[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 227 (Wednesday, November 25, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 65164-65165]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-31282]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants: Notice of Finding 
on a Petition To Delist the Wood Bison From the List of Threatened and 
Endangered Species

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of petition finding.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces a 90-
day finding for a petition to delist the wood bison (Bison bison 
athabascae) pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. 
The Service finds that the petitioner did not supply substantial 
information to indicate that the delisting of wood bison may be 
warranted.

DATES: The finding announced in this document was made on November 12, 
1998. Comments and information concerning this petition finding may be 
submitted until further notice.

ADDRESSES: Questions, comments, or information concerning this petition 
should be sent to the Office of Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Mail Stop ARLSQ-750, Washington, D.C. 20240. The 
petition, finding, and supporting information are available for public 
inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the Office 
of Scientific Authority, 4401 N. Fairfax Dr., Rm. 750, Arlington, 
Virginia.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Javier Alvarez, Office of 
Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mail Stop ARLSQ-
750, Washington, D.C. 20240 (phone: 703-358-1708; fax: 703-358-2276; e-
mail: Javier__A[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973, as 
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), requires that the U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service (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 warranted. This finding is to be based on all information available 
to the Service at the time the finding is made. This finding is to be 
made within 90 days of receipt of the petition, and the finding is to 
be published promptly in the Federal Register.
    The Service has made a 90-day finding on a petition to delist the 
wood bison (Bison bison athabascae) populations in Canada, currently 
listed as endangered under ESA. The petition was submitted by Mr. Gary 
A. Plumlee, Anderson, Indiana, and was received by the Service on May 
14, 1998.
    The document provided by the petitioner to substantiate his 
petition consisted primarily of a copy of the proposal submitted by the 
Government of Canada to the Tenth Meeting of the Conference of the 
Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species 
(CITES), held in Harare, Zimbabwe, from 9-20 June, 1997. The proposal, 
which was adopted at the Tenth Conference, requested the transfer of 
wood bison from Appendix I to Appendix II of CITES to allow commercial 
trade of this subspecies. The information contained in the CITES 
proposal originated primarily from research and management conducted by 
Canadian federal, provincial and territorial governments as part of a 
recovery program for the wood bison.
    The Service agrees that wood bison populations are capable of 
growing rapidly when protected from over-hunting. Historically found in 
the interior plains of northwestern North America (northwestern 
Saskatchewan, northern Alberta, northeastern British Columbia, and 
southwestern Northern Territories), the wood bison was almost 
extirpated by Europeans during the late 19th century. Of approximately 
200,000 wood bison believed to exist in Canada in 1800, the population 
was reduced to about 250 animals at the beginning of this century. 
Under government protection (it currently has legal protection in 
British Columbia, Yukon Territory, and Northwest Territories; it is 
designated as threatened according to the Committee on the Status of 
Endangered Wildlife in Canada) this population has grown to an 
estimated 2,500 wood bison today, including 1,800 animals in seven wild 
herds, and around 700 held in captivity. An additional 2,300 animals 
exist in free-ranging populations that originate from wood bison 
exposed to hybridization with plains bison (Bison bison bison) and 
disease (tuberculosis and brucellosis). As a result of these increases 
in population, the Canadian government opened regulated hunting of wood 
bison in 1988, with an annual quota of 47 animals to be allocated among 
native peoples, local residents, and non-resident trophy hunters 
accompanied by native people.
    The Service also agrees that illegal trade in this subspecies does 
not appear to be a significant problem. CITES records reveal that a 
very small number of live wood bison or their parts have entered 
international trade since it was included in Appendix I of CITES in 
1973.
    When referring to the downlisting of the wood bison from Appendix I 
to Appendix II of CITES, the petitioner incorrectly states that the 
wood bison was reclassified as threatened under CITES. CITES Appendix 
II is not equivalent to threatened under ESA. Moreover, although 
Parties to CITES consider the level of threat when listing species, the 
listing criteria are different. Listing criteria adopted by Parties to 
CITES in November 1994 (Resolution 9.24) clearly state that a species 
can be placed in CITES appendices only if it is threatened or has the 
potential to be threatened by trade. The Canadian proposal to downlist 
the subspecies to Appendix II was adopted in June 1997 based on these 
new criteria.
    Although over-hunting and illegal trade are no longer considered 
threats to the species, recovery of the species is still limited by 
habitat availability and quality. Approximately 34 percent of the wood 
bison's historical range is no longer available because of agriculture 
and urban development, a problem that is expected to increase. A 
further 27 percent is temporarily unavailable because of the presence 
of disease. Several reintroduced populations are threatened by the risk 
of infection with tuberculosis and brucellosis, including the largest 
at Mackenzie Bison Sanctuary in the Northwestern Territories, which 
contains 1,300 of the remaining 1,800 free-ranging non-hybridized wood 
bison. Therefore, buffer zones are currently being established to 
separate diseased and

[[Page 65165]]

disease-free herds. This leaves only about 39 percent of the species' 
historical range available for recovery.
    The official Canadian recovery plan developed by the Wood Bison 
Recovery Team calls for the establishment of four or more free-ranging 
herds of wood bison in suitable habitat in the original range, each 
herd containing or exceeding the minimum viable population (MVP) of 400 
animals. The Canadian CITES proposal states that only the population at 
Mackenzie Bison Sanctuary exceeds the MVP, with the other four 
reestablished herds having ``the potential to meet or exceed that 
number by the year 2000.''
    When evaluating petitions for delisting or downlisting of species 
under the ESA, the Service's guidelines state that a ``not-substantial 
information'' finding be made when already established recovery 
objectives have not been met (see page 14, section 2(a)(1) of 
Endangered Species Petition Management Guidance--U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service and National Marine Fisheries Service, July 1996). The Canadian 
recovery plan goals for the wood bison have not been met yet. 
Therefore, the Service finds that the petitioner did not supply 
substantial information to indicate that the petitioned action may be 
warranted. At such time when the free-ranging disease-free populations 
of wood bison meet the recovery plan criteria, the Service may initiate 
such a downlisting. In the meantime and within available resources, the 
Service will evaluate the advisability of downlisting the captive 
population of wood bison from endangered to threatened, with a special 
rule to allow the import to the United States of captive-bred wood 
bisons.
    References Cited: 1997. Prop. 10.35. Proposal for the transfer of 
wood bison (Bison bison athabascae) from Appendix I to Appendix II of 
the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species submitted 
by the Government of Canada at the Tenth Meeting of the Conferences of 
the Parties held in Harare, Zimbabwe, 9-20 June, 1997.
    Author: The primary author of this document is Dr. Javier Alvarez 
(see ADDRESSES section).

    Authority: The authority for this action is the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: November 12, 1998.
John G. Rogers,
Director.
[FR Doc. 98-31282 Filed 11-24-98; 8:45 am]
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