[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 162 (Tuesday, August 23, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-20596]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: August 23, 1994]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
RIN 1018-AC42
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Proposed
Endangered Status for Lesquerella Perforata (Spring Creek Bladderpod)
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Service proposes to determine endangered status for Spring
Creek bladderpod pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (Act) of 1973,
as amended. This rare plant is presently known from only a limited area
within Tennessee's Central Basin. It is threatened by habitat
alteration; residential, commercial, or industrial development;
livestock-grazing; conversion of its limited habitat to pasture; and
habitat encroachment by woody vegetation and herbaceous perennials.
This proposal, if made final, would extend the protection and recovery
provisions of the Act to Spring Creek bladderpod.
DATES: Comments from all interested parties must be received by October
24, 1994. Public hearing requests must be received by October 7, 1994.
ADDRESSES: Comments, materials, and requests for a public hearing
concerning this proposal should be sent to the Field Supervisor,
Asheville Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 330 Ridgefield
Court, Asheville, North Carolina 28806. Comments and materials received
will be available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal
business hours at the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert R. Currie at the above
address (704/665-1195, Ext. 224).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Lesquerella perforata (Spring Creek bladderpod), described by R. C.
Rollins (Rollins 1952), occurs within a small area in Wilson County in
the vicinity of Lebanon, Tennessee. This winter annual is 2 to 4
decimeters (8 to 16 inches) tall. Its auriculate leaves are oblong to
ovate in shape. The flowers have petals that are 7 to 10 millimeters
(0.3 to 0.4 inches) long and are white to lavender in color. It has a
broadly ovoid-shaped fruit that is hairless on the outside and densely
pubescent on the inside. An internal partition between the two halves
of the fruit is ``perforated'' or missing.
Lesquerella perforata is a winter annual that germinates in early
fall, over-winters as small rosettes of leaves, and flowers the
following spring. Flowering usually occurs in March and April. Soon
after the flowers wither, the fruit matures and the plants die. The
fruits split open and the enclosed seeds fall to the ground and lie
dormant until the fall, when the cycle starts over again. If conditions
are not suitable for germination the following fall, the seeds can
remain dormant (but viable) for several years (Kral 1983, Rollins 1952,
Rollins 1955, Baskin and Baskin 1990).
This species is typically found growing on floodplains. It requires
annual disturbance in order to complete its life cycle. Historically,
this disturbance was probably provided by periodic flooding of the
streams along which it occurs. This flooding is thought to have removed
the perennial grasses and woody plants that quickly invade the
floodplains without regular natural or artificial disturbance.
Cultivation of annual crops, such as corn, provides an excellent means
of artificially maintaining the habitat, provided there is no fall
plowing, and herbicide use is limited. No-till farming techniques are
believed to adversely affect the species because of the extensive use
of herbicides required to successfully implement the technique. Row-
crop cultivation, which avoids the use of fall plowing and delays
spring plowing until the majority of the plants have set fruit, does
not seem to adversely affect the species (Somers et al. 1993; Shea et
al. 1993; Somers, Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species
Program, personal communication, 1992).
Lesquerella perforata is known from four populations consisting of
13 extant sites in Wilson County, Tennessee. Three additional sites no
longer support the species. One of the extant populations occurs along
Spring Creek and consists of five groups of plants. Another, consisting
of four groups of plants, is found along Lower Bartons Creek. Two sites
are located farther upstream and are designated the Middle Bartons
Creek population. The fourth population consists of two sites and is
located along a tributary of Bartons Creek. All of the known sites for
the species are found within a few miles of each other; with only one
exception, sites are within the floodplains of Spring and Bartons
Creeks or within the floodplain of a Bartons Creek tributary. The only
nonfloodplain location is within a glade-like area slightly above the
floodplain of Spring Creek (Somers et al. 1993). All of the known sites
supporting L. perforata are privately owned, and none are protected
through cooperative management agreements with the State or the
Service.
The following site specific information is from Somers et al.
(1993).
