[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 248 (Wednesday, December 24, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79058-79059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-30713]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XM36


Marine Mammals; File No. 1058-1733

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application for amendment.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Mark Baumgartner, Ph.D., MS 
33, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Woods Hole, 
Massachusetts, 02543, has requested an modification to scientific 
research Permit No. 1058-1733.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or e-mail comments must be received on or 
before January 23, 2009.

ADDRESSES: The amendment request and related documents are available 
for review by selecting ``Records Open for Public Comment'' from the 
Features box on the Applications and Permits for Protected Species 
(APPS) home page, https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov/index.cfm, and then 
selecting File No. 1058-1733 from the list of available applications. 
These documents also 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 and
    Northeast Region, NMFS, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 
01930; phone (978)281-9300; fax (978)281-9333.
    Written comments or requests for a public hearing on this request 
should be submitted 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 modification 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 e-mail comments is [email protected]. Include in the 
subject line of the e-mail comment the following document identifier: 
File No. 1058-1733.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject amendment to Permit No. 1058-
1733 is requested under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection 
Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the regulations 
governing the taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216), 
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (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).
    Permit No. 1058-1733, issued on June 27, 2007 (72 FR 36429), 
authorizes the permit holder to examine baleen whale foraging and 
diving behaviors in the Southern Ocean as well as to determine the 
overlap of diving behaviors with the vertical structure of fixed 
fishing gear in the North Atlantic Ocean. In the Southern Ocean, 
researchers may closely approach humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae), 
blue (Balaenoptera musculus), fin (B. physalus), sei (B. borealis), and 
Antarctic minke (B. bonaerensis) whales during vessel surveys for 
photo-identification,

[[Page 79059]]

behavioral observation, suction-cup tagging, tracking, and incidental 
harassment. In the North Atlantic, researchers may closely approach up 
to 324 of each species of humpback, fin, and sei whales annually during 
vessel surveys for photo-identification, behavioral observation, 
tracking, and incidental harassment. Of these animals, up to 108 of 
each species may be suction-cup tagged annually during surveys.
    The permit holder requests an amendment to the permit to authorize 
the close vessel approach of up to 90 animals of each of the following 
species annually for suction-cup tagging: North Atlantic right 
(Eubalaena glacialis), North Pacific right (E. japonica), blue, and 
Eastern gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) and up to 180 bowhead 
whales (Balaena mysticetus) in North Pacific, Arctic and/or North 
Atlantic waters. Dr. Baumgartner also requests to closely approach up 
to 45 animals each of the following species annually for satellite 
tagging using dermal attachments: North Pacific right, and Eastern gray 
whales and North Atlantic right, blue, humpback, fin, and sei whales 
and up to 180 bowhead whales in North Atlantic, North Pacific and/or 
Arctic waters. Dr. Baumgartner could incidentally harass up to 800 
animals of each species during close vessel approaches annually. This 
research will provide a better understanding of large whale 
distribution and foraging ecology by gathering data on predator-prey 
relationships, diving behavior, day vs. night behavior, and acoustic 
behavior. The amendment would be valid until the permit expires on May 
31, 2012.
    Concurrent with the publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register, NMFS is forwarding copies of this application to the Marine 
Mammal Commission and its Committee of Scientific Advisors.

    Dated: December 18, 2008.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8-30713 Filed 12-23-08; 8:45 am]
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