[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 134 (Thursday, July 14, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-17132]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: July 14, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018-AC19

 

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Proposed Rule to 
List Alaska Breeding Population of the Steller's Eider

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) proposes to list 
the Alaska breeding population of the Steller's eider (Polysticta 
stelleri) as threatened pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, 
as amended. Critical habitat is not being proposed at this time.

DATES: Comments from all interested parties relating to this proposal 
must be received by November 14, 1994. Public hearing requests relating 
to the proposed rule must be received by September 12, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Comments and materials concerning this proposal should be 
sent to the Fairbanks Ecological Services Field Office, Endangered 
Species, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1412 Airport Way, Fairbanks, 
Alaska 99701, telephone (907) 456-0427 or facsimile (907) 456-0346. 
Comments and materials received will be available for public 
inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the above 
address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Skip Ambrose, Endangered Species Specialist, at the above address 
(telephone 907/456-0427).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Petition Background

    On December 10, 1990, the Service received a petition from Mr. 
James G. King of Juneau, Alaska, dated December 1, 1990, to list the 
Steller's eider as endangered throughout its range and to designate 
critical habitat on the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge and the 
National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. Pursuant to Section 4(b)(3)(B) of 
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 
(Act), the Service determined on May 8, 1992, that listing the 
Steller's eider was warranted, but precluded by listing actions for 
higher priority species.
    The Service completed the 1993 annual status review on Steller's 
eiders in August 1993 (Quakenbush and Cochrane 1993) and concluded that 
current information does not support listing range-wide, but does 
support listing the Alaska breeding population. This conclusion was 
based on the following reasons: (1) The number of Steller's eiders that 
breed in Alaska has declined during the last few decades; (2) the 
species' nesting range in Alaska has constricted substantially; and (3) 
the remaining breeding population in northern Alaska may be vulnerable 
to extirpation.
    This proposal to list Steller's eiders that breed in Alaska is 
based on various documents, including published and unpublished 
studies, agency documents, and literature syntheses. Researchers, 
wildlife managers, and local residents familiar with the species were 
interviewed. This proposed rule constitutes the final finding for the 
petitioned action, in accordance with Section 4 of the Act.

Species Description

    The Steller's eider is the smallest of four eider species. It was 
first described by Pallas in 1769 as Anas stelleri and was subsequently 
grouped with the other eiders in the genus Somateria. Steller's eider 
is now recognized as a monotypic genus, Polysticta stelleri (American 
Ornithologist's Union 1983).
    The adult male Steller's eider has a white head with a greenish 
tuft and a small black eye patch, a black back, white shoulders, and a 
chestnut breast and belly with a black spot on the side. The Inupiat 
Eskimo name for this eider is Iginikkauktuk or ``the bird that sat in 
the campfire,'' referring to the burnt appearance of the brown breast 
and belly of the male. The Yup'ik Eskimo name is Anarnissaguq. Adult 
females and juveniles are mottled dark brown. Both adult sexes have a 
blue wing speculum with a white border.
    Steller's eiders are marine, diving ducks that feed primarily on 
mollusks and crustaceans by diving and dabbling in shallow water 
habitats (Petersen 1980). Principal foods of wintering Steller's eiders 
include the common blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) and the sand-hopper 
(Anisogammarus pugettensis) (Petersen 1980, Troy and Johnson 1987). 
During the breeding season, they feed on insects, primarily chironomid 
larvae, and plant materials in addition to crustaceans and mollusks 
(Cottam 1939, Quakenbush and Cochrane 1993). Steller's eiders nest on 
tundra, adjacent to shallow ponds or within drained lake basins (King 
and Dau 1981, Flint et al. 1984, Quakenbush and Cochrane 1993).
    The current breeding range of Steller's eiders includes the arctic 
coastal plain in northern Alaska, the arctic coast in Russia from the 
Chukotski Peninsula west to the Kheta River (American Ornithologist's 
Union 1983), and the western Siberian coast at Taimyr, Gaydan and Yamal 
peninsulas (Yesou and Lappo 1992). Most of the world's Steller's eiders 
winter along the Alaska Peninsula from the eastern Aleutian Islands to 
southern Cook Inlet in shallow, near-shore marine waters. Steller's 
eiders wander occasionally to the western Aleutian Islands and along 
the Pacific coast south to California (American Ornithologist's Union 
1983). Wintering areas are also known in Russia, the Baltic States and 
Scandinavia (Dement'ev and Gladkov 1967, Frantzen 1985, Petraitis 1991, 
Frantzen and Henricksen 1992).
    In Alaska, the breeding range of Steller's eiders formerly extended 
discontinuously from the eastern Aleutian Islands, the Alaska 
Peninsula, around the west and northern coasts of Alaska to the Yukon 
Territory border (Murie 1959, American Ornithologist's Union 1983; 
Kertell 1991). Historical breeding records exist from the 1800's for 
southwestern Alaska at Unalaska Island, the southern Alaska Peninsula, 
Seward Peninsula, and St. Lawrence Island (Gabrielson and Lincoln 1959, 
Fay and Cade 1959, Murie 1959, Kessel 1989). In Alaska, Steller's 
eiders now breed exclusively on the arctic coastal plain, migrate south 
in the fall, and probably molt along the Alaska coast from Nunivak 
Island to Cold Bay.

