[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 233 (Tuesday, December 4, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 71759-71771]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-29188]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

[Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2012-0079; 4500030113]


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 90-Day Finding on 
a Petition To List the Prairie Gray Fox, the Plains Spotted Skunk, and 
a Distinct Population Segment of the Mearn's Eastern Cottontail in 
East-Central Illinois and Western Indiana as Endangered or Threatened 
Species

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of 90-day petition finding and initiation of status 
review.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 
90-day finding on a petition to list the prairie gray fox (Urocyon 
cinereoargenteus ocythous), the plains spotted skunk (Spilogale 
putorius interrupta), and a distinct population segment (DPS) of the 
Mearn's eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus mearnsi) in Illinois 
and western Indiana as endangered or threatened species under the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Based on our review, 
we find that the petition presents substantial scientific or commercial 
information that listing the prairie gray fox and the plains spotted 
skunk may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this notice, 
we initiate a review of the status of the prairie gray fox and the 
plains spotted skunk to determine if listing either of these subspecies 
is warranted. To ensure that this status review is comprehensive, we 
are requesting scientific and commercial data and other information 
regarding these subspecies. Based on the status review, we will issue a 
12-month finding on the petition, which will address whether the 
petitioned action is warranted, as provided in section 4(b)(3)(B) of 
the Act.
    We also evaluated whether the petition presents substantial 
information to indicate whether or not the Mearn's eastern cottontail 
in east-central Illinois and western Indiana qualifies as a DPS that 
may be warranted for listing. Based on our review, we conclude that the 
petition does not provide substantial information indicating that 
population of Mearn's eastern cottontail in east-central Illinois and 
western Indiana is a listable entity under the Act. Because the 
petition does not present substantial information indicating that the 
population of Mearn's eastern cottontail in east-central Illinois and 
western Indiana may be a listable entity, we did not evaluate whether 
or not the information contained in the petition regarding threats to 
that population was substantial. We are not initiating a status review 
in response to this petition for Mearn's eastern cottontail in east-
central Illinois and western Indiana. However, we ask the public to 
submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the 
status of, or threats to, the Mearn's eastern cottontail or its habitat 
at any time.

DATES: The finding announced in this document was made on December 4, 
2012.
    We request that we receive information on or before February 4, 
2013. The deadline for submitting an electronic comment using the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal (see ADDRESSES section, below) is 11:59 p.m. 
Eastern Time on this date. After February 4, 2013, you must submit 
information directly to the Division of Policy and Directives 
Management (see ADDRESSES section below). Please note that we might not 
be able to address or incorporate information that we receive after the 
above requested date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit information on the prairie gray fox and the 
plains spotted skunk, by one of the following methods:
    (1) Electronically: Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Search for Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2012-0079, which 
is the docket number for this action. Then click on the Search button. 
You may submit a comment by clicking on ``Comment Now!.''
    (2) By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public 
Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R3-ES-2012-0079; Division of Policy and 
Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 N. Fairfax 
Drive, MS 2042-PDM; Arlington, VA 22203.
    We will not accept email or faxes. We will post all information we 
receive on http://www.regulations.gov. This generally means that we 
will post any personal information you provide us (see the Request for 
Information section below for more details).
    This finding is available on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov at Docket Number FWS-R3-ES-2012-0079. Supporting 
documentation we used in preparing this finding is available for public 
inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service, Rock Island, Illinois Ecological Service 
Field Office, 1511 4th Ave., Moline, IL 61265. Please submit any new 
information, materials, comments, or questions concerning the finding 
on the prairie gray fox and the plains spotted skunk to the Rock 
Island, Illinois Ecological Services Field Office at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Prairie Gray Fox and Mearn's Eastern Cottontail

    Richard Nelson, Field Supervisor, Rock Island, Illinois Ecological 
Service Field Office, 1511 4th Ave., Moline, IL 61265; by telephone at 
309-757-5800; or by facsimile at 309-757-5804. If you use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), please call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.

