[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 59 (Friday, March 27, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14955-14956]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-8048]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Proposals To Register An Operation Breeding Appendix-I Species in 
Captivity for Commercial Purposes According to the Convention on 
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces that it intends 
to submit to the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade 
in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) proposals to 
register a breeding operation for Sky-Out Falcons, a breeding facility 
for gyrfalcons (Falco rusticolus) and peregrine falcons (Falco 
peregrinus), both specific and hybrid offspring, owned and operated by 
David H. Jamieson, Reno, Nevada (one of each species). The registration 
of this facility will allow specimens to be designated as bred in 
captivity for commercial purposes and deemed to be specimens of species 
included in Appendix II, as provided for in Article VII, paragraph 4 of 
CITES. Public comments are solicited.

DATES: Comments will be accepted until April 27, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Please send correspondence concerning this notice to the 
Office of Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mail 
stop ARLSQ 750, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia 22203. Fax 
number 703-358-2276. Copies of the full text of the registration 
proposals are available from the Office of Scientific Authority and 
will be mailed upon request. Comments and other information received 
are available for public inspection by appointment from 8 a.m. to 4 
p.m., Monday through Friday, at the Arlington, Virginia, address.


[[Page 14956]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Susan Lieberman, Chief, Office of 
Scientific Authority, at the address given above (telephone: 703-358-
1708).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild 
Fauna and Flora, TIAS 8249, hereinafter referred to as CITES, is an 
international treaty designed to regulate international trade in animal 
and plant species that are or may become threatened with extinction. 
Authority for implementing CITES has been delegated to the Secretary of 
Interior through the Endangered Species Act of 1973 as amended (16 
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). Species are listed in Appendix I, II, or III of 
CITES, depending on the degree of threat and level of control needed. 
Species listed in Appendix I receive the highest level of protection 
and require both an import permit from the country of import and an 
export permit from the country of export, and imports may not be for 
primarily commercial purposes. However, Article VII, paragraph 4 of 
CITES provides that specimens of animal species included in Appendix I 
bred in captivity for commercial purposes shall be deemed to be 
specimens of species included in Appendix II. Appendix-II species 
require an export permit only (no import permit) and may be imported 
for commercial or non-commercial purposes.
    Through resolutions adopted at meetings of the Conference of the 
Parties to CITES, the Parties have defined criteria for registering 
breeding operations with the CITES Secretariat, whereby specimens of 
Appendix-I species from those operations would qualify as bred in 
captivity for commercial purposes. Resolution Conf. 10.16 adopted at 
the Tenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (which 
replaces Conf. 2.12 (rev.)) requires that parental breeding stock at 
such operations must: (a) be established in accordance with the 
provisions of CITES and relevant national laws and in a manner not 
detrimental to the survival of the species in the wild; (b) be 
maintained without introduction of specimens from the wild, except for 
occasional augmentation to prevent or alleviate deleterious inbreeding, 
and for other limited purposes; and (c) have produced offspring of 
second (F2) or subsequent generations (F3, F4, etc.) in a controlled 
environment, belong to a species included in a list, established by the 
CITES Standing Committee, of species commonly bred to second or 
subsequent generations, or be managed in a manner that has been 
demonstrated to be capable of reliably producing second-generation 
offspring in a controlled environment. Resolution Conf. 8.15 provides 
guidelines for registering and monitoring operations breeding Appendix-
I animal species for commercial purposes, and specifies the 
documentation required to establish that the operation meets the 
criteria of Resolution Conf. 10.16.
    To register a captive-breeding operation, the Management Authority 
of the country in which the operation is located must approve the 
operation, in consultation with that country's Scientific Authority. 
The sponsoring Management Authority must then submit a proposal to 
register the operation to the CITES Secretariat, which will follow the 
process presented in Resolution Conf. 8.15.
    After a review of relevant information, including breeding records 
and other documentation, the Fish and Wildlife Service has prepared for 
submission to the CITES Secretariat the following proposals: (1) the 
registration of Sky-Out Falcons owned and operated by David H. 
Jamieson, Reno, Nevada, as a commercial captive-breeding operation for 
gyrfalcons (Falco rusticolus), an Appendix I species, and hybrids; and 
(2) the registration of Sky-Out Falcons for peregrine falcons (Falco 
peregrinus), an Appendix-I species, and hybrids. Although this is the 
first commercial captive-breeding operation proposed for registration 
within the United States for any species, it is not the first operation 
registered with the CITES Secretariat for these two species (15 
operations have been registered for peregrine falcons and 10 operations 
for gyrfalcons). The Sky-Out Falcons operation has been breeding 
falcons since 1974, with a combined production of 45 gyrfalcons and 46 
peregrine falcons in 1995 and 1996. All of these offspring have been 
second-generation captive-hatched offspring. The Service is satisfied 
that all breeding stock has been legally acquired and maintained under 
appropriate permits, as determined by the Division of Law Enforcement 
in Region 1 of the Fish and Wildlife Service. Mr. Jamieson has provided 
detailed information on current holdings, husbandry practices, 
enclosures, production at his operation, and breeding strategies for 
genetic management of his flocks so as to minimize deleterious 
inbreeding. (Mr. Jamieson currently holds a pair of F. p. anatum, a 
species listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, 
as amended. This pair of birds is not included in this registration 
process and any offspring of either member of the pair would not be 
considered registered under Resolution Conf. 8.15.)

Required Determination

    The Service prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) in accordance 
with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), for this notice and 
concluded in a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) based on a 
review and evaluation of the information contained within the EA that 
there would be no significant impact on the human environment as a 
result of this action and that the preparation of an environmental 
impact statement on this action is not required by Section 102(2) of 
NEPA or its implementing regulations. The EA and FONSI for this action 
are on file at the Service's Office of Scientific Authority in 
Arlington, Virginia, and a copy may be obtained by any interested 
person for review and provide comments by contacting the individual 
identified under the section entitled, FOR FURTHER INFORMATION.

Author

    This notice was prepared by Mr. Timothy J. Van Norman, Wildlife 
Biologist, Office of Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service (703/358-1708).

    Dated: March 20, 1998.
Margaret Tieger,
Acting Chief, Office of Management Authority.
[FR Doc. 98-8048 Filed 3-26-98; 8:45 am]
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