Species Status, World-wide

    In the 1960's, the world-wide population of Steller's eiders was 
estimated to be up to 400,000 by Palmer (1976) and 500,000 by Uspenski 
(1972 cited by Kertell 1991). Another estimate suggested that as many 
as 400,000 Steller's eiders wintered in Alaska alone (King and Dau 
1981). Recent estimates, however, indicate that as few as 150,000-
200,000 Steller's eiders currently remain range-wide. This recent 
estimate is based on a count of 138,000 individuals wintering in Alaska 
in 1992 (Bill Larned, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, pers. comm., in 
litt., 1992); Kistchinski's (1973) estimate of 15,000-20,000 wintering 
in eastern Russia in the early 1970's; and 10,000-20,000 that winter in 
Norway (Frantzen and Henricksen 1992).
    The decline of approximately 50 percent in the world-wide 
population is further supported by two long-term data sets from Alaska. 
Estimates of Steller's eiders on the Alaska Peninsula, based on numbers 
observed during fall emperor goose (Philacte canagica) surveys, have 
declined from approximately 200,000 in 1965 (Jones 1965) to a maximum 
count of about 126,000 between 1980 and 1991 (Rod King, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, pers. comm., in litt, 1993). Additional population 
trend data are available from Izembek Lagoon. Aerial waterfowl surveys 
at Izembek Lagoon from the period 1986-1990, when compared to surveys 
during the period 1975-1980, show a decline in the number of Steller's 
eiders seen of more than 50 percent (Kertell 1991).

Species Status, Western Alaska

    Steller's eiders were locally common breeders at several central 
Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta sites during biological surveys before the 1950's 
(Murie 1924, Conover 1926, Brandt 1943). Kessel et al. (1964), 
Johnsgard (1964), and Holmes and Black (1973) recorded no Steller's 
eiders at some of the same areas during subsequent surveys in the 
1950's and 1960's, indicating the population declined between the 
1920's and 1960's. Kertell (1991) estimated that 3,500 pairs may have 
nested on the Delta in the 1950's and early 1960's; however, the 
historical population may have been greater since the number of pairs 
apparently declined before 1950. No nests have been located on the 
Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta since 1975 despite extensive waterfowl research 
in suitable habitats (Kertell 1991).
    No Steller's eiders were seen in a 1992 aerial survey of suitable 
nesting habitat along the entire western Alaska coast, including former 
nesting range on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta and Seward Peninsula, and 
from Icy Cape to Barrow (Larned et al. 1993). In 1993, no Steller's 
eiders were observed during waterfowl surveys on the Seward Peninsula 
and along the coast north to Point Hope (Greg Balogh, U.S. Fish & 
Wildlife Service, pers. comm., 1993). Only two Steller's eiders have 
been seen during intensive waterfowl breeding pair surveys flown 
annually over the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta coast since 1988 (William 
Butler, Jr., U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, pers. comm., in litt., 
1993).