Plains Spotted Skunk

    Amy Salveter, Field Supervisor, Missouri Ecological Services Field 
Office, 101 Park DeVille Drive, Suite A, Columbia, MO 65203; by 
telephone at 573-234-2132; or by facsimile at 573-234-2181. If you use 
a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), please call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Request for Information

    When we make a finding that a petition presents substantial 
information indicating that listing a species may be warranted, we are 
required to promptly initiate review of the status of the species 
(status review). For the status review to be complete and based on the 
best available scientific and commercial information, we request 
information on the prairie gray fox and the plains spotted skunk from 
governmental agencies, Native American tribes, the scientific 
community, industry, and any other interested parties. We seek 
information on:
    (1) The species' biology, range, and population trends, including:
    (a) Habitat requirements for feeding, breeding, and sheltering;
    (b) Genetics and taxonomy;
    (c) Historical and current range, including distribution patterns;
    (d) Historical and current population levels, and current and 
projected trends; and
    (e) Past and ongoing conservation measures for the species, its 
habitat, or both.
    (2) The factors that are the basis for making a listing 
determination for a species under section 4(a) of the Act (16 U.S.C. 
1531 et seq.), which are:

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    (a) The present or threatened destruction, modification, or 
curtailment of its habitat or range;
    (b) Overutilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or 
educational purposes;
    (c) Disease or predation;
    (d) The inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms; or
    (e) Other natural or manmade factors affecting its continued 
existence.
    (3) Information regarding overharvest and disease as potential 
ongoing threats to the plains spotted skunk and prairie gray fox.
    (4) Information regarding the impacts of pesticides on food 
availability for the plains spotted skunk.
    (5) Information regarding the impacts of predation by coyotes and 
bobcats on the prairie gray fox.
    If, after the status review, we determine that listing the prairie 
gray fox or the plains spotted skunk is warranted, we will propose 
critical habitat (see definition in section 3(5)(A) of the Act) under 
section 4 of the Act, to the maximum extent prudent and determinable at 
the time we propose to list the species. Therefore, we also request 
data and information on:
    (1) What may constitute ``physical or biological features essential 
to the conservation of the species,'' within the geographical range 
currently occupied by the species;
    (2) Where these features are currently found;
    (3) Whether any of these features may require special management 
considerations or protection;
    (4) Specific areas outside the geographical area occupied by the 
species that are ``essential for the conservation of the species''; and
    (5) What, if any, critical habitat you think we should propose for 
designation if one or both of the species are proposed for listing, and 
why such habitat meets the requirements of section 4 of the Act.
    Please include sufficient information with your submission (such as 
scientific journal articles or other publications) to allow us to 
verify any scientific or commercial information you include.
    Submissions merely stating support for or opposition to the action 
under consideration without providing supporting information, although 
noted, will not be considered in making a determination. Section 
4(b)(1)(A) of the Act directs that determinations as to whether any 
species is an endangered or threatened species must be made ``solely on 
the basis of the best scientific and commercial data available.''
    You may submit your information concerning this status review by 
one of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. If you submit 
information via http://www.regulations.gov, your entire submission--
including any personal identifying information--will be posted on the 
Web site. If your submission is made via a hardcopy that includes 
personal identifying information, you may request at the top of your 
document that we withhold this personal identifying information from 
public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do 
so. We will post all hardcopy submissions on http://www.regulations.gov.

Background

    Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Act requires that we make a finding on 
whether a petition to list, delist, or reclassify a species presents 
substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the 
petitioned action may be warranted. We are to base this finding on 
information provided in the petition, supporting information submitted 
with the petition, and information otherwise available in our files. To 
the maximum extent practicable, we are to make this finding within 90 
days of our receipt of the petition and publish our notice of the 
finding promptly in the Federal Register.
    Our standard for substantial scientific or commercial information 
within the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) with regard to a 90-day 
petition finding is ``that amount of information that would lead a 
reasonable person to believe that the measure proposed in the petition 
may be warranted'' (50 CFR 424.14(b)). If we find that substantial 
scientific or commercial information was presented, we are required to 
promptly initiate a species status review, which we subsequently 
summarize in our 12-month finding.

