[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 183 (Wednesday, September 21, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58469-58471]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-24243]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA713


Endangered Species; File Nos. 16526, 16323, 16436, 16422, 16438, 
16431, 16507, 16547, 16375, 16442, 16482, and 16508.

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of applications.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS has received twelve 
applications applying in due form for permits to take Atlantic sturgeon 
(Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus) for purposes of scientific research.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or e-mail comments must be received on or 
before October 21, 2011.

ADDRESSES: The application 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, and then selecting 
associated File No. from the list of available applications.
    These documents are also available upon written request or by 
appointment in the offices listed in SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
    Written comments on this application should be submitted to the 
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705,

[[Page 58470]]

Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone (301) 427-8401; fax (301) 713-0376
     By e-mail to [email protected] (include the File 
No. in the subject line of the e-mail),
     By facsimile to (301) 713-0376, or
     At the address listed above.
    Those individuals requesting a public hearing should submit a 
written request to the Chief, Permits and Conservation Division at the 
address listed above. The request should set forth the specific reasons 
why a hearing on this application would be appropriate.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Malcolm Mohead or Colette Cairns, 
(301) 427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permits are 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).
    Each of the twelve applications is summarized below. For specific 
take numbers of each research project, please refer to the associated 
application.
    Gail Wippelhauser, PhD, [File No. 16526] of the Maine Department of 
Marine Resources, 21 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333, requests a 
five year permit to determine the movement patterns and rate of 
exchange between coastal river systems in Maine, characterize the 
population structure and generate estimates of population abundance. 
Researchers would capture adult, juvenile, and early life stage 
Atlantic sturgeon. Individuals would be measured, weighed, 
photographed, PIT tagged, Floy/T-bar tagged, tissue sampled, 
boroscoped, apical spine sampled, blood sampled, anesthetized, fin ray 
sectioned, and be implanted with an acoustic telemetry tag.
    Tom Savoy [File No. 16323] of the Connecticut Department of 
Environmental Protection, Marine Fisheries, P.O. Box 719, Old Lyme, CT 
06371, requests a five year permit to monitor Atlantic sturgeon 
populations to determine behavior, movement and current status of the 
species in Connecticut waters. Adult and juvenile Atlantic sturgeon 
would be measured, weighed, photographed, PIT and Floy/T-bar tagged, 
genetic tissue sampled, anesthetized and have a fin ray clipped for 
ageing analysis, and a subset would be implanted with an internal sonic 
tag to assess movement patterns.
    Kathryn Hattala [File No. 16436] of New York State Department of 
Environmental Conservation, 21 South Putt Corners Road, New Paltz, NY 
12561, requests a five year permit to research Atlantic sturgeon in the 
Hudson River estuary, specifically to assess abundance of juveniles, 
characterize the adult spawning stock, and generate population 
estimates. Captured Atlantic sturgeon would be measured, weighed, PIT 
and dart tagged, tissue sampled, implanted with an external telemetry 
tag, anesthetized and gastric lavaged.
    Stony Brook University (Keith Dunton, Responsible Party) [File No. 
16422], School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook, NY 
11794-5000, requests a five year permit to research Atlantic sturgeon 
in the marine and estuarine waters of Connecticut, New York, New 
Jersey, and Delaware. To characterize Atlantic sturgeon aggregations, 
Atlantic sturgeon would be captured, measured, weighed, Carlin/Dart 
tagged, PIT tagged, anesthetized, fin ray sampled, and genetic tissue 
sampled. Some sturgeon would additionally be implanted internally with 
a satellite tag, and others would be fitted with an external pop-up 
satellite tag. A subset of fish would be gastric lavaged, blood sampled 
and gill biopsied.
    Hal Brundage [File No. 16438] of Environmental Research and 
Consulting, Inc., 126 Bancroft Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348, requests 
a five year permit to study juvenile Atlantic sturgeon abundance, 
distribution, movement, habitat preferences and biology in the Delaware 
River and Bay. The applicant would capture, measure, weigh, photograph, 
PIT and Floy tag, genetic tissue sample juvenile Atlantic sturgeon. A 
subset would be selected and be anesthetized, gastric lavaged, blood 
sampled, and implanted an internal sonic tag. Early life stage fish 
would also be lethally sampled.
    Matthew Fisher [File No. 16431] of the Delaware Division of Fish 
and Wildlife, 4876 Hay Point Landing Road, Smyrna, DE 19977, requests a 
five year permit to sample juvenile Atlantic sturgeon in the Delaware 
River to locate nursery habitat, characterize population ecology and 
habitat use. Fish would be captured using gill nets, measured, weighed, 
photographed, PIT and Floy tagged, tissue sampled, anesthetized, 
gastric lavaged, and implanted with an internal sonic tag.
    Dewayne Fox, PhD, [File No. 16507] of Delaware State University, 
1200 North DuPont Highway, Dover, DE 19901, requests a five year permit 
to sample Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon in the Delaware River and 
Bay, as well as in the coastal waters of Delaware. The objectives of 
this research are to provide more detailed information on the spawning 
location of Atlantic sturgeon and to develop a fishery independent 
sampling program to help assess recovery of the species. The applicant 
would use gill nets to capture adult and juvenile Atlantic sturgeon and 
egg mats to capture larval fish. Adult and juvenile Atlantic sturgeon 
would be measured, weighed, photographed, PIT and Floy tagged, and 
tissue sampled; a subset would be anesthetized, implanted with an 
internal sonic tag and gonad tissue sampled.
    Albert Spells of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 11110 Kimages 
Road, Charles City, VA 23030 (Responsible Party) [File No. 16547] 
requests a five year permit in conjunction with other investigators in 
Maryland and Virginia to study Atlantic sturgeon in the Chesapeake Bay 
and its tributaries. Adult and juvenile Atlantic sturgeon would be 
captured using gill nets, trawls, fyke nets, trammel nets, and pound 
nets, and larval fish would be collected using egg mats. Adult and 
juvenile fish would be measured, weighed, tissue sampled, PIT and Floy 
tagged, and a subset of fish would have an external satellite tag 
attached.
    Joe Hightower, PhD, [File No. 16375] of North Carolina State 
University, Campus Box 7617, Raleigh, NC 27695-7617, requests a five-
year permit to determine the presence, abundance, and distribution of 
Atlantic sturgeon in North Carolina rivers and estuaries. The applicant 
would use gill nets to capture adult and juvenile Atlantic sturgeon. 
Captured fish would be measured, weighed, photographed, PIT tagged, 
Floy tagged, tissue sampled, and a sub-set would be implanted with an 
internal sonic tag.
    Bill Post, [File No. 16442] of the South Carolina Department of 
Natural Resources, 217 Fort Johnson Road, Charleston, SC 29412, 
requests a five year permit to conduct scientific research on Atlantic 
sturgeon in the rivers and estuaries of South Carolina. Adult and 
juvenile Atlantic sturgeon would be captured using gill nets, and 
measured, weighed, photographed, PIT and dart tagged, tissue sampled, 
and a sub-set would be implanted with an internal satellite tag. Young 
of the year fish would be captured using trawls, and measured and 
weighed; larval fish would be collected with egg mats. This research 
would contribute to knowledge about Atlantic sturgeon coastal 
migrations and riverine movement patterns and information on the status 
of the species.
    Doug Peterson, PhD, [File No. 16482] of the University of Georgia 
Warnell School of Forestry and Natural