Species Status, Northern Alaska

    Accurate historical data are lacking for northern Alaska. 
Miscellaneous observations indicate that Steller's eiders nested in 
suitable habitats across the North Slope from Wainwright to Demarcation 
Point (Gabrielson and Lincoln 1959, Palmer 1976, Bellrose 1980, North 
1990, Kertell 1991). Native residents report that Steller's eiders were 
common breeders in the 1930's on the central North Slope at the 
Colville Delta and on the eastern North Slope at Camden Bay (P. 
Sovalik, cited by Myres 1958; Bill Patkotak, pers. comm., 1993). 
However, Anderson (cited by Bailey 1948) considered it ``a rare 
straggler east of Barrow.''
    Steller's eiders were observed during waterfowl surveys flown over 
the arctic coastal plain in 1986-93, but only in small numbers and all 
were seen west of the Colville River (Brackney and King 1993; Rod King, 
pers. comm., 1993). Aerial surveys for eiders were flown over the 
arctic coastal plain in 1992 and 1993 but very few Steller's eiders 
were seen (Larned et al. 1993; Bill Larned, pers. comm., 1993). A 
female Steller's eider with young was seen along the Colville River in 
1987 (unpublished Service data) and several adults were seen in the 
Prudhoe Bay area in the 1980's and in 1993 (Declan Troy, Troy 
Ecological Research Assoc., pers. comm., 1993), indicating that birds 
still visit these areas.
    Recent Steller's eider population size estimates for the North 
Slope are based on a few sightings during aerial waterfowl breeding 
pair surveys. No Steller's eiders were observed in 1986-88 (Brackney 
and King 1993). Population estimates ranged from about 2,000 to 7,000 
individuals from 1989-1992 (Brackney and King 1993). Due to large 
standard error in the visibility correction factor for Steller's 
eiders, the confidence intervals for these estimates are very wide (Rod 
King, pers. comm., 1993). As a result, these estimates are very 
imprecise.

Summary of Factors Affecting the Species

    Section 4(a)(1) of the Act and regulations (50 CFR Part 424) 
promulgated to implement the listing provisions of the Act set forth 
the procedures for adding species to the Federal Lists. A species may 
be determined to be an endangered or threatened species due to one or 
more of the five factors described in Section 4(a)(1). These factors 
and their application to the Steller's eider (Polysticta stelleri) 
Alaska breeding population are as follows:

A. Present or Threatened Destruction, Modification, or Curtailment of 
Its Habitat or Range

    Much of the former Steller's eider breeding range in western Alaska 
is within the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge and is protected 
from major development. However, some of the former breeding range is 
on Alaskan Native land where protection is limited. The current 
breeding range in northern Alaska is largely contained within the 
National Petroleum Reserve--Alaska (NPR-A), which was set aside for oil 
and gas resource development. The coastal area in NPR-A may be leased 
for oil development, and leasing and development of other coastal areas 
is likely. Potential impacts of oil and gas exploration and development 
on nesting Steller's eiders are not known.
    The only known regularly occupied nesting area of Steller's eiders 
in Alaska is near Barrow, the largest Native village in Alaska. The 
human population of Barrow increased 58 percent in 10 years, from 2267 
in 1980 to 3469 in 1990 (Harcharek 1992), and village expansion is 
likely in the near future. Housing developments, gas field access and 
development, and conveyance of land from the Ukpeagvik Inupiat 
Corporation to shareholders could lead to nesting habitat loss and 
disturbance to nesting birds.
    Wintering habitat is largely undisturbed and substantial portions 
are protected from development within National Wildlife Refuges, State 
Game Refuges, or State Critical Habitat Areas. In winter, Steller's 
eiders concentrate in sheltered bays and lagoons. These shallow and 
biologically productive waters are vulnerable to oil spills and other 
pollution from vessels. Steller's eiders often feed in large, dense 
rafts that dive and surface simultaneously. Therefore, an oil spill 
could adversely affect a large portion of the world's Steller's eider 
population. Marine traffic through the Aleutian Islands and along the 
Alaska Peninsula coast could result in pollution from bilge waste 
pumping and vessel groundings. Wintering birds may also be disturbed by 
commercial and recreational boats traveling through protected lagoons 
near the Alaska Peninsula, Kodiak or Cook Inlet communities.