Petition History

    On July 18, 2011, we received a petition from Mr. David Wade and 
Dr. Thomas Alton, requesting that five or six entities of grassland 
thicket species or subspecies be listed as endangered or threatened 
under the Act. The petition clearly identified itself as such and 
included the requisite identification information for the petitioners, 
required at 50 CFR 424.14(a). However, while reviewing the petition, we 
determined that the petition did not clearly state which species were 
included in the petition. Therefore, in a September 2, 2011, letter to 
the petitioners, we provided the petitioners with an opportunity to 
revise the petition to clearly identify the petitioned entities, which 
the petitioners accepted in a September 12, 2011, response to our 
letter. On January 23, 2012, we received a revised petition from Mr. 
David Wade and Dr. Thomas Alton, requesting that the prairie gray fox 
(Urocyon cinereoargenteus ocythous), the plains spotted skunk 
(Spilogale putorius interrupta), and a DPS of the Mearn's eastern 
cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus mearnsi) in Illinois and western 
Indiana be listed as endangered or threatened species under the Act. In 
a January 30, 2012, letter to the petitioners, we responded that we 
reviewed the information presented in the petition and determined that 
issuing an emergency regulation temporarily listing the species under 
section 4(b)(7) of the Act was not warranted as each of the three 
petitioned species has extant populations in several States and most of 
the threats mentioned in the petition are not immediate in nature. This 
finding addresses the petition.

Previous Federal Action(s)

    To date, no Federal actions have been taken with regard to the 
prairie gray fox, the plains spotted skunk, or the Mearn's eastern 
cottontail.

Species Information

Plains Spotted Skunk (Spilogale putorius interrupta)
    The plains spotted skunk is one of three recognized subspecies of 
the eastern spotted skunk (Spilogale putorius); the other two 
recognized subspecies are S. p. ambarvalis (no common name) and S. p. 
putorius (no common name) (Kinlaw 1995, p. 1). Spotted skunks are 
members of the Order Carnivora and Family Mephitidae. Eastern spotted 
skunks are distinct from western spotted skunks (S. gracilis) based on 
reproductive and geographic isolation (Kinlaw 1995, p. 1). Little 
variation in skull or body measurements exists among the plains spotted 
skunk subspecies (Van Gelder 1959, p. 270). The plains spotted skunk 
can be distinguished from other subspecies by the reduced amount of 
white on its body, particularly the entirely black tail (Van Gelder 
1959, pp. 269-270). We accept the characterization of the plains 
spotted skunk as a subspecies because of morphological distinction of 
its color pattern from other subspecies of eastern spotted skunk (Van 
Gelder 1959, pp. 269-270). We consider information that refers to the 
eastern spotted skunk where it occurs in the delineated range of the 
plains spotted skunk to represent the plains spotted skunk.
    Both the plains spotted skunk and striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) 
have contrasting black and white markings;

