[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 58 (Friday, March 26, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14745-14746]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-7390]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Availability of Draft Recovery Plan for Thirteen Plant Taxa From 
the Northern Channel Islands for Review and Comment

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces the availability 
for public review of a Draft Recovery Plan for Thirteen Plants from the 
Northern Channel Islands. These plants occur on the Northern Channel 
Islands and Santa Catalina Island off the coast of California in Santa 
Barbara and Los Angeles Counties, California.

DATES: Comments received on the draft recovery plan by May 26, 1999 
will be considered by the Service.

ADDRESSES: Requests for copies of the draft recovery plan and written 
comments and materials regarding this plan should be addressed to the 
Field Supervisor, at the Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office: U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service, 2493 Portola Road, Suite B, Ventura, California 
93003 (phone: 805/644-1766).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tim Thomas, Botanist, at the Ventura 
address.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Restoring endangered or threatened animals and plants to the point 
where they are again secure, self-sustaining members of their 
ecosystems is a primary goal of the Service's endangered species 
program. To help guide the recovery effort, the Service is working to 
prepare recovery plans for most of the listed species native to the 
United States. Recovery plans describe actions considered necessary for 
the conservation of the species, establish criteria for the recovery 
levels for downlisting or delisting them, and estimated time and cost 
for implementing the recovery measures needed.
    The Endangered Species Act, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 
(Act), requires the development of recovery plans for listed species 
unless such a plan would not promote the conservation of a particular 
species. Section 4(f) of the Act as amended in 1988 requires that 
public notice and an opportunity for public review and comment be 
provided during recovery plan development. The Service will consider 
all information presented during the public comment period prior to 
approval of each new or revised recovery plan. Substantive technical 
comments will result in changes to the plans. Substantive comments 
regarding recovery plan implementation may not necessarily result in 
changes to the recovery plans, but will be forwarded to appropriate 
Federal or other entities so that they can take these comments into 
account during the course of implementing recovery actions. 
Individualized responses to comments will not be provided.
    The 13 plants from the Northern Channel Islands addressed in this 
draft recovery plan were included on the list of endangered and 
threatened species

[[Page 14746]]

on July 31, 1997 (61FR40954). Hoffmann's rock-cress (Arabis hoffmannii) 
(Munz) Rollins, Santa Rosa Island manzanita (Arctostaphylos 
confertiflora) (Eastw.), island barberry (Berberis pinnata Lag. ssp. 
insularis) (Munz), soft-leaved paintbrush (Castilleja mollis) 
(Pennell), island bedstraw (Galium buxifolium) (Greene), Hoffmann's 
slender-flowered gilia (Gilia tenuiflora Benth. ssp. hoffmannii) 
(Eastw.) A.D. Grant & V.E. Grant, Santa Cruz Island bushmallow 
(Malacothamnus fasciculatus) (Torr. & A.Gray) (Greene ssp. nesioticus) 
(B.L. Rob. in A. Gray) Kearney, island malacothrix (Malacothrix 
indecora Greene), Santa Cruz Island malacothrix (Malacothrix squalida 
Greene), island phacelia (Phacelia insularis Munz ssp. insularis), and 
Santa Cruz Island fringepod (Thysanocarpus conchuliferus Greene) were 
listed as endangered and Santa Cruz Island dudleya (Dudleya nesiotica 
Moran) and island rush-rose (Helianthemum greenei Robinson) were listed 
as threatened. All 13 taxa are endemic to the Northern Channel Islands 
(Anacapa, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel), with the exception 
of two populations of Helianthemum greenei that occur on the more 
southerly island of Santa Catalina. The plants occur in a variety of 
habitats: coastal terrace, coastal bluff scrub, coastal sage scrub, and 
chaparral. All 13 plant species and their habitats have been variously 
affected or are currently threatened by one or more of the following--
soil loss, historic and continuing habitat alteration by mammals alien 
to the Channel Islands (pigs, goats, sheep, donkeys, cattle, deer, elk, 
horses, bison); direct predation by these same alien mammals; habitat 
alteration by native seabirds; competition with alien plant taxa; and 
increased vulnerability to extinction due to reduced genetic viability, 
depressed reproductive vigor, and the chance of stochastic extinction 
resulting from small numbers of individuals and isolated populations.
    The goal of this plan is to stabilize and protect existing 
populations to allow for the downlisting of Arabis hoffmannii, 
Arctostaphylos confertiflora, Berberis pinnata ssp. insularis, 
Castilleja mollis, Galium buxifolium, Gilia tenuiflora ssp. hoffmannii, 
Malacothamnus fasciculatus var. nesioticus, Malacothrix indecora, 
Malacothrix squalida, Phacelia insularis var. insularis, and 
Thysanocarpus conchuliferus, and the delisting of Dudleya nesiotica and 
Helianthemum greenei.

Public Comments Solicited

    The Service solicits written comments on the draft recovery plan 
described. All comments received by the date specified above will be 
considered prior to approval of this plan.

Authority

    The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the Endangered 
Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).

    Dated: March 22, 1999.
Michael J. Spear,
California/Nevada Operations Manager, Sacramento, California
[FR Doc. 99-7390 Filed 3-25-99; 8:45 am]
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