[[Page 58471]]

Resources Fisheries Division, Athens, GA 30602, requests a five year 
permit to determine population dynamics and seasonal habitat use of 
Atlantic sturgeon in Georgia. Gill nets and trammel nets would be used 
to capture adult and juvenile Atlantic sturgeon, which would be 
measured, weighed, photographed, PIT and Floy tagged, tissue sampled; a 
sub-set would also be anesthetized, laproscoped, fin ray clipped, and 
implanted with an internal satellite tag. Egg mats and D-frame nets 
would be used to collect larval fish.
    Kenneth Sulak, PhD, [File No. 16508] of the U.S. Geological Survey, 
Florida Integrated Science Center, 7920 NW., 71st Street, Gainesville, 
FL 32653, requests a five year permit to identify and track Atlantic 
sturgeon in Florida and Georgia rivers. Adult and juvenile Atlantic 
sturgeon would be captured using a combination of side-scan sonar and 
gill nets. Captured individuals would be measured, weighed, 
photographed, PIT and Floy tagged, tissue sampled, and have an external 
satellite tag attached.
    Documents may be reviewed in the following locations:
    Northeast Region, NMFS, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 
01930; phone (978) 281-9328; fax (978) 281-9394; and
    Southeast Region, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, Saint Petersburg, 
Florida 33701; phone (727) 824-5312; fax (727) 824-5309.

    Dated: September 15, 2011.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-24243 Filed 9-20-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P