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however, they are easily distinguished by size (spotted skunks are 
substantially smaller) and color pattern. The plains spotted skunk is a 
small, slender mammal with short legs and a tail with prominent, long 
hairs. Body weight ranges from 300 to 1,300 grams (g) (0.75 to 2.75 
pounds (lb)), and total length ranges from 36 to 61 centimeters (cm) 
(14 to 23.75 inches (in)) (Hazard 1982, p. 143; Schwartz and Schwartz 
2001, p. 325). In contrast, the striped skunk's average weight is 6,300 
g (14 lb), and its length is 80 cm (31.5 in). The plains spotted skunk 
is black overall with narrow, white stripes and spots. Four stripes on 
the neck, back, and sides run longitudinally from the head to the 
middle of the body. The four white stripes break into patches or spots 
on the hindquarters. There is a white spot on the forehead and in front 
of each ear (Hazard 1982, p. 143; Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 325).
    Habitat associations of this subspecies are likely influenced by 
whether it is using a natural or human-dominated landscape. The 
subspecies lives in a wide range of habitats including forests, 
prairies, brushy areas, farmyards, and cultivated land (Crabb 1948, pp. 
212-215; Edmonds 1974, p. 12; Kinlaw 1995, p. 4; Schwartz and Schwartz 
2001, p. 327). Regardless of habitat type used, the plains spotted 
skunk requires extensive vegetative cover. Brushy borders along fields, 
fence rows, farm buildings, wood piles, heavily vegetated gullies, leaf 
litter, or downed logs may provide the required extensive cover, which 
primarily provides protection from predators (Kinlaw 1995, p. 4; 
Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327; Lesmeister 2008, pp. 1517-1518). 
Nowak (1999, p. 734) notes that spotted skunks avoid dense forests; 
however, plains spotted skunks are more likely to occur where the 
landscape is composed of a high proportion of forest cover (Hackett 
2008, pp. 52-54), and they use oak-hickory forests more than old fields 
or glades (McCullough 1983, pp. 40-43). Within forest habitats studied 
by McCullough (1983, p. 41) and Lesmeister (2007, p. 21), skunks used 
young, dense forest stands or stands with downed logs and slash more 
often than mature stands with open understories and clean forest 
floors. Spotted skunks also require an early successional (process by 
which ecological communities undergo changes following disturbance) 
component to their habitat to provide cover and denning areas 
(Lesmeister 2007, p. 56; Lesmeister et al. 2009, pp. 23-24).
    Dens can be located above ground or below ground. In natural 
landscapes, plains spotted skunks den in grassy banks and crevices or 
cavities under rock piles, hollow logs, and stumps (Kinlaw 1995, p. 4; 
Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327). In landscapes dominated by humans, 
they den in shelterbelts (row of trees planted to provide shelter from 
wind), fencerows, farm buildings, haystacks, woodpiles, or corn cribs 
(Crabb 1948, pp. 214-215; Hazard 1982, p. 144; Jones et al. 1983, p. 
302; Kinlaw 1995, p. 4; Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327). Plains 
spotted skunks might dig their own dens, but they often use burrows 
excavated by other animals, such as Franklin's ground squirrel 
(Spermophilus franklinii), thirteen-lined ground squirrel (S. 
tridecemlineatus), woodchuck (Marmota monax), long-tailed weasel 
(Mustela frenata), striped skunk, and woodrats (Neotoma spp.) (Crabb 
1948, p. 212; Kinlaw, 1995, p. 4; Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327). 
Crabb (1948, p. 212) noted that skunks required dens that excluded 
light and afforded protection from inclement weather and predators. 
Dens are used by one or more members of the local population of plains 
spotted skunks, and individuals might den together during cold winter 
months (Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327).
    During most of the year, individual plains spotted skunks remain in 