B. Overutilization for Commercial, Recreational, Scientific, or 
Educational Purposes

    Due to small numbers taken, overutilization is unlikely to have 
caused the decline of Alaska Steller's eiders or their extirpation from 
the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. In the past, some Steller's eider eggs were 
collected in Alaska for avicultural exhibition and trade. Although the 
Service has received requests for avicultural collecting of Steller's 
eiders, no permits have been issued since 1987 (James Sheridan, U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service, pers. comm., 1993).
    A few dozen Steller's eiders were taken annually before 1991 by 
collectors or incidental to other sport waterfowl hunting on the Alaska 
Peninsula and Kodiak and Nunivak islands (Robin West, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, pers. comm., 1991). The sport hunting season was 
closed in 1991. An undetermined number were taken illegally on Kodiak 
Island for the taxidermy trade in 1991 (Stephen Tuttle, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, pers. comm., 1991).

C. Disease or Predation

    Disease is not known to be affecting the population at present, but 
small, restricted population size increases the risk that future 
disease outbreaks could decimate the nesting population.
    Natural predators of Steller's eiders in Alaska include raptors, 
gulls, jaegers, ravens, and foxes. These predators have not been shown 
to significantly affect Steller's eiders at the population level. 
However, arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) may have contributed to the 
extirpation of Steller's eiders on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. During 
the 1960's, major goose populations decreased substantially in this 
area and foxes may have switched to alternative summer food supplies 
including Steller's eiders (Kertell 1991).
    Some predators may be increasing in number as a result of human 
habitation and development. Predators and scavengers such as foxes, 
gulls, and ravens have increased in number due to the availability of 
refuse and handouts (Paul O'Neil, Animal and Plant Health Inspection 
Service, Animal Damage Control, pers. comm., 1993). These animals are 
effective predators of eider eggs, young, and adults. Increased 
predation is likely to be exaggerated near communities where refuse is 
available and could significantly affect eiders in these areas.

D. The Inadequacy of Existing Regulatory Mechanisms

    Steller's eider hunting is regulated under authority of the 
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 U.S.C. 703-711). The U.S. sport hunting 
season on Steller's eiders has been closed since 1991 as a result of 
depressed population numbers. Historically, Alaskan Natives hunted 
Steller's eiders and their eggs for food, but in far fewer numbers than 
the three, larger Somateria eider species (Klein 1966, Nelson 1969, 
Johnson 1971). Steller's eiders are not a preferred species for 
subsistence hunting (Quakenbush and Cochrane 1993). In recent years, a 
few Steller's eiders were reported taken for subsistence at various 
villages (Braund et al. 1989; Wentworth 1993; James Sheridan, pers. 
comm., 1993). Many villages along the Steller's eider migration route 
have not been surveyed, therefore, the total annual subsistence harvest 
is unknown (Cynthia Wentworth, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, pers. 
comm., 1993). Because of their far greater abundance along migration 
routes, most subsistence take is probably of Steller's eiders that nest 
in Russia.
    Spring and summer subsistence hunting of eiders in Alaska is 
currently in violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which 
prohibits hunting for most migratory birds between March 10 and 
September 1. The Service recognizes, however, that residents of certain 
rural areas in Alaska depend on waterfowl as a customary and 
traditional source of food.
    While not an important subsistence species, Steller's eiders are 
occasionally killed incidental to hunting of more important subsistence 
waterfowl species. Although apparently limited, this take may threaten 
the small breeding segment near Barrow.
    The Service has initiated an information and education program to 
gain support in Native villages for protection of Steller's eider and 
spectacled eiders (Somateria spectabilis).

E. Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting its Continued Existence

    Some natural or manmade factor(s), currently unknown, is causing a 
decline in the number of Steller's eiders and a contraction of their 
breeding range in Alaska.
    Interspecific competition on the wintering range may be affecting 
Steller's eiders. Nearshore benthic communities have been restructured 
by feeding pressure from increasing sea otter (Enhydra lutris) 
populations (Kvitek et al. 1992), with documented effects on local 
populations of common eiders (Somateria mollissima) and scoters 
(Melanitta sp.) in the Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands (David 
Irons, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, pers. comm., 1991).

Summary

    Steller's eiders may have historically numbered 400,000-500,000 
individuals world-wide (Palmer 1976, Uspenski 1972 cited by Kertell 
1991). Current estimates are 150,000 to 200,000, and most of these 
birds nest in Russia and winter in Alaska. In North America, Steller's 
eiders no longer nest in historical breeding range on the Yukon-
Kuskokwim Delta or in other western Alaska habitats or the eastern 
North Slope. Current Alaska nesting range is small and restricted to 
northern Alaska. Causes for the decline world-wide and the reduction in 
the Alaskan breeding population are not known.
    Steller's eiders that nest on Alaska's North Slope are the only 
breeding population in North America and the only breeding population 
within United States jurisdiction. Environmental conditions in the 
arctic are severe and variable. Low numbers and restricted breeding 
range place populations at risk from natural and human-induced factors 
(Kertell 1991). Major storms, predation or disturbance could severely 
deplete Steller's eiders numbers on the North Slope and precipitate 
extirpation of this remnant population.
    The Service has carefully assessed the best scientific and 
commercial information available regarding the past, present, and 
future threats faced by this species in determining to propose this 
rule. Based on this evaluation, the preferred action is to list the 
Steller's eider Alaska breeding population as threatened. The small, 
reduced population that nests within a restricted range on the 
northwestern North Slope warrants threatened status. While probably not 
in immediate danger of extinction, Steller's eiders that breed in 
Alaska could become endangered in the foreseeable future if the 
population declines further.

Critical Habitat

    Section 4(a)(3) of the Act, as amended, requires that, to the 
maximum extent prudent and determinable, the Secretary proposes 
critical habitat at the time a species is proposed to be listed as 
endangered or threatened. The prudence of designation is decided on the 
basis of net conservation benefit to the species concerned.
    Regulations at 50 CFR 424.22(a)(2) specify that designation of 
critical habitat is not prudent when such designation would not be 
beneficial to the species. Since habitat requirements for recovery and 
threats to the Steller's eider have not been identified, designation of 
current or former Steller's eider breeding and wintering grounds as 
critical habitat would not likely alleviate threats affecting the 
decline of the species and could actually impair recovery efforts by 
implying in a misleading way that threats are centered on breeding and/
or wintering habitat. Any designation of former breeding habitat would 
also be subject to great uncertainty concerning its historical 
contribution to maintenance of the population or its possible role in 
restoration. Conservation efforts for the species would address a wide 
variety of federally funded or authorized activities (summarized in the 
Available Conservation Measures section of this proposed rule) that 
affect the quality of habitat available to the species.
    The Service therefore finds that designation of critical habitat 
for the Steller's eider would not be prudent at this time because it 
would not provide a net conservation benefit to the species. However, 
if new information indicates that designation of critical habitat may 
be prudent, the Service will consider proposing critical habitat at 
that time.