Spring Creek Population: Site 1 is the largest known site for the
species and is also the L. perforata type locality. In 1992 the site
supported over 100,000 individuals. Although this is a significant
population, plants were much denser, and the area supporting them was
larger, in 1980. Site 2 is a field that supported about 500 plants in
1992. Site 3 supported 25,000 to 50,000 plants in 1992. Site 4 is a
small area, about 90 feet long and 43 feet wide, supporting between
1,000 and 5,000 in 1992. Site 5 is the only non-floodplain site for the
species and was discovered during the 1992 field work to update the
status of L. perforata. The area is a triangular-shaped glade that is
about 150 feet long and about 100 feet wide at its widest point. The
site was estimated to support between 500 and 1,000 plants in 1992.
Lower Bartons Creek Population: Site 6 is a small site that
supported about 1,000 plants in 1992. Site 7 is a small site that
supported two small clumps (30 feet by 5 feet) of the species in 1992.
Site 8 is a small site that supported only a few plants in 1992. Site 9
is a medium-sized site that supported about 10,000 plants in 1992.
Middle Bartons Creek Population: Site 10 is a small tract in an
industrialized area near Lebanon that supported about 600 plants in
1992. Site 11 is near Site 10 but supports a larger colony of about
5,000 plants.
Bartons Creek Tributary Population: Site 12 is located along 1,000
feet of the floodplain of an ephemeral tributary of Bartons Creek. In
1992 it supported about 450 plants. Site 13 is a small area located
near Site 12; it contains only a few individuals. In 1992 the area was
overgrown with dense herbaceous growth.
Federal government actions on this species began with section 12 of
the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), which
directed the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution to prepare a
report on those plants considered to be endangered, threatened, or
extinct. This report, designated as House Document No. 94-51, was
presented to Congress on January 9, 1975. On July 1, 1975, the Service
published a notice (40 FR 27823) that formally accepted the Smithsonian
report as a petition within the context of section 4(c)(2) (now section
4(b)(3)) of the Act. By accepting this report as a petition, the
Service also acknowledged its intention to review the status of those
plant taxa named within the report. Lesquerella perforata was included
in the Smithsonian report and the July 1, 1975, notice of review. On
June 16, 1976, the Service published a proposed rule (41 FR 24523) to
determine approximately 1,700 vascular plant taxa to be endangered
species pursuant to Section 4 of the Act; L. perforata was included in
this proposal.
The 1978 amendments to the Act required that all proposals over 2
years old be withdrawn. On December 10, 1979 (44 FR 70796), the Service
published a notice withdrawing plants proposed on June 16, 1976.
Lesquerella perforata was included as a category 1 species in the
revised notice of review for native plants published on December 15,
1980 (45 FR 82480). Category 1 species are those for which the Service
has information that indicates that proposing to list them as
endangered or threatened is appropriate. This species was maintained in
category 1 when the notice of review for native plants was revised in
1983 (48 FR 53640) and again in 1985 (50 FR 39526), 1990 (55 FR 6184),
and 1993 (58 FR 51144).
The Service funded a survey in 1992 to update the status
information on L. perforata. A final report was received in February
1993. During the 1992 and 1993 field seasons, personnel with the
Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation conducted
extensive inventories of all the known and potential sites for this
species.
All plants included in the comprehensive plant notices are treated
as under petition. Section 4(b)(3)(B) of the Act, as amended in 1982,
requires the Secretary to make certain findings on pending petitions
within 12 months of their receipt. Section 2(b)(1) of the 1982
amendments further requires that all petitions pending on October 13,
1982, be treated as having been newly submitted on that date. This was
the case for L. perforata because of the acceptance of the 1975
Smithsonian report as a petition. Each year between 1983 and 1993 the
Service found that the petitioned listing of this species was warranted
but precluded by other listing actions of a higher priority and that
additional data on vulnerability and threats were still being gathered.
Publication of this proposal constitutes the final 1-year finding.
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 Lesquerella perforata Rollins (Spring Creek
bladderpod) are as follows:
A. The present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment
of its habitat or range
Most of the known locations for this species are threatened by the
encroachment of more competitive herbaceous vegetation and/or woody
plants. Active management is required to ensure that the species
continues to survive at all sites. Direct destruction of habitat for
commercial, residential, or industrial development is the most
significant threat to the species at this time. Lesquerella perforata
is threatened by the loss of habitat through conversion of land to uses
other than cultivation of annual crops. Historically, its habitat was
maintained by natural events, such as flooding. Annual crop production
is apparently the primary mechanism by which essential habitat is now
maintained. Residential, business, or industrial construction removes
the species' preferred habitat directly or creates an environment where
succession is allowed to proceed or more competitive plant species are
intentionally established or are allowed to invade the area. Conversion
of sites to pasture or other uses that maintain a perennial cover crop
are a significant threat. In order for this annual plant to complete
its life cycle each year, it is essential that the sites not be plowed
or disked after the seeds have germinated in the fall and that spring
plowing and planting be delayed until the plants have matured in the
spring. This requirement is easily met through the production of crops
such as corn, provided that traditional cultivation methods are used.
