[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 243 (Thursday, December 18, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70527-70528]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-31166]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Draft Revised Recovery Plan for the `Alal[amacr] (Corvus 
hawaiiensis)

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability for review and comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (``we'') announces the 
availability of a draft revised recovery plan for the `Alal[amacr], or 
Hawaiian Crow (Corvus hawaiiensis) for public review. This endemic 
Hawaiian bird, a member of the family Corvidae, is now believed to be 
extinct in the wild and survives only in captivity. The `Alal[amacr] 
was listed as an endangered species in 1967 (32 FR 4001). The original 
recovery plan for the `Alal[amacr] was published in 1982.

DATES: Comments on the draft revised recovery plan must be received on 
or before February 17, 2004 to receive our consideration.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft revised recovery plan are available for 
inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the 
following locations: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Pacific Islands 
Fish and Wildlife Office, 300 Ala Moana Boulevard, Room 3-122, 
Honolulu, Hawaii 96850 (telephone 808-792-9400) and Hawaii State 
Library, 478 S. King Street, Honolulu, Hawaii 96813. Requests for 
copies of the draft revised recovery plan and written comments and 
materials regarding this plan should be addressed to the Field 
Supervisor, Ecological Services, at the above Honolulu address. An 
electronic copy of the draft revised recovery plan is also available 
at: http://endangered.fws.gov/recovery/index.html#plans.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jay Nelson, Fish and Wildlife 
Biologist, at the above Honolulu address.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Recovery of endangered or threatened animals and plants is a 
primary goal of our endangered species program and the Endangered 
Species Act (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). Recovery means improvement 
of the status of listed species to the point at which listing is no 
longer appropriate under the criteria set out in section 4(a)(1) of the 
Act. Recovery plans describe actions considered necessary for the 
conservation of the species, establish criteria for downlisting or 
delisting listed species, and estimate time and cost for implementing 
the measures needed for recovery.
    The 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 requires that public notice 
and an opportunity for public review and comment be provided during 
recovery plan development. We will consider all information presented 
during the public comment period prior

[[Page 70528]]

to approval of each new or revised recovery plan. Comments may result 
in changes to the plan. Comments regarding recovery plan implementation 
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. Individual responses to comments will not be 
provided.
    The Hawaiian Crow, or `Alal[amacr], is an omnivorous, forest-
dwelling bird endemic to dry and mesic forests on the island of Hawaii. 
Although `Alal[amacr] were still abundant in the 1890's, their numbers 
decreased sharply throughout the twentieth century despite legal 
protection conferred by the Territory of Hawaii in 1931, the Act in 
1973, and the State of Hawaii Endangered Species Act in 1982. 
Progressive range reduction and population fragmentation have 
characterized the decline. By 1987, the wild `Alal[amacr] population 
was reduced to a single bird in north Kona, and an unknown number in 
central Kona, on the west slope of Mauna Loa volcano, Hawaii. The last 
reproduction of birds in the wild was in 1996, and the wild population 
declined from 12 birds in 1992 to 2 birds (possibly 3) in 2002, and 
apparent extinction in the wild in 2003.
    Today, the `Alal[amacr] is believed to survive only in captivity. 
Small population size and inbreeding are the primary threats to the 
species at present, fertility and hatching success in captivity are 
currently low, and the incidence of congenital abnormalities is 
increasing.
    Many factors contributed to the decline of `Alal[amacr] in the 
wild. Destruction of most of the lowland forests restricted the bird's 
ability to follow seasonal fruiting up and down the mountains. The 
upland forests have been thinned and fragmented, and many fruiting 
plants lost, due to logging, ranching, and the effects of grazing by 
feral pigs, cattle, and sheep. Mongooses, cats, and rats prey on 
`Alal[amacr] eggs and fledglings. Diseases carried by introduced 
mosquitoes may have cause the mortality of many `Alal[amacr], as they 
did other forest birds. The role of `Io in this decline, however, is 
unknown, despite their known effect on released birds. However, `Io 
densities are higher, and vulnerability of `Alal[amacr] may be greater, 
in areas where ungulate grazing has reduced understory cover.
    The overall objective of this plan is to provide a framework for 
the recovery of the `Alal[amacr] so that its protection under the Act 
is no longer necessary. Recovery is contingent upon protecting and 
managing suitable habitat for reintroduction of `Alal[amacr]. Recovery 
actions include measures to protect habitat where the taxa occurred and 
habitat where the species is not known to have occurred but which may 
be suitable, restoration of degraded habitat, removal of feral 
ungulates from habitat areas, predator control, captive propagation and 
reintroduction, development of strategies to reduce mortality of 
reintroduced `Alal[amacr] by `Io predation, and the development of 
means to address threats of avian disease. Key to recovery will be 
propagation of `Alal[amacr] in captivity; removal of feral ungulates 
that degrade forest habitat, spread introduced nonnative plant species, 
and create breeding sites for disease-carrying mosquitoes; control of 
introduced rodents; removal of feral cats that carry toxoplasmosis; and 
control of invasive plant species. Habitat management and restoration 
will increase foods available to released `Alal[amacr] and provide 
better cover for escape in areas with `Io.
    Significant features of the `Alal[amacr]'s life history, behavior, 
ecological interactions, and habitat needs remain unknown. These 
unknowns, combined with the pressing need to successfully maintain and 
augment the last remaining population of the species in captivity, led 
us to develop a draft revised recovery plan that focuses primarily on 
actions to conserve the `Alal[amacr] in the short-term while working 
within the framework of a broader long-term recovery strategy. This 
draft revised recovery plan is therefore presented in three sections: 
(1) An Introduction and Overview provides information on the biology of 
the species; (2) a Strategic Plan outlines the overall long-term goals 
and broad strategies which we anticipate shall remain effective 
throughout the recovery process for this species; and (3) a 5-year 
Implementation Plan which sets short-term goals for recovery efforts 
and research essential to conservation of the species. It is 
anticipated that new Implementation Plans will be prepared and 
published as addenda to the revised recovery plan every 3 to 5 years as 
we gain further knowledge of the `Alal[amacr] and are better able to 
determine the parameters and techniques for the effective recovery of 
this species in the wild.

Public Comments Solicited

    We solicit written comments on the draft revised recovery plan 
described. All comments received by the date specified above will be 
considered in developing a final revised recovery plan.

Authority

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

    Dated: October 16, 2003.
David J. Wesley,
Regional Director, Region 1, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 03-31166 Filed 12-17-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P