[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 185 (Friday, September 22, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57363-57365]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-24423]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 5-Year Review of 
Foreign Listed Psittacine Species

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of review.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 
review of all endangered and threatened foreign species in the Order 
Psittaciformes (parrots, parakeets, macaws, cockatoos, etc.; also known 
as

[[Page 57364]]

psittacine birds) listed under the Endangered Species Act (Act) of 
1973, as amended. This first announcement of review of species' status 
will be followed by additional announcements of review for other groups 
of endangered and threatened foreign species. The Act requires such a 
review at least once every 5 years. The purpose of the review is to 
ensure that the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants 
accurately reflect the most current status information for each listed 
species. We request comments and the most current scientific or 
commercial information available on these species, as well as species 
that may warrant future consideration for listing. If the present 
classification of species is not consistent with the best scientific 
and commercial information available at the conclusion of this review, 
we may propose changes to the list accordingly.

DATES: Your comments on the notice of review must be received by 
December 21, 2000 to receive consideration from the Service.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments, information, and questions to the Chief, 
Division of Scientific Authority; Mail Stop: Room 750, Arlington 
Square, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, DC 20240 (Fax 
number: 703-358-2276; E-mail address: [email protected]). Address express 
and messenger-delivered mail to the Division of Scientific Authority; 
Room 750, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia 22203. Comments 
and materials received 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: Michael D. Kreger, Division of 
Scientific Authority (See ADDRESSES section) (phone: 703-358-1708, fax: 
703-358-2276, E-mail: [email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Where can the lists of endangered and threatened species be found?
    The Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants are 
found in 50 CFR 17.11 (wildlife) and 17.12 (plants). The most recent 
lists were published in the Code of Federal Regulations on October 1, 
1999; however, we have amended the list since then through final rules 
published in the Federal Register. The lists are also available on the 
World Wide Web at http://ecos.fws.gov/webpage/webpage_foreign.html. 
These lists contain the names of all species of U.S. and foreign 
wildlife and plants that have been determined by both the Service and 
the National Marine Fisheries Service to be endangered or threatened. 
The lists also contain the names of species of wildlife that are 
treated as endangered or threatened because of a similarity of 
appearance to endangered or threatened species.
    Why is this review being conducted? 
    The procedural rules for listing, reclassifying, or removing 
species from the lists can be found in 50 CFR Part 424. The Act, as 
amended, and 50 CFR 424.21 require that the Secretary of the Interior 
and the Secretary of Commerce conduct a review of each listed species 
at least once every 5 years. This review will consider all foreign 
psittacine birds listed as endangered or threatened by the United 
States. The following table lists the species under review.
    Foreign Species in the Order Psittaciformes Listed Under the 
Endangered Species Act.

    Note: All of the following are listed as endangered.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Common name                       Scientific name               Historic range        Year listed
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Kakapo (owl parrot)......................  Strigops habroptilus.......  New Zealand................         1970
Macaw, glaucous..........................  Anodorhynchus glaucus......  Paraguay, Uraguay, Brazil..         1976
Macaw, indigo............................  Anodorhynchus leari........  Brazil.....................         1976
Macaw, little blue.......................  Cyanopsitta spixii.........  Brazil.....................         1976
Parakeet, blue-throated (ochre-marked)...  Pyrrhura cruentata.........  Brazil.....................         1970
Parakeet, Forbes'........................  Cyanoramphus auriceps        New Zealand................         1970
                                            forbesi.
Parakeet, golden.........................  Aratinga guarouba..........  Brazil.....................         1976
Parakeet, golden-shouldered (hooded).....  Psephotus chrysopterygius..  Australia..................         1970
Parakeet, Mauritius......................  Psittacula echo............  Indian Ocean--Mauritius....         1970
Parakeet, Norfolk Island.................  Cyanoramphus cookii          Australia (Norfolk Island).         1990
                                            (novaezelandiae c.).
Parakeet, orange-bellied.................  Neophema chrysogaster......  Australia..................         1970
Parakeet, paradise (beautiful)...........  Psephotus pulcherrimus.....  Australia..................         1970
Parakeet, scarlet-chested (splendid).....  Neophema splendida.........  Australia..................         1970
Parakeet, turquoise......................  Neophema pulchella.........  Australia..................         1970
Parrot, Bahamian or Cuban................  Amazona leucocephala.......  West Indies--Cuba, Bahamas,         1970
                                                                         Caymans.
Parrot, ground...........................  Pezoporus wallicus.........  Australia..................         1973
Parrot, imperial.........................  Amazona imperialis.........  West Indies--Dominica......         1970
Parrot, night (Australian)...............  Geopsittacus occidentalis..  Australia..................         1970
Parrot, red-browed.......................  Amazona rhodocorytha.......  Brazil.....................         1970
Parrot, red-capped.......................  Pionopsitta pileata........  Brazil.....................         1976
Parrot, red-necked.......................  Amazona arausiaca..........  West Indies--Dominica......         1979
Parrot, red-spectacled...................  Amazona pretrei pretrei....  Brazil, Argentina..........         1976
Parrot, red-tailed.......................  Amazona brasiliensis.......  Brazil.....................         1990
Parrot, Seychelles lesser vasa...........  Coracopsis nigra barklyi...  Indian Ocean--Seychelles            1995
                                                                         (Praslin Island).
Parrot, St. Lucia........................  Amazona versicolor.........  West Indies--St. Lucia.....         1970
Parrot, St. Vincent......................  Amazona guildingii.........  West Indies--St. Vincent...         1970
Parrot, vinaceous-breasted...............  Amazona vinacea............  Brazil.....................         1976
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    Why start the review process with psittacine birds? 
    We have chosen to begin the review process with psittacine birds 
due to the high level of public interest in these species. We receive 
frequent communications from the avicultural community and others 
regarding the status of these birds. Of more than 350 species of 
psittacine birds, 27 foreign species are listed under the Act. All 
except four species were listed in the 1970s, and each species was 
classified as endangered. Since listing, however, national legislation 
in range countries, international treaties such as the Convention on 
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild and Fauna