Use of no-till cultivation techniques does not appear to maintain the
species' habitat. This is probably because of the lack of physical
disturbance of the soil and the dependence upon herbicides that
characterize the technique (Shea et al. 1993, Somers et al. 1993).
B. Overutilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or
educational purposes
There is little or no commercial trade in Lesquerella perforata at
this time. Most populations are very small and cannot support the
collection of plants for scientific or other purposes. Inappropriate
collecting for scientific purposes or as a novelty is a threat to the
species.
C. Disease or predation
Disease and predation are not known to be factors affecting the
continued existence of this species at this time.
D. The Inadequacy of Existing Regulatory Mechanisms
Lesquerella perforata is listed as an endangered plant in Tennessee
under that State's Rare Plant Protection and Conservation Act. This law
regulates the sale of endangered plants and prohibits anyone from
knowingly taking an endangered plant without the permission of the
landowner or land manager.
Should this species be added to the Federal list of endangered and
threatened plants, additional protection from taking will be provided
when the taking is in violation of any State law, including State
trespass laws. Protection from inappropriate commercial trade would
also be provided.
E. Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting its Continued Existence
None are known at this time.
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
Lesquerella perforata as an endangered species. This species is faced
with imminent threats from loss of habitat to development and other
uses incompatible with the species' survival, and by competing
vegetation that is no longer controlled by natural flood regimes. These
threats are compounded due to the species' restricted range and limited
number of populations. In accordance with the definitions for
endangered and threatened species found in section 3(6) and (19) of the
Act, endangered is the most appropriate classification for L.
perforata.
Critical Habitat
Section 4(a)(3) of the Act, as amended, requires that, to the
maximum extent prudent and determinable, the Secretary designate any
habitat of a species, which is considered to be critical habitat, at
the time the species is determined to be endangered or threatened.
Title 50, Part 424 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Section
424.12(1) states that designation of critical habitat is not prudent
when one or both of the following situations exist: (i) The species is
threatened by taking or other human activity, and identification of
critical habitat can be expected to increase the degree of such threat
to the species, or (ii) Such designation of critical habitat would not
be beneficial to the species. Both situations apply to L. perforata.
Publication of critical habitat maps would increase public interest
and possibly lead to additional threats for the species from collecting
and vandalism. This species occurs at a limited number of sites, and
most are fairly accessible. Publication of critical habitat
descriptions and maps would make Lesquerella perforata more vulnerable
and would increase enforcement problems.
Critical habitat also would not be beneficial in terms of adding
additional protection for this species under Section 7 of the Act.
Regulations promulgated for the implementation of Section 7 provide for
both a ``jeopardy'' standard and a ``destruction or adverse
modification'' of critical habitat standard. Because of the highly
limited distribution of this species, any Federal action that would
destroy or have any significant adverse affect on its habitat would
likely result in a jeopardy biological opinion under Section 7. Under
these conditions, no additional benefits would accrue from designation
of critical habitat that would not be available through listing alone.
The owners and managers of all the known populations of this
species will be made aware of the plants' locations and of the
importance of protecting the species and its habitat. Should Federal
involvement occur, habitat protection will be addressed through the
Section 7 consultation process, utilizing the jeopardy standard.
Protection of the species' habitat will also be addressed through the
recovery process. No additional benefits would result from a
determination of critical habitat. Therefore, the Service concludes
that it is not prudent to designate critical habitat for Lesquerella
perforata.
Available Conservation Measures
Conservation measures provided to 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 private
agencies, groups, and individuals. The Endangered Species 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
certain activities involving listed plants 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 critical
habitat, if any is being designated. Regulations implementing this
interagency cooperation provision of the Act are codified at 50 CFR
Part 402. Section 7(a)(4) 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 the
destruction or adverse modification of proposed critical habitat. If a
species is subsequently listed, 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 a Federal
action may affect a listed species or its critical habitat, the
responsible Federal agency must enter into formal consultation with the
Service.
