[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 57 (Monday, March 26, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14132-14133]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-5471]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Notice of Availability of a Final Implementation Schedule for the 
South Florida Multi-Species Recovery Plan

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability.

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SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service (``we,'' ``our,'' or 
``Service'') announces the availability of the Implementation schedule 
for the South Florida Multi-Species Recovery Plan (MSRP). The MSRP, as 
approved in 1999, included a discussion of the need for a coordinated 
effort to develop an implementation schedule. This implementation 
schedule was prepared with the assistance of the South Florida Multi-
species/Ecosystem Recovery Implementation Team (MERIT). The 
implementation schedule prioritizes the recovery tasks as described in 
the MSRP on a community level, and identifies the associated 
participating parties, time frames, and costs necessary to accomplish 
those tasks.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the final implementation schedule can be 
downloaded from http://verobeach.fws.gov or can be obtained by 
contacting the Fish and Wildlife Service, South Florida Ecological 
Services Office, 1339 20th Street, Vero Beach, Florida 32960. We 
encourage requests for the CD-ROM version of the implementation 
schedule, as the hard (paper) copy encompasses more than 140 pages.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cindy Schulz at the South Florida 
Ecological Services Office, (772) 562-3909, ext. 305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 2, 2004, we published a notice 
announcing the availability of this technical/agency draft 
implementation schedule in the Federal Register, and opened a 60-day 
public comment period. We particularly sought comments concerning: (1) 
Recommended changes to the priority number for recovery tasks; (2) 
recommendations for additions or deletions to the participants 
identified for each recovery task; and (3) additional information to 
assist us with determining costs for accomplishing recovery tasks. Four 
parties provided comments on ten species. Among those were comments on 
recovery task priority number, participants, and cost. Comments were 
also received on the recovery tasks themselves. We have considered and 
addressed comments where appropriate in this final implementation 
schedule. Those comments, as well as updates by Service staff, led to 
this final version of the implementation schedule that differs from the 
technical/agency draft. The recovery tasks listed in the implementation 
schedule were taken directly from the MSRP. Any changes needed to the 
tasks themselves will be addressed in a future revision of the MSRP 
rather than in the implementation schedule. These changes, if any, 
would be subject to public comment only during such future revision.

Background

    Restoring listed animals and plants to the point where they are 
again secure, self-sustaining components of their ecosystems is a 
primary goal of the Service's threatened and endangered species 
program. To help guide the recovery effort, we prepare recovery plans 
for listed species native to the United States, pursuant to section 
4(f) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended (16 U.S.C. 
et seq.), which requires the development of recovery plans for listed 
species unless such a plan would not promote the conservation of a 
particular species. Recovery plans describe actions that may be 
necessary for conservation of these species, establish criteria for 
reclassification from endangered to threatened status or removal from 
the list, and estimate the time and cost for implementing the needed 
recovery measures.
    Section 4(f) of the Act also requires that a public notice and an 
opportunity for public review and comment be provided during recovery 
plan development. Accordingly, the MSRP was made available for public 
review and comment before its approval in May 1999. The MSRP identifies 
the recovery needs of the 68 threatened and endangered species and 23 
natural communities in the south Florida ecosystem, which encompasses 
67,346 square kilometers (26,002 square miles), covering the 19 
southernmost counties in Florida.

[[Page 14133]]