[[Page 57365]]

and Flora (CITES), and additional U.S. legislation such as the Wild 
Bird Conservation Act (P.L. 102-440) have been enacted to control trade 
in wild birds and encourage species' conservation. New technologies 
such as the use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and advances in 
telemetry have improved monitoring of wild populations. Habitat 
protection, captive breeding, and other activities may also affect the 
biological sustainability of these species. We intend to examine the 
effectiveness of relevant regulatory and scientific programs to 
determine the current status of the species listed, to determine 
whether they should be reclassified or removed from the list, and 
perhaps to recommend additional species for listing if warranted.

Definitions

    What definitions would be helpful in reviewing this list?
    The following definitions are provided to assist anyone considering 
submitting information for this review.
    (a) Psittacine bird means any member of the Order Psittaciformes, 
which includes parrots, macaws, budgerigars, parakeets, lovebirds, 
cockatoos, and similar species.
    (b) Species includes any species or subspecies of fish or wildlife 
or plant, and any distinct population segment of any species or 
subspecies of a vertebrate, that is capable of interbreeding when 
mature.
    (c) Endangered means any species that is in danger of extinction 
throughout all or a significant portion of its range.
    (d) Threatened means any species that is likely to become an 
endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a 
significant portion of its range.
    How do we determine whether a species is endangered or threatened?
    A species is determined, or reclassified, to be endangered or 
threatened because of any of the following factors:
    (a) The present or threatened destruction, modification, or 
curtailment of its habitat or range;
    (b) Overutilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or 
educational purposes;
    (c) Disease or predation;
    (d) The inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms; or
    (e) Other natural or manmade factors affecting its continued 
existence.
    How does a species get removed from the list?
    These same five factors must be considered before removing a 
species from the list. The regulations (50 CFR 424.11(d)) state that 
the data to support a removal must be the best scientific and 
commercial information available to the Service to substantiate that 
the species is neither endangered nor threatened for one or more of the 
following reasons:
    (a) Extinction. Unless all individuals of a listed species had been 
previously identified and located and later found to be extirpated from 
their previous range, a sufficient period of time must be allowed 
before delisting to indicate clearly that the species is in fact 
extinct.
    (b) Recovery of the species. Our principal goal is to improve the 
status of listed species to a point where protection under the Act is 
no longer required. A species may be delisted on the basis that it has 
recovered only if the best scientific and commercial information 
available indicate that it is no longer threatened or endangered.
    (c) Original data for classification was in error. Additional 
investigations may show that the best scientific or commercial 
information available when a species was listed, or the interpretation 
of the data, was in error.
    What could happen as a result of this review?
    If anyone provides us with substantial new information for one or 
more species in the table above, we may propose new rules that could do 
any of the following:
    (a) reclassify a species from endangered to threatened; or
    (b) consider removal of a species from the List of Endangered and 
Threatened Wildlife.
    Distinct geographic populations of vertebrate species, as well as 
subspecies of all listed species, may be proposed for separate 
reclassification or for removal from the list. New species may also be 
proposed for addition to the list.
    What will happen if no new information is submitted on any of the 
listed species? 
    No changes will be made to the classification of any of the species 
as a result of this review unless substantial information is received. 
The next formal status review for psittacine species in the List of 
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife will occur approximately 5 years 
after the completion of this review. However, within existing resource 
capabilities, we will continue to review the status of other listed 
species and try to initiate reclassification or delisting whenever 
substantial new information indicates that doing so would be 
appropriate.

Request for Information

    We request comments on this Notice of Review from any foreign 
government or agency, the public, other Federal, State, and local 
governmental agencies, the scientific community, industry, or any other 
interested party. We will provide this Notice to all countries where 
these species are known to occur in the wild. The comments should 
provide as much scientific information as possible (e.g., literature 
citations). Submissions with detailed information are much more helpful 
than those that advocate or state a position, but contain no biological 
information. In particular, we are seeking information:
    (1) That indicates a need for a change in the status of any of the 
listed or unlisted psittacine species;
    (2) Regarding past and present numbers and distribution of the 
involved species, subspecies, or distinct vertebrate populations and 
particular factors currently threatening or no longer threatening the 
species;
    (3) Pointing out taxonomic or nomenclatural changes for any of the 
taxa;
    (4) Suggesting appropriate common names; and
    (5) Noting any mistakes, such as errors in the indicated historical 
ranges.
    If possible, this information should be supported by documentation 
such as maps, a list of bibliographic references, or copies of any 
pertinent publications, reports, or letters by knowledgeable sources.
    What if we receive extensive substantive information on a large 
number of species? 
    We will evaluate information received and information in our files 
and determine: (1) Whether or not any currently listed species should 
be evaluated; and (2) whether or not the listing of any currently 
unlisted species should be considered. Due to limited resources 
available for this effort, our highest priority will be for those 
species whose conservation status in the wild would most benefit from a 
change in their listing status under the Act.

    Authority: This document is published under the authority of the 
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: September 13, 2000.
Jamie Rappaport Clark,
Director.
[FR Doc. 00-24423 Filed 9-21-00; 8:45 am]
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