[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 112 (Monday, June 12, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 30828-30829]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-14358]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
50 CFR Part 17


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 90-Day Finding for 
a Petition To List the Grass Lake/Green Cove Creek Population of the 
Olympic Mudminnow as Endangered and To Designate Critical Habitat

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of 90-day petition finding.

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SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces a 90-day 
finding for a petition to list the Grass Lake/Green Cover Creek 
population of the Olympic mudminnow (Novumbra hubbsi) under the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. The Service finds that the 
petition did not present substantial scientific or commercial 
information indicating that listing this population may be warranted. 
The Service concludes that the Olympic mudminnows occupying the Grass 
Lake/Green Cove Creek drainage do not constitute a distinct population 
segment.

DATES: The finding announced in this document was made on May 23, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Data, information comments, or questions concerning this 
petition should be submitted to the State Supervisor, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Ecological Services Office, 3704 Griffin Lane SE., 
Suite 102, Olympia, Washington 98501-2192. The petition finding, 
supporting data, and comments are available for public inspection, by 
appointment, during normal business hours at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
David C. Frederick, Field Office Supervisor, see ADDRESSES section 
above or telephone 206-753-9440.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Endangered Species Act (Act) of 1973, as 
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), requires that the Service make a 
finding on whether a petition to list, delist, or reclassify a species 
presents substantial scientific or commercial information to 
demonstrate that the petitioned action may be waranted. This finding is 
to be based on all information available to the Service at the time the 
finding is made. To the maximum extent practicable, this finding is to 
be made within 90 days of the date the petition was received, and the 
finding is to be published promptly in the Federal Register. If the 
finding is that substantial information was presented, the Service also 
is required to commence a review of the status of the species involved 
if one has not already been initiated under the Service's internal 
candidate assessment process.
    The Service has made a finding on a petition to list the Grass 
Lake/Green Cover Creek population of the Olympic mudminnow (Novumbra 
hubbsi). The petition, dated September 15, 1994, was submitted by 
Theodore A. Mahr, attorney representing the ``Save Allison Springs'' 
Citizens Committee, and several members of the ``Save Allison Springs'' 
Citizens Committee. The ``Save Allison Springs'' Citizens Committee is 
located in Olympia, Washington. The petition requests the Service to 
list the Grass Lake/Green Cove Creek population of the Olympic 
mudminnow as an endangered species and to simultaneously designate 
critical habitat for the population. The petitioner stated that the 
Olympic mudminnow in the Grass Lake/Green Cover Creek Basin may be an 
evolutionarily significant unit due to the apparent geographic 
isolation of this population; that this population may be imperiled by 
present and proposed housing developments in the Green Cove Creek 
Basin; and that existing regulatory mechanisms may not be adequate to 
protect this population.
    The Service has reviewed the petition, the literature cited in the 
petition, and other information available in the Service's files. On 
the basis of the best scientific and commercial information available, 
the Service finds the petition does not present substantial information 
that listing this population may be warranted.
    The Olympic mudminnow, a small, brightly colored fish in the 
Umbridae family, represents a monotypic genus, being the only species 
in the genus Novumbra. There are four genera in the family Umbridae, 
three found in North America, the fourth in Europe. Distribution of the 
Olympic mudminnow is limited to southwestern Washington and the Olympic 
Peninsula. Meldrim (1968) suggests that geological history has 
determined the general distribution of the species, while behavior and 
habitat preference have maintained the present limited distribution. 
Dispersal is limited yet the species is often abundant where found 
(Wydoski and Whitney 1979). This freshwater species is generally found 
in quiet, slow moving waters such as in swamps, bogs, ponds, ditches, 
shallow lagoons and most frequently in marshy habitats. The preferred 
habitat type is a marshy stream with a muddy bottom, dense vegetation, 
and stained or dark water (Harris 1974).
    A species that is in danger of extinction throughout all or a 
significant [[Page 30829]] portion of its range may be listed as an 
endangered species under the Act. The term ``species'' is defined in 16 
U.S.C. 1532 (16) as including ``any subspecies * * * and any distinct 
population segment of any species of vertebrate fish or wildlife which 
interbreeds when mature.'' Thus the first deliberation is whether the 
Olympic mudminnow in the Grass Lake/Green Cove Creek Basin is a 
recognized subspecies or distinct population that interbreeds.
    The Service has considered two factors in determining whether this 
population would be eligible for listing as a distinct population 
segment:
    1. The discreteness of the population segment in relation to the 
remainder of the species, and
    2. The significance of the population segment to the species.
    While the petitioner cited a 1994 letter from Dr. Theodore W. 
Pietsch (College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences, University of 
Washington) as evidence of the discreteness and significance of the 
Grass Lake/Green Cove Creek population, Pietsch only speculated in his 
letter about the ``apparently long-term geological and genetic 
isolation'' of this population. He also noted that the reality of 
whether this population represents ``an `evolutionary significant unit' 
* * * should be explored further using modern genetic techniques.'' In 
this regard, the petitioner does not present, nor is the Service aware 
of any information indicating the genetic, morphological, or behavioral 
distinctness of the Olympic mudminnow from the Grass Lake/Green Cove 
Creek Basin.
    Further, Congress directed that the listing of populations be used 
`` * * * sparingly.'' Therefore, in addition to meeting the criteria 
for distinctness, the Service should consider a population's biological 
and ecological significance to the species as a whole. No evidence was 
presented to suggest that the loss of the mudminnows in Green Cove 
Creek would result in a significant gap in the range of the Olympic 
mudminnow, nor that this population occurs in an unusual or unique 
setting.
    The Service concludes that the data contained in the petition, 
referenced in the petition, and otherwise available to the Service does 
not present substantial information that the requested action may be 
warranted since the Grass Lake/Green Cove Creek Basin population of 
Olympic mudminnows would not be eligible for listing as a distinct 
population. The Olympic mudminnow is recognized as a category 2 
candidate species (59 FR 58999, November 15, 1994), and has been since 
the Service's December 30, 1982, Notice of Review (47 FR 58454). The 
Olympic mudminnow has been the subject of an ongoing status review 
since the 1982 Notice of Review. The Service will retain this species 
as a category 2 candidate, and will continue to seek information 
regarding the status or threats to the species. If additional data 
become available in the future, the Service may reassess the listing 
priority for this species or the need for listing.

References Cited

    Harris, C.K. 1974. The geographical distribution and habitat of the 
Olympic mudminnow, Novumbra hubbsi. Unpublished report, College of 
fisheries, Univ. of Wash., Seattle.
    Meldrim, J.W. 1968. The ecological zoogeography of the Olympic 
mudminnow (Novumbra hubbsi, Schultz). Ph.D. dissertation, Univ. of 
Wash., Seattle.
    Wydoski, R.S. and R.R. Whitney. 1979. Inland Fishes of Washington. 
Univ. of Wash. Press, Seattle, Washington.

    Author. The primary author of this document is Shelley Spalding 
of the Ecological Services Office in Olympia, Washington (see 
ADDRESSES section).

Authority

    The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of 
1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: May 23, 1995.
Bruce Blanchard,
Acting Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 95-14358 Filed 6-9-95; 8:45 am]
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