    The process to develop this final implementation schedule involved 
the collaborative effort of a team appointed by the Service to focus 
specifically on recovery implementation efforts in South Florida. The 
team, known as MERIT, is comprised of 36 members representing Federal, 
State, and local government agencies; Tribal governments; academia; 
industry, and the private sector. MERIT members assisted in assigning 
priorities to recovery tasks, and estimating the duration and possible 
cost to complete each task. They also identified organizations or 
agencies that would likely be involved in accomplishing each task.
    The implementation schedule for the MSRP contains recovery tasks 
for those species that occur only in south Florida, and for which the 
South Florida Ecological Services Office has recovery lead. Other 
Service offices have recovery responsibility for those species that 
occur in south Florida but also occur elsewhere. Implementation 
schedules for those species can be found in the approved individual 
recovery plans for those species. Recovery tasks are provided in this 
implementation schedule for the following species:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Status/species                      Scientific name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mammals:
    E Key deer.........................  Odocoileus virginianus clavium.
    E Key Largo cotton mouse...........  Peromyscus gossypinus
                                          allapaticola.
    E Key Largo woodrat................  Neotoma floridana smalli.
    E Rice rat (= silver rice rat).....  Oryzomys palustris natator (=
                                          O. argentatus.)
    E Lower Keys rabbit................  Sylvilagus palustris hefneri.
Birds:
    T Audubon's crested caracara.......  Polyborus plancus audubonii.
    E Cape Sable seaside sparrow.......  Ammodramus (= Ammospiza)
                                          maritimus mirabilis.
    E Everglade snail kite.............  Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus.
    E Florida grasshopper sparrow......  Ammodramus savannarum
                                          floridanus.
Reptiles:
    PT American crocodile..............  Crocodylus acutus.
    T Bluetail (blue-tailed) mole skink  Eumeces egregius lividus.
    T Sand skink.......................  Neoseps reynoldsi.
Invertebrates:
    E Schaus swallowtail butterfly.....  Heraclides (= Papilio)
                                          aristodemus ponceanus.
    T Stock Island tree snail..........  Orthalicus reses (not incl.
                                          nesodryas.)
Plants:
    E Avon Park harebells..............  Crotalaria avonensis.
    E Beach jacquemontia...............  Jacquemontia reclinata.
    E Beautiful pawpaw.................  Deeringothamnus pulchellus.
    E Carter's mustard.................  Warea carteri.
    E Crenulate lead-plant.............  Amorpha crenulata.
    E Deltoid spurge...................  Chamaesyce (= Euphorbia)
                                          deltoidea spp. deltoidea.
    E Florida perforate cladonia.......  Cladonia perforata.
    E Florida ziziphus.................  Ziziphus celata.
    E Four-petal pawpaw................  Asimina tetramera.
    E Fragrant prickly-apple...........  Cereus eriophorus var.
                                          fragrans.
    T Garber's spurge..................  Chamaesyce (= Euphorbia)
                                          garberi.
    E Garrett's mint...................  Dicerandra christmanii.
    E Highlands scrub hypericum........  Hypericum cumulicola.
    E Key tree-cactus..................  Pilosocereus (= Cereus)
                                          robinii.
    E Lakela's mint....................  Dicerandra immaculata.
    E Lewton's polygala................  Polygala lewtonii.
    E Okeechobee gourd.................  Cucurbita okeechobeensis ssp.
                                          okeechobeensis.
    T Papery whitlow-wort..............  Paronychia chartacea (= Nyachia
                                          pulvinata.)
    T Pigeon wings.....................  Clitoria fragrans.
    E Pygmy fringe-tree................  Chionanthus pygmaeus.
    E Sandlace.........................  Polygonella myriophylla.
    E Scrub blazing star...............  Liatris ohlingerae.
    E Scrub mint.......................  Dicerandra frutescens.
    E Short-leaved rosemary............  Conradina brevifolia.
    E Small's milkpea..................  Galactia smallii.
    E Snakeroot........................  Eryngium cuneifolium.
    E Tiny polygala....................  Polygala smallii.
    E Wireweed.........................  Polygonella basiramia (=
                                          ciliata var. b.)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
E = Endangered, T = Threatened, PT = Proposed for Reclassification to
  Threatened Status.

    To request copies of the final implementation schedule, please see 
the ADDRESSES section above. Paper copies of both the MSRP and the 
final implementation schedule are available for public inspection at 
the South Florida Ecological Services Office.

Authority

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

    Dated: December 27, 2006.
Cynthia K. Dohner,
Acting Regional Director.
 [FR Doc. E7-5471 Filed 3-23-07; 8:45 am]
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