[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 237 (Friday, December 9, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Page 76950]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-31671]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA848


Endangered Species; File No. 16134

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 Virginia Aquarium and Marine 
Science Center Foundation [Responsible Party: Mark Swingle], 717 
General Booth Blvd. Virginia Beach, VA 23451, has applied in due form 
for a permit to take green (Chelonia mydas), Kemp's ridley 
(Lepidochelys kempii), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), leatherback 
(Dermochelys coriacea), and loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtles 
for purposes of scientific research.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or 
before January 9, 2012.

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 File 
No. 16134 from the list of available applications.
    These documents are also available upon written request or by 
appointment in the following offices:

Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 
1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone 
(301) 427-8401; fax (301) 713-0376;
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, FL 
33701; phone (727) 824-5312; fax (727) 824-5309.

    Written comments on this application should be submitted to the 
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division.
     By email to [email protected] (include the File 
No. in the subject line of the email),
     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: Kristy Beard or Amy Hapeman, (301) 
427-8401.

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 
parts 222-226).
    The applicant requests a five-year permit to conduct research on 
leatherback, loggerhead, green, hawksbill, and Kemp's ridley sea 
turtles in mid-Atlantic waters from North Carolina to New Jersey. The 
purposes of the research are to: (1) Update current knowledge of 
loggerhead and Kemp's ridley sea turtle abundance, distribution, 
health, and nutrition in Chesapeake Bay and nearshore Virginia waters, 
(2) compare the relative abundance, size distribution, sex ratio, 
health parameters and genetic diversity of loggerhead and Kemp's ridley 
sea turtles in U.S. mid-Atlantic coastal waters, and (3) build baseline 
data on less common sea turtle species in the region. Researchers would 
directly capture turtles using tangle nets, trawl, or hand/dip net. 
Subject turtles would also be acquired from other legal sources: 
Virginia pound net fisheries and dredge mitigating trawls. The 
following procedures would be conducted on sea turtles: Epibiota 
removal, satellite tag, temporarily mark the carapace, attach flipper 
and passive integrated transponder tags, measure, photograph, oral 
swab, weigh, and sample blood, feces, keratin, and tissue. Sea turtles 
would then be released. A subset of animals would be transported back 
to the laboratory for laparoscopy, ultrasound, imaging, and muscle, 
lesion, and fat biopsy. Up to two sea turtles of any species could be 
lethally taken annually during trawling.

    Dated: December 5, 2011.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-31671 Filed 12-8-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P