[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 116 (Friday, June 16, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Page 34896]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-9501]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 060706D]


Endangered Species; File No. 1578

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

ACTION: Notice; Receipt of application.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Maine Department of Marine 
Resources (MDMR) (Gail S. Wippelhauser, Principal Investigator), 21 
State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333 has applied in due form for a 
permit to take shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum) for purposes 
of scientific research.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or e-mail comments must be received on or 
before July 17, 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
    Northeast Region, NMFS, One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-
2298; phone (978)281-9328; fax (978)281-9394.
    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 email. The mailbox address for 
providing email comments is [email protected]. Include in the 
subject line of the email comment the following document identifier: 
File No. 1578.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate Swails or Shane Guan (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 applicant proposes to determine the location of spawning and 
feeding habitat, and migratory pathways of sturgeon in the Penobscot 
and Kennebec Rivers in Maine. The study would also determine the impact 
of river flows on migration and habitat use. Researchers would annually 
capture up to 250 sturgeon from the Penobscot River during the study's 
first three years. Up to 500 sturgeon would be captured annually from 
the Kennebec River during the last two years of the study. Sturgeon 
would be captured with gillnets, measured, weighed, tissue sampled, 
Passive Integrated Transponder tagged, and released. A sample of 
sturgeon would be acoustic tagged. Researchers would also sample for 
eggs and larvae. The permit would be issued for five-years.

    Dated: June 12, 2006.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E6-9501 Filed 6-15-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S