[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 94 (Tuesday, May 14, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24324-24325]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-11992]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Availability of Draft Recovery Plan for the Maui Plant Cluster 
for Review and Comment

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces the 
availability for public review of a draft Maui Plant Cluster Recovery 
Plan. This plan addresses 21 taxa of plants. Twelve of the taxa are or 
were endemic to the Hawaiian island of Maui. The plants that are not 
endemic to Maui are or were also found on the islands of Niihau, Kauai, 
Oahu, Molokai, Lanai and Hawaii.

DATES: Comments on the draft recovery plan must be received on or 
before July 15, 1996 to receive consideration by the Service.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft recovery plan are available for 
inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the 
following locations: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, room 6307, 300 Ala 
Moana Blvd., P.O. Box 50167, Honolulu, Hawaii 96850 [telephone (808) 
541-2749); U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Regional Office, Ecological 
Services, 911 N.E. 11th Ave., Eastside Federal Complex, Portland, 
Oregon 97232-4181 [telephone (503) 231-6131]; the Wailuku Public 
Library, 251 High Street, Wailuku, Maui 96793; the Kauai Public 
Library, 4344 Hardy Street, Lihue, Kauai 96766; and, the Kailua-Kona 
Public Library, 75-138 Hualalai Road, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii 96740. 
Requests for copies of the draft recovery plan and written comments and 
materials regarding this plan should be addressed to Brooks Harper, 
Field

[[Page 24325]]

Supervisor, at the above Honolulu address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Heather McSharry, Fish and Wildlife 
Biologist, at the above Honolulu address, telephone (808) 541-2749.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Restoring endangered or threatened animals and plants to the point 
where they are again secure, self-sustaining members of their 
ecosystems is a primary goal of the Service's endangered species 
program. To help guide the recovery effort, the Service is working to 
prepare recovery plans for most of the listed species native to the 
United States. Recovery plans describe actions considered necessary for 
the conservation of the species, establish criteria for the recovery 
levels for downlisting or delisting them, and estimate time and cost 
for implementing the recovery measures needed.
    The Endangered Species Act, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 
(Act), requires the development of recovery plans for listed species 
unless such a plan would not promote the conservation of a particular 
species. Section 4(f) of the Act as amended in 1988 requires that 
public notice and an opportunity for public review and comment be 
provided during recovery plan development. The Service will consider 
all information presented during the public comment period prior to 
approval of each new or revised Recovery Plan. Substantive technical 
comments will result in changes to the plans. Substantive comments 
regarding recovery plan implementation may not necessarily result in 
changes to the recovery plans, but will be forwarded to appropriate 
Federal or other entities so that they can take these comments into 
account during the course of implementing recovery actions. 
Individualized responses to comments will not be provided.
    The 21 taxa being considered in this recovery plan are: Acaena 
exigua (liliwai), Alectryon macrococcus (mahoe), Argyroxiphium 
sandwicense ssp. macrocephalum (Haleakala silversword, 'ahinahina), 
Bidens micrantha ssp. kalealaha (ko'oko'olau), Clermontia oblongifolia 
ssp. mauiensis ('oha wai), Cyanea lobata (haha), Cyanea mceldowneyi 
(haha), Geranium arboreum (nohoanu), Geranium multiflorum (nohoanu), 
Hedyotis coriacea (kio'ele), Huperzia mannii (wawae'iole), Lipochaeta 
kamolensis (nehe), Lysimachia lydgatei (no common name (NCN)), Melicope 
adscendens (alani), Melicope balloui (alani), Melicope mucronulata 
(alani), Melicope ovalis (alani), Remya mauiensis (NCN), Scaevola 
coriacea (Dwarf naupaka), Schiedea haleakalensis (NCN) and 
Tetramolopium capillare (NCN).
    Twelve of the taxa are or were endemic to the Hawaiian island of 
Maui; the exceptions are or were found on the Hawaiian islands of 
Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai and Hawaii as well as Maui. The 21 
plant taxa and their habitats have been variously affected or are 
currently threatened by one or more of the following: habitat 
degradation by feral and domestic animals (e.g., goats, pigs, axis deer 
and cattle); competition for space, light, water, and nutrients by 
introduced vegetation; erosion of substrate produced by human- or 
animal-caused disturbance; recreational and agricultural activities; 
habitat loss from fires; disease; loss of pollinators; and predation by 
animals (goats, rats and mice). Due to the small number of existing 
individuals and their very narrow distributions, these taxa are subject 
to an increased likelihood of extinction and/or reduced reproductive 
vigor from stochastic events.
    The taxa included in this plan were historically distributed 
throughout the island of Maui, and nine of the taxa also occur on one 
or more of the islands of Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai and 
Hawaii. They grow in a variety of vegetation communities (grassland, 
shrubland, and forests), elevational zones (coastal to montane), and 
moisture regimes (dry to wet). Most of the taxa included in this plan 
persist on steep slopes, precipitous cliffs, valley headwalls, and 
other regions where unsuitable topography has prevented agricultural 
development or where inaccessibility has limited encroachment by alien 
animal and plant taxa.
    The objective of this plan is to provide a framework for the 
recovery of these 21 taxa so that their protection by the Act is no 
longer necessary. Immediate actions necessary for the prevention of 
extinction of these taxa include fencing for exclusion of ungulates, 
alien plant control, protection from fire, population and plant 
community monitoring and management, ex situ propagation, and 
augmentation of populations, as appropriate. Long-term activities 
necessary for the perpetuation of these taxa in their natural habitats 
additionally include public education, maintenance of fenced areas, 
long-term monitoring and management of populations and communities, and 
reestablishment of populations within the historic ranges of some taxa. 
Further research on current range, growth requirements, reproduction 
and reproductive status, pollinators, life history, limiting factors, 
habitat requirements, and minimum viable population sizes is needed to 
facilitate appropriate management decisions regarding the long-term 
perpetuation of each of these taxa.

Public Comments Solicited

    The Service solicits written comments on the recovery plan 
described. All comments received by the date specified above will be 
considered prior to approval of these plans.

    Authority: The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the 
Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).

    Dated: May 8, 1996.
Thomas Dwyer,
Acting Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Region 1, 
Portland, Oregon.
[FR Doc. 96-11992 Filed 5-13-96; 8:45 am]
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