Available Conservation Measures

    Conservation measures provided for species listed as endangered or 
threatened under the Endangered Species Act include recognition, 
recovery actions, requirements for Federal protection, and prohibitions 
against certain practices. Recognition through listing encourages and 
results in conservation actions by Federal, State and local governments 
and private organizations, groups and individuals. The Act provides for 
possible land acquisition and cooperation with the States and requires 
that recovery actions be carried out for all listed species. Such 
actions are initiated by the Service following listing. The protection 
required of Federal agencies and the prohibitions against taking and 
harm are discussed, in part, below.
    Section 7(a) of the Act, as amended, requires Federal agencies to 
evaluate their actions with respect to any species that is proposed or 
listed as endangered or threatened, and with respect to its designated 
critical habitat. Regulations implementing this interagency cooperation 
provision of the Act are codified at 50 CFR Part 402. Section 7(a)(4) 
of the Act requires Federal agencies to confer informally with the 
Service on any action that is likely to jeopardize the continued 
existence of a proposed species or result in destruction or adverse 
modification of proposed critical habitat. Section 7(a)(2) requires 
Federal agencies to ensure that activities they authorize, fund, or 
carry out are not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of such 
a species or to destroy or adversely modify its critical habitat. If an 
action may affect a listed species or its critical habitat, the 
responsible Federal agency must enter into formal consultation with the 
Service.
    The Service anticipates consultation with the U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers and the U.S. Department of Transportation to avoid impacts to 
Steller's eiders from wetland fill permitting and other activities on 
the North Slope. Consultations to identify potential effects on 
Steller's eiders are also expected with the U.S. Bureau of Land 
Management for NPR-A lands issues, the Minerals Management Service for 
outer continental shelf oil and gas lease sales, and National Marine 
Fisheries Service for commercial fishing regulations. Reasonable and 
prudent alternatives may be implemented for Federally-funded or 
permitted projects to avoid causing jeopardy to the Alaska breeding 
population of Steller's eiders.
    The Service will convene a recovery team and develop a recovery 
plan for the Steller's eider promptly upon listing. An information and 
education program to gain public support for the protection of 
Steller's eiders has already been initiated and will be carried out 
cooperatively with affected communities. The recovery plan will 
establish recovery goals and set recovery task priorities.
    The Act and implementing regulations found at 50 CFR 17.21 and 
17.31 set forth a series of general prohibitions and exceptions that 
apply to all threatened wildlife. These prohibitions, in part, make it 
illegal for any person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States 
to take (includes harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, 
capture, collect, or to attempt any of these), import or export, ship 
in interstate commerce in the course of commercial activity, or sell or 
offer for sale in interstate or foreign commerce any listed species. It 
also illegal to possess, sell, deliver, carry, transport, or ship any 
such wildlife that has been taken illegally. Certain exceptions apply 
to agents of the Service and State conservation agencies.
    Section 10(e) of the Act exempts any Indian, Aleut, or Eskimo who 
is an Alaskan Native who resides in Alaska, or any non-native permanent 
resident of an Alaskan Native village, from the aforementioned 
prohibitions on taking any endangered or threatened species if such 
taking is primarily for subsistence purposes. Non-edible by-products of 
species taken pursuant to section 10(e) may be sold in interstate 
commerce when made into authentic native articles of handicrafts and 
clothing; except that provisions of this subsection shall not apply to 
any non-native resident of an Alaskan Native village found by the 
Secretary to be not primarily dependent upon the taking of fish and 
wildlife for consumption or for the creation and sale of authentic 
native articles of handicrafts and clothing.
    Regulations prohibiting or limiting subsistence harvest by any 
Indian, Aleut, Eskimo, or non-native permanent resident of an Alaskan 
Native village may be established pursuant to section 10(e)(4) of the 
Act if the Secretary determines that such taking materially and 
negatively affects the threatened or endangered species and holds 
hearings on the proposed harvest regulations in the affected judicial 
districts of Alaska. The Service is not currently promulgating special 
regulations for Steller's eiders under section 10(e)(4) of the Act, but 
may do so if appropriate.
    Permits may be issued to carry out otherwise prohibited activities 
involving threatened wildlife species under certain circumstances. 
Regulations governing permits are in 50 CFR 17.22, 17.23, and 17.32. 
Such permits are available for scientific purposes, to enhance the 
propagation or survival of the species, and/or for incidental take in 
connection with otherwise lawful activities. For threatened species, 
permits are also available for zoological exhibition, educational 
purposes, or special purposes consistent with the purposes of the Act. 
In some instances, permits may be issued for a specified time to 
relieve undue economic hardship that would be suffered if such relief 
were not available. Such permit applications are not expected, however, 
since the Steller's eider is not presently in commercial trade in the 
United States. For the same reason, the Service does not anticipate 
requesting that the Steller's eider be included under the Convention on 
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora 
(CITES).

