[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 105 (Thursday, June 1, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31164-31165]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-8405]


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

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 050206B]


Endangered Species; File No. 1571

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permit.

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

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS, Southeast Fisheries Science 
Center (SEFSC), 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, Florida 33149 has been 
issued a permit to take green (Chelonia mydas), loggerhead (Caretta 
caretta), Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), hawksbill (Eretmochelys 
imbricata), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), olive ridley 
(Lepidochelys olivacea), and unidentified hardshell sea turtles for 
purposes of scientific research.

ADDRESSES: The permit and related documents are available for review 
upon written request or by appointment in the following 
offices: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;Southeast 
Region, NMFS, 263 13th Ave South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701; phone 
(727)824-5312; fax (727)824-5309.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 22, 2006 notice was published in 
the Federal Register (71 FR 14504) that a request for a scientific 
research permit to take green, loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, hawksbill, 
leatherback, olive ridley, and unidentified hardshell sea turtles had 
been submitted by the above-named organization. The requested permit 
has been issued 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 parts 222-226).
    The SEFSC will handle, measure, weigh, photograph, flipper tag, 
passive

[[Page 31165]]

integrated transponder tag, skin biopsy, and release green, loggerhead, 
Kemp's ridley, hawksbill, leatherback, olive ridley, and unidentified 
hardshell (combination of green, loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, hawksbill, 
olive ridley, or hybrids that would not be able to be identified at the 
time of capture) sea turtles. In addition, turtle carcasses, tissues or 
parts will be collected annually from incidental lethal take that has 
been previously authorized. Turtles that are incidentally captured 
during resource assessment cruises will be used by the SEFSC in their 
assessments of distribution and abundance of turtles, as well as the 
cumulative impacts of the relevant fishery on the stocks. The 
incidental capture will accrue to and be authorized by the fisheries 
being researched. The research will use cruise surveys as a platform to 
fill in data gaps in the basic biology of sea turtles, provide 
information on population dynamics to improve stock assessments, and to 
better understand the distribution of turtles in time and space. The 
information will be used to develop, implement, and evaluate 
conservation recovery efforts for sea turtles. The research will take 
place in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, and their 
tributaries. The permit is issued for 5 years.
    Issuance of this permit, as required by the ESA, was based on a 
finding that such permit (1) Was applied for in good faith, (2) will 
not operate to the disadvantage of any endangered or threatened 
species, and (3) is consistent with the purposes and policies set forth 
in section 2 of the ESA.

    Dated: May 24, 2006.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E6-8405 Filed 5-31-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S