[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 191 (Tuesday, October 4, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-24512]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: October 4, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
50 CFR Part 17

 

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Finding on 
Petition and Initiation of Status Review for Koala

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of petition finding and status review.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces the 90-day 
finding that a petition to add the Australian koala to the List of 
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife has presented substantial 
information indicating that the action may be warranted. A status 
review of this species is initiated.

DATES: The finding announced herein was made on September 26, 1994. 
Comments and information may be submitted until February 1, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments, information, and questions should be submitted to 
the Chief, Office of Scientific Authority; Mail Stop: room 725, 
Arlington Square; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Washington, D.C. 
20240 (Fax number 703-358-2276). Express and messenger-delivered mail 
should be addressed to the Office of Scientific Authority; room 750, 
4401 North Fairfax Drive; Arlington, Virginia 22203. The petition 
finding, supporting data, and comments will be available for public 
inspection, by appointment, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, at the Arlington, Virginia address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Charles W. Dane, Chief, Office of 
Scientific Authority, at the above address (phone 703-358-1708).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 4(b)(3) of the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973, as amended, requires that within 90 days of receipt of a 
petition to list, delist, or reclassify a species, or to revise a 
critical habitat designation, a finding be made on whether the petition 
has presented substantial information indicating that the requested 
action may be warranted, and that such finding be published promptly in 
the Federal Register
    If the finding is positive, Section 4(b)(3) also requires 
commencement of a review of the status of the involved species. The 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) now announces a 90-day finding 
on a recently received petition.
    The petition was submitted by Australians for Animals (in 
Australia) and the Fund for Animals (in the United States); about 40 
additional organizations in the United States and Australia were named 
as supporting the petition. It was dated May 3, 1994, and was received 
by the Service on May 5, 1994. It requests that the koala 
(Phascolarctos cinereus), a bearlike Australian marsupial, be 
classified as endangered in New South Wales and Victoria, and as 
threatened in Queensland.
    The koala once occurred over much of the three indicated states, as 
well as in part of South Australia, and numbered in the millions. The 
petition presents an extensive compilation of data, including recent 
direct testimony from authorities on the species, suggesting that the 
koala has declined greatly in distribution and numbers, and that its 
status is likely to continue to deteriorate. Reportedly, there are 
practically none left in South Australia and only a few thousand in New 
South Wales and Victoria; the Queensland population may be less than 10 
percent of what it was in the 1920s.
    The species was drastically reduced by excessive killing for its 
fur up through the 1920s. It subsequently was provided legal protection 
from such killing, but, according to the petition, remnant populations 
are relatively small and badly fragmented. Logging, agriculture, and 
other problems have eliminated at least two-thirds of the original 
forest and woodland habitat, further declines are occurring, and little 
of the remaining habitat is well protected. The species is totally 
dependent for food and shelter on certain types of trees within forests 
and woodlands. The destruction or degradation of this habitat will 
reduce the viability of populations, even if the animals are otherwise 
protected, and many local populations are said to have disappeared in 
recent years. Other reported problems include fires, diseases, 
droughts, harassment by dogs, interference with normal gene flow, and 
killing along the roads now penetrating habitat. The largest population 
remaining in Queensland is now said to be immediately threatened by a 
major highway project that would bisect its habitat.
    The Service is aware that the koala is generally protected by 
federal and procincial laws in Australia, and that there have been 
intensive government efforts to conserve and reintroduce some 
populations. However, the information presented by the petition gives 
cause for concern about the over-all prospects for the species and its 
natural ecosystems, and suggests that further review of the situation 
is advisable. The Service therefore has found that the petition 
presents substantial information indicating that the requested action 
may be warranted. Also, pursuant to Section 4(b)(3), the Service hereby 
commences a review of the status of the involved species. Submission of 
appropriate data, opinions, and publications regarding this petition is 
encouraged. In accordance with Section 4(b)(3), within 12 months of 
receipt of the petition, the Service will make another finding as to 
whether the requested action is warranted, not warranted, or warranted 
but precluded by other listing measures.

Authority

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

    Dated: September 26, 1994.
Bruce Blanchard,
Acting Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 94-24512 Filed 10-3-94; 8:45 am]
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