Public Comments Solicited

    The Service intends that any final action resulting from this 
proposal will be as accurate and as effective as possible. Therefore, 
comments or suggestions from the public, other concerned governmental 
agencies, the scientific community, industry, or any other interested 
party concerning this proposed rule are hereby solicited. Comments are 
particularly sought concerning:
    (1) Biological, commercial trade, or other relevant data concerning 
any threat (or lack thereof) to this species;
    (2) The location of any additional breeding populations of this 
species and the reasons why any habitat should or should not be 
determined to be critical habitat as provided by Section 4 of the Act;
    (3) Additional information concerning the range, distribution, and 
population size of this species; and
    (4) Current or planned activities in the subject area and their 
possible impacts on this species.
    Final promulgation of the regulation on this species will take into 
consideration the comments and any additional information received by 
the Service, and such communications may lead to a final regulation 
that differs from this proposal.
    The Act provides for one or more public hearings on this proposal, 
if requested. Requests must be received within 60 days of the date of 
publication of this proposal. Such requests must be made in writing 
(includes facsimile) and addressed to Skip Ambrose (see ADDRESSES 
section).

National Environmental Policy Act

    The Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that an Environmental 
Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement, as defined under 
authority of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, need not be 
prepared in connection with regulations adopted pursuant to Section 
4(a) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. A notice 
outlining the Service's reasons for this determination was published in 
the Federal Register on October 25, 1983 (48 FR 49244).

References Cited

    A complete list of all the references cited herein, as well as 
others, is available upon request from the Fairbanks Ecological 
Services Field Office (see ADDRESSES section).

Authors

    The primary authors of this notice are Skip Ambrose, Janey Fadely, 
Ted Swem, and Lori Quakenbush (see ADDRESSES section), and Jean Fitts 
Cochrane, Anchorage Ecological Services, 605 West 4th Avenue, 
Anchorage, Alaska, 99501 (907) 271-2778.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 17

    Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, and Transportation.

Proposed Regulation Promulgation

PART 17--[AMENDED]

    Accordingly, the Service hereby proposes to amend part 17, 
subchapter B of chapter I, title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations, 
as set forth below:
    1. The authority citation for part 17 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1361-1407; 16 U.S.C. 1531-1544; 16 U.S.C. 
4201-4245; Pub. L. 99-625, 100 Stat. 3500, unless otherwise noted.

    2. Section 17.11(h) is amended by adding the following, in 
alphabetical order under Birds, to the listing of Endangered and 
Threatened Wildlife:


Sec. 17.11  Endangered and threatened wildlife.

* * * * *
    (h) * * *

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Species                                              Vertebrate population                                                          
-----------------------------------------------     Historic range        where endangered or           Status             When      Critical   Special 
      Common name           Scientific name                                   threatened                                  listed     habitat     rules  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                                                        
                                                                      * * * * * * *                                                                     
         Birds                                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                        
                                                                      * * * * * * *                                                                     
Eider, Steller's......  Polysticta stelleri...  U.S.A. (AK), Russia...  U.S.A. (AK breeding     T.....................  ..........         NA         NA
                                                                         population only).                                                              
                                                                                                                                                        
                                                                      * * * * * * *                                                                     
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Dated: July 5, 1994.
Mollie H. Beattie,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 94-17132 Filed 7-13-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P