All of the known Lesquerella perforata populations are on privately
owned land where there is no known or anticipated Federal involvement
at the present time.
The Act and its implementing regulations found at 50 CFR 17.61,
17.62, and 17.63 set forth a series of general prohibitions and
exceptions that apply to all endangered plants. All trade prohibitions
of Section 9(a)(2) of the Act, implemented by 50 CFR 17.61, would
apply. These prohibitions, in part, make it illegal for any person
subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to import or export,
transport in interstate or foreign commerce in the course of a
commercial activity, sell or offer for sale this species in interstate
or foreign commerce, or to remove and reduce to possession the species
from areas under Federal jurisdiction. In addition, for endangered
plants, the 1988 amendments (Pub. L. 100-478) to the Act prohibit the
malicious damage or destruction on Federal lands and the removal,
cutting, digging up, or damaging or destroying of endangered plants in
knowing violation of any State law or regulation, including State
criminal trespass law. Certain exceptions apply to agents of the
Service and State conservation agencies.
The Act and 50 CFR 17.62 and 17.63 also provide for the issuance of
permits to carry out otherwise prohibited activities involving
threatened species under certain circumstances. It is anticipated that
few trade permits would ever be sought or issued because the species is
not common in cultivation or in the wild. Requests for copies of the
regulations on listed plants and inquiries regarding prohibitions and
permits should be addressed to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Attention: Endangered and Threatened Species Permits, 1875 Century
Boulevard, Suite 200, Atlanta, Georgia 30345 (404/679-4000).
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 these proposed rules are hereby solicited. Comments
particularly are sought concerning:
(1) Biological, commercial trade, or other relevant data concerning
any threat (or lack thereof) to Lesquerella perforata;
(2) Tthe location of any additional populations of Lesquerella
perforata 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 and distribution of
this species; and
(4) Current or planned activities in the subject area and their
possible impacts on Lesquerella perforata.
Final promulgation of the regulations on Lesquerella perforata will
take into consideration the comments and any additional information
received by the Service, and such communications may lead to the
adoption of a final regulation that differs from this proposal.
The Endangered Species Act provides for a public hearing on this
proposal, if requested. Requests must be filed within 45 days of the
date of this proposal. Such requests must be made in writing and
addressed to the Field Supervisor, Asheville Field Office, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, 330 Ridgefield Court, Asheville, North Carolina
28806.
National Environmental Policy Act
The Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that an Environmental
Assessment, as defined under the 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
Baskin, J.M., and C.C. Baskin. 1990. Seed Germination Biology of the
Narrowly Endemic Species Lesquerella stonensis (Brassicaceae). Plant
Species Biol. 5:205-213.
Kral, R. 1983. A Report on Some Rare, Threatened, or Endangered
Forest-related Vascular Plants of the South. USDA, Forest Service
Tech. Pub. R8-TP2, Vol. 1. 718 pp.
Rollins, R.C. 1952. Some Crucifers of the Nashville Basin,
Tennessee. Rhodora 54:182-192.
Rollins, R.C. 1955. The Auriculate-leaved Species of Lesquerella
(Cruciferae). Rhodora 57:241-264.
Somers, P., A. Shea, and A. McKerrow. 1993. Status Survey Report on
Lesquerella perforata Rollins (Spring Creek Bladderpod). Unpublished
report to the Asheville Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Asheville, NC. 81 pp.
Author
The primary author of this proposed rule is Mr. Robert R.
Currie, Asheville Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 330
Ridgefield Court, Asheville, North Carolina 28806 (704/665-1195,
Ext. 224).
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 17
Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.
Proposed Regulation Promulgation
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:
PART 17--[AMENDED]
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 17.12(h) is amended by adding the following, in
alphabetical order under Brassicaceae, to the List of Endangered and
Threatened Plants:
Sec. 17.12 Endangered and threatened plants.
* * * * *
(h) * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Species
----------------------------------------- Historic range Status When listed Critical Special
Scientific name Common name habitat rules
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * * * *
Brassicaceae--Musta
rd family:
* * * * * * *
Lesquerella Spring Creek U.S.A. (TN)........ E ........... NA NA
perforata. bladderpod.
* * * * * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dated: July 28, 1994.
Mollie H. Beattie,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 94-20596 Filed 8-22-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P