[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 70 (Wednesday, April 12, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18726-18727]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-5407]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 033006A]


Endangered Species; File No. 1572

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

[[Page 18727]]

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Amanda Southwood, Department of 
Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 
601 S. College Road, Wilmington, North Carolina 28403, has applied in 
due form for a permit to take loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green 
(Chelonia mydas), and Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles 
for purposes of scientific research.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or e-mail comments must be received on or 
before May 12, 2006.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review upon written request or by appointment in the following 
office(s):
    Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 
20910; phone (301)713-2289; fax (301)427-2521; and
    Southeast Region, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 
33701; phone (727)824-5312; fax (727)824-5309.
    Written comments or requests for a public hearing on this 
application should be mailed to the Chief, Permits, Conservation and 
Education Division, F/PR1, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 
East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Those 
individuals requesting a hearing should set forth the specific reasons 
why a hearing on this particular request would be appropriate.
    Comments may also be submitted by facsimile at (301)427-2521, 
provided the facsimile is confirmed by hard copy submitted by mail and 
postmarked no later than the closing date of the comment 
period.Comments may also be submitted by e-mail. The mailbox address 
for providing email comments is [email protected]. Include in 
the subject line of the e-mail comment the following document 
identifier: File No. 1572.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patrick Opay or Kate Swails, (301)713-
2289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permit is requested under the 
authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the regulations governing the taking, 
importing, and exporting of endangered and threatened species (50 CFR 
222-226).
    The purpose of the research would be to assess the physiological 
response of loggerhead, green, and Kemp's ridley sea turtles to 
entanglement in fishing gear, identify post-release mortality events, 
and integrate these data to assess the feasibility of using biochemical 
indices as predictors of post-release mortality. The research would 
also provide information on the movements of sea turtles utilizing the 
lower Cape Fear River. Researchers would annually capture up to 20 
loggerhead, 20 green, and 5 Kemp's ridley sea turtles for a 3-year 
period using gillnets. Animals would be measured, weighed, blood 
sampled, passive integrated transponder tagged, satellite transmitter 
tagged, VHF tagged and tracked, have their cloacal body temperature 
taken, and be released. Up to 30 percent of the animals captured could 
die after release.

    Dated: April 6, 2006.
Stephen L. Leathery,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E6-5407 Filed 4-11-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S