an area of approximately 40 hectares (ha) (98.8 acres (ac)), but the 
home range can vary based on habitat quality and food availability 
(Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327). The home range can vary 
seasonally as well; in spring, the range of males can expand to as much 
as 1,040 ha (2,569.9 ac) (Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327). In 
Missouri, home ranges varied from 55 to 4,359 ha (135.9 to 10,771.3 ac) 
(McCullough 1983, p. 34). Lesmeister et al. (2008, p. 21) reported that 
home ranges in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas varied by gender and 
season. The home ranges of males (222 to 1,824 ha (548.6 to 4,507.2 
ac)) in the spring were 6.4 times larger than those of females (31 to 
192 ha (76.6 to 474.4 ac)). Likewise, male home ranges were at least 
2.5 times larger than females' ranges in the winter and summer, but not 
autumn. Overall, home range size varied from 19 to 1,824 ha (47.0 to 
4,507.2 ac) for males and 21 to 192 ha (51.9 to 474.4 ac) for females 
(McCullough 1983, p. 34; Lesmeister et al. 2008, p. 21). Crabb (1948, 
p. 218) found that spotted skunks on an agricultural landscape in Iowa 
occurred at a density of approximately 5 skunks per square kilometer 
(km\2\) (13 skunks per square mile (mi\2\)).
    The plains spotted skunk is omnivorous, but is primarily an 
insectivore and feeds on insects during all seasons of the year (Kinlaw 
1995, p. 4). The proportion of different types of food items varies 
seasonally. Arthropods are the major dietary component during summer 
and autumn, with grasshoppers, crickets, ground beetles, and scarab 
beetles being the preferred food (Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 328). 
In the winter, small mammals, including eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus 
floridanus), voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus and M. ochrogaster), and 
rats (Rattus norvegicus), are the dominant food source (Chapman and 
Feldhamer 1982, p. 668; Kinlaw 1995, p. 4). Other foods include birds, 
eggs, wild ducks that are injured or killed by hunters, fruit, corn, 
lizards, snakes, crayfish, salamanders, and mushrooms (Schwartz and 
Schwartz 2001, p. 328).
    The plains spotted skunk currently (and historically) occurs 
between the Mississippi River and the Continental Divide from Minnesota 
to the Gulf of Mexico (Kinlaw 1995, p. 3). Historical records indicate 
that the plains spotted skunk was broadly distributed across its range 
through the early to mid-1900s and was one of the most common 
mesocarnivores (a carnivore whose diet consists of 50 to 70 percent 
meat) where suitable habitat occurred (Crabb 1948, p. 203; Choate et 
al. 1973, p. 226; Tyler and Lodes 1980, p. 102; McCullough 1983, p. 19; 
Wires and Baker 1994, p. 1; Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 327). 
Likewise, harvest records in the Midwest indicate that population 
levels in most States were at their highest through the mid-1900s, 
during which harvest in most years exceeded 100,000 plains spotted 
skunks (Novak et al. 1987, pp. 223-226).
    More contemporary records consistently show that the plains spotted 
skunk underwent declines in the mid- to late 1900s (Choate et al. 1973, 
pp. 227-230; McCullough 1983, pp. 19-25; Gompper and Hackett 2005, p. 
196; Nilz and Finck 2008, pp. 5-14). Declines occurred first in 
Missouri and Oklahoma in the late 1930s and early 1940s, followed by 
Nebraska in the mid-1940s, and Kansas, Iowa, and Minnesota in the mid- 
to late 1940s (Wires and Baker 1994, p. 1; Gompper and Hackett 2005, p. 
199). Harvest numbers for the plains spotted skunk from 1934-1935 were 
248,062 (Service calculated from Novak et al. 1987, pp. 223-226, for 
States in the range of the subspecies). More recent harvest information 
for 1975-1976 showed that only 1,476 plains spotted skunks were 
harvested (Service calculated from Novak et al. 1987, pp. 223-226, for 
States in the range of the subspecies), which is less than 1 percent of 
the 1934-1935 harvest.

