that

the 1-year time period is being extended

under section 4(b)(6)(B)(i). That section

as implemented by regulation at 50 CFR

424.17(a)(1)(iv), provides that the

Service may extend the 1-year period for

not more than 6 months because there

is ‘‘substantial disagreement among

scientists knowledgeable about the

species concerned regarding the

sufficiency or accuracy of the available

data relevant to the determination.’’

On August 3 and 31, 1994, the State

Water Contractors and Central Valley

Project Water Association, respectively,

wrote the Service requesting a 6-month

extension alleging scientific

disagreement with the listing proposal.

Additionally, in a letter dated

September 8, 1994, from the Secretary of

the Resources Agency, the State

requested more time for the Service to

consider information developed for the

Biological Assessment for the Central

Valley Project/State Water Project

operations and for the California

Department of Fish and Game to

complete a survey of splittail

distribution and abundance. The survey

was conducted to determine whether a

resident splittail population occurred

outside the Suisun Bay-Delta region.

The State’s letter stated that completed

study results would be available to the

Service in January 1995.

The Service finds that there is

substantial disagreement regarding the

possibility of a resident splittail

population upstream of the Delta. Such

a population would significantly

expand the range of the splittail

reported in the proposed rule. As a

result, the Service extends until July 6,

1995, the period within which to make

a final listing determination on this

species. This extension will enable the

Service to receive and analyze the

State’s final study results scheduled for

release in January 1995. In addition, the

Service solicits additional data

regarding the status of the Sacramento

splittail upstream of the Delta until

February 24, 1995.
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 6 / Tuesday, January 10, 1995 / Proposed Rules 2639

References

Caywood, M.L. 1974. Contributions to

the life history of the splittail

Pogonichthys macrolepidotus (Ayres).

M.S. Thesis. California State

University, Sacramento.

Daniels, R.A., and P.B. Moyle. 1983. Life

history of the splittail (Cyprinidae:

Pogonichthys macrolepidotus) in the

Sacramento-San Joaquin estuary. Fish.

Bull. 84:105–117.

Jones and Stokes Assoc., Inc. 1993.

Sutter Bypass fisheries technical

memorandum II: Potential entrapment

of juvenile chinook salmon in the

proposed gravel mining pond. May

27, 1993. (JSA 91–272). Sacramento,

California. Prepared for Teichert

Aggregates, Sacramento, California. 31

pp + Appendix.

Moyle, P.B. 1976. Inland Fishes of

California. University of California

Press, Berkeley, California. 405 pp.

Moyle, P.B., J.J. Smith, R.A. Daniels, and

D.M. Baltz. 1982. Distribution and

ecology of stream fishes of the

Sacramento-San Joaquin Drainage

System, California: A review. Univ.

Calif. Publ. Zool. 115:225–256.

Moyle, P.B., and R.M. Yoshiyama. 1992.

Fishes, aquatic diversity management

areas, and endangered species: A plan

to protect California’s native aquatic

biota. Draft report prepared for

California Policy Seminar, Univ. of

Calif., Berkeley, California. July 1992.

196 pp.

Rutter, C. 1908. The fishes of the

Sacramento-San Joaquin basin, with a

study of their distribution and

variation. U.S. Bur. Fish. Bull.

27:103–152.

Authority

The authority for this action is the

Endangered Species Act of 1973, as

amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)

Dated: January 3, 1995.

Mollie H. Beattie,

Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 95–523 Filed 1–9–95; 8:45 am]

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