[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 42 (Friday, March 2, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12870-12871]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-5021]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R9-IA-2012-N048; FXIA16710900000P5-123-FF09A30000]


Endangered Species; Marine Mammals; Receipt of Applications for 
Permit

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of receipt of applications for permit.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to 
comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities 
with endangered species, marine mammals, or both. With some exceptions, 
the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Marine Mammal Protection Act 
(MMPA) prohibit activities with listed species unless Federal 
authorization is acquired that allows such activities.

DATES: We must receive comments or requests for documents on or before 
April 2, 2012. We must receive requests for marine mammal permit public 
hearings, in writing, at the address shown in the ADDRESSES section by 
April 2, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Brenda Tapia, Division of Management Authority, U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 212, Arlington, VA 
22203; fax (703) 358-2280; or email [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brenda Tapia, (703) 358-2104 
(telephone); (703) 358-2280 (fax); [email protected] (email).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Public Comment Procedures

A. How do I request copies of applications or comment on submitted 
applications?

    Send your request for copies of applications or comments and 
materials concerning any of the applications to the contact listed 
under ADDRESSES. Please include the Federal Register notice publication 
date, the PRT-number, and the name of the applicant in your request or 
submission. We will not consider requests or comments sent to an email 
or address not listed under ADDRESSES. If you provide an email address 
in your request for copies of applications, we will attempt to respond 
to your request electronically.
    Please make your requests or comments as specific as possible. 
Please confine your comments to issues for which we seek comments in 
this notice, and explain the basis for your comments. Include 
sufficient information with your comments to allow us to authenticate 
any scientific or commercial data you include.
    The comments and recommendations that will be most useful and 
likely to influence agency decisions are: (1) Those supported by 
quantitative information or studies; and (2) Those that include 
citations to, and analyses of, the applicable laws and regulations. We 
will not consider or include in our administrative record comments we 
receive after the close of the comment period (see DATES) or comments 
delivered to an address other than those listed above (see ADDRESSES).

B. May I review comments submitted by others?

    Comments, including names and street addresses of respondents, will 
be available for public review at the address listed under ADDRESSES. 
The public may review documents and other information applicants have 
sent in support of the application unless our allowing viewing would 
violate the Privacy Act or Freedom of Information Act. Before including 
your address, phone number, email address, or other personal 
identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your 
entire comment--including your personal identifying information--may be 
made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your 
comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public 
review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

II. Background

    To help us carry out our conservation responsibilities for affected 
species, and in consideration of section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and the 
Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et 
seq.), along with Executive Order 13576, ``Delivering an Efficient, 
Effective, and Accountable Government,'' and the President's Memorandum 
for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies of January 21, 
2009--Transparency and Open Government (74 FR 4685; January 26, 2009), 
which call on all Federal agencies to promote openness and transparency 
in Government by disclosing information to the public, we invite public 
comment on these permit applications before final action is taken. 
Under the MMPA, you may request a hearing on any MMPA application 
received. If you request a hearing, give specific reasons why a hearing 
would be appropriate. The holding of such a hearing is at the 
discretion of the Service Director.

III. Permit Applications

A. Endangered Species

Applicant: University of Tennessee, College of Veterinary Medicine, 
Knoxville, TN; PRT-60971A
    The applicant requests a permit to import biological samples from 3 
captive born cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) for the purpose of scientific 
research on the incidence of feline infectious peritonitis in the 
cheetahs at the Toronto Zoo, Ontario, Canada.
Applicant: Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project, Baltimore, MD; PRT-
117181
    The applicant requests renewal of a permit to import biological 
samples from wild and captive-held Eastern Gorilla (Gorilla beringei), 
Western Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla), bonobo (Pan paniscus), chimpanzee 
(Pan troglodytes), and L'hoest's monkey (Cercopithecus lhostei) for the 
purpose of scientific research to determine the presence and/or 
prevalence of infectious diseases within and between these species in 
Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This 
notification covers activities to be conducted by the applicant over a 
5-year period.
Applicant: Birds N Beasts Inc., Las Vegas, NV; PRT-62008A
    The applicant requests a permit to purchase in interstate commerce 
one

[[Page 12871]]

male captive-bred Andean condor (Vultur gryphus), for the purpose of 
enhancement of the species through conservation education and captive 
propagation.
Multiple Applicants
    The following applicants each request a permit to import the sport-
hunted trophy of one male bontebok (Damaliscus pygargus pygargus) 
culled from a captive herd maintained under the management program of 
the Republic of South Africa, for the purpose of enhancement of the 
survival of the species.
Applicant: Michael Bowers, Oro Grande, CA; PRT-64010A
Applicant: Ralph Rocca, Apple Valley, CA; PRT-64011A

B. Endangered Marine Mammals

Applicant: Cathy Walsh, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, FL; PRT-
58292A
    The applicant requests a permit to take biological specimens from 
up to 30 wild and up to 20 captive held Florida manatee (Trichechus 
manatus) annually for the purpose of scientific research. This 
notification covers activities to be conducted by the applicant over a 
5-year period.
    Concurrent with publishing this notice in the Federal Register, we 
are forwarding copies of the above applications to the Marine Mammal 
Commission and the Committee of Scientific Advisors for their review.

Brenda Tapia,
Program Analyst/Data Administrator, Branch of Permits, Division of 
Management Authority.
[FR Doc. 2012-5021 Filed 3-1-12; 8:45 am]
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