[[Page 71762]]

Gompper and Hackett (2005, p. 199) demonstrated rangewide declines in 
the plains spotted skunk based on harvest records and found that the 
decline was not an artifact of reduced trapper effort or demand for 
spotted skunk pelts.
    The subspecies likely still occupies the same habitat types and 
occurs in all the States within its historical range (Arkansas, 
Colorado, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, 
and Wyoming), but in lower abundance (Choate et al. 1973, p. 231). 
Range fragmentation and reduced abundance of the subspecies is recorded 
through trapper records, fur buyer surveys, public surveys, and focused 
field surveys (Hammond and Busby 1994, pp. 1-4; Wires and Baker 1994, 
pp. 3-7); these records also document locations where viable 
populations likely occur (e.g., Ozark Plateau (McCullough 1983, p. 52; 
Hackett 2005, pp. 51-52) and Ouachita Mountains (Lesmeister et al. 
2010, pp. 54-58)).
Prairie Gray Fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus ocythous)
    Gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) are mammals of the Order 
Carnivora and Family Canidae. U. c. ocythous is a recognized subspecies 
of the gray fox. In this finding, we refer to the subspecies U. c. 
ocythous as the prairie gray fox, as this is the common name the 
petition uses, although there is no recognized common name for this 
subspecies. The prairie gray fox was first described by Bangs in 1899 
(Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 1; Hall 1981, p. 943). We accept the 
characterization of the prairie gray fox as a subspecies of the gray 
fox as noted in Chapman and Feldhammer (1982, p. 475), Fritzell and 
Haroldson (1982, p. 1), and Hall (1981, p. 943). Few references refer 
specifically, by name, to U. c. ocythous; therefore, we consider 
information available for the gray fox within the delineated prairie 
gray fox range to represent the petitioned subspecies.
    The following characteristics describe the gray fox species in 
general, as they are similar to the characteristics of the prairie gray 
fox subspecies. The gray fox has a distinguishable appearance with gray 
fur on its upper body; reddish fur on its neck, the sides of the belly, 
and inner legs; and white on the rest of its underbody. The guard hairs 
(long, course hairs that protect soft underfur) are banded with white, 
gray, and black, which gives the fox's fur a grizzled appearance. It 
has a black tipped tail and a coarse dorsal mane of black-tipped hairs 
at the base of its tail (Chapman and Feldhammer 1982, p. 476; Fritzell 
and Haroldson 1982, p. 1; Hall 1981, p. 942; Hamilton and Whitaker 
1979, p. 270). Gray fox are also distinguished from other canids by 
their widely separated temporal ridges that come together posteriorly 
in a U-shaped form (Chapman and Feldhammer 1982, p. 476; Fritzell and 
Haroldson 1982, p. 1; Hall 1981, p. 942; Hamilton and Whitaker 1979, p. 
270). Gray fox are smaller than the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), with a 
total length of 80 to 112.5 centimeters (cm) (31.5 to 44. 3 inches 
(in)), weight of 3 to 7 kilograms (6.6 to 15.4 lb), and males are 
slightly larger than females (Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 1). The 
size of gray fox varies with geographic location, with individuals in 
the northern part of the range larger than those in the south (Hamilton 
and Whitaker 1979, p. 270).
    Gray fox are generally associated with wooded habitats (Haroldson 
and Fritzell 1984, p. 226; Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 3; Hamilton 
and Whitaker 1979, p. 270). Gray fox use oak-hickory forests almost 
exclusively in southern Missouri, and are frequently found in dense 
stands of young trees during the day (Haroldson and Fritzell 1984, pp. 
226-227). This study noted, however, that forest habitat was the most 
abundant habitat type in their study area and the importance of wooded 
habitat is dependent on its availability, and will be used 
disproportionately to its abundance when wooded habitat is scarce 
(Haroldson and Fritzell 1984, p. 226). Gray fox use woody cover in 
deciduous or pine forest, but they also use edge habitat and early old-
fields (open habitats that are transitioning from field to forest and 
are dominated by forbs, grass, and shrubs and small trees) (Fritzell 
and Haroldson 1982, p. 3). The gray fox tends to select against 
agricultural areas (Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 3). Cooper (2008, 
p. 24) found a greater relative abundance of gray fox in Illinois, 
where there was a greater dispersion of grassland patches into forested 
areas, and lower densities in areas with larger patches of agricultural 
fields. A notable characteristic of the gray fox is their ability to 
climb trees; gray fox are capable of climbing a tree trunk using their 
claws to grasp and pull themselves up or bounding from branch to branch 
(Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 5; Hamilton and Whitaker 1979, p. 
270). This behavior is used during foraging, predator avoidance, or 
resting (Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 5).
    Gray fox dens are usually located in wooded areas and include 
underground burrows, cavities in trees or logs, wood-piles, and rock 
outcrops or cavities under rocks (Jones et al. 1985, p. 264; Fritzell 
and Haroldson 1982, p. 189). Gray fox will use dens year-round, but 
predominantly when young are born. Gray fox mate at different times of 
the year, depending on their geographic location (Chapman and 
Feldhammer 1982, p. 476). For example, for the prairie gray fox, 
breeding lasts from late January through February in southern Illinois 
and from late January through March in Wisconsin (Fritzell and 
Haroldson 1982, pp. 3-4). The average litter size for the gray fox is 
3.8 pups per female, with litters ranging from 1 to 7 pups (Fritzell 
and Haroldson 1982, p. 4).
    The home range of the gray fox varies depending on the season and 
geographic location (Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 4). Males in 
southern Illinois were found to have a home range of 136 ha (336.1 ac), 
and females a home range of 107 ha (264.4 ac) (Fritzell and Haroldson 
1982, p. 4). A study by Haroldson and Fritzel (1984, p. 225) conducted 
in a Missouri oak-hickory forest indicated that nightly range use by 
gray fox was a fraction of the total monthly range. They also found 
composite (multiple month) home ranges (average 676 (+/-) 357 ha (1,670 
(+/-) 882 ac)) are much larger than the individual month home ranges 
(average 299 () 155 ha (738 () 383 ac)) 
(Haroldson and Fritzel 1984, p. 223). Haroldson and Fritzel (1984, p. 
226) also indicated that gray fox home ranges vary among populations. 
Gray fox are more active at night, with activity at sunrise sharply 
decreasing and increasing again at sunset (Haroldson and Fritzell 1984, 
p. 224).
    The gray fox is primarily an opportunistic carnivore, with mammals 
composing most of its diet in the Midwest (Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, 
p. 4). According to Chapman and Feldhammer (1982, p. 480), the gray 
fox's diet depends highly on what is available. Although rabbits have 
been found to be one of their primary food sources, they routinely feed 
on small rodents and other mammals, birds, and reptiles (Jones et al. 
1985, p. 264; Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 4). In the summer, 
invertebrates have been found to be more important food items, while in 
the fall, the gray fox consumes more fruit and sometimes corn (Chapman 
and Feldhammer 1982, p. 476; Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 4; 
Hamilton and Whitaker 1979, p. 272).
    The plains gray fox ranges primarily west of the Mississippi and 
Illinois Rivers through portions of the central plain States. The 
historical range for this subspecies included western Wisconsin, 
Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and the eastern sections of North 
and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma in the United States, 
and the

[[Page 71763]]

southernmost sections of Ontario and Manitoba, Canada (Hall 1981, p. 
944).
    The petition asserts that prairie gray fox numbers have declined in 
many of the States within its range (Petition, unpaginated). The 
petition mentions that the Department of the Interior used scent 
stations to track the relative abundance of several predators, 
including the gray fox, in many western States. The average Statewide 
indices between the 1980 and 1981 surveys showed a decline in Minnesota 
from 2.4 to 1.9, and in Oklahoma from 2.0 to 1.0 (U.S. Department of 
the Interior 1981, pp. 42, 70; U.S. Department of the Interior 1980, 
pp. 44, 72). The Statewide indices for Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, 
South Dakota, and Wisconsin were zero in both 1980 and 1981 (U.S. 
Department of the Interior 1981, pp. 38, 52, 66, 78, 98; U.S. 
Department of the Interior 1980, pp. 40, 54, 68, 80, 100). There was an 
increase in the numbers of gray fox between 1980 and 1981 in Illinois; 
however, all of the scent stations recorded were outside the range of 
the prairie gray fox subspecies, so they were likely a different 
subspecies (U.S. Department of the Interior 1981, p. 36; U.S. 
Department of the Interior 1980, p. 36). The petitioners cite these 
numbers when asserting that the prairie gray fox was rare to absent in 
the plains States by 1980 (Petition, unpaginated). The petitioners cite 
the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' annual carnivore scent 
station survey as including gray fox in their ``fox'' numbers (Petition 
unpaginated); however we can find no indication in this reference that 
gray fox were counted during those surveys (Erb 2010, p. 43-57).
    The Missouri Department of Conservation's annual Archer's Index to 
Furbearer Populations shows a 75 percent decline in gray fox numbers 
since 1983 (petition unpaginated; Blair 2011, p. 31). The petitioners 
state that the number of gray fox in Wisconsin, as observed by the 
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources during routine field work, 
was comparable to the badger, which is listed by the State as 
endangered (Petition, unpaginated). The report does indicate that the 
number of gray fox observed in 2010 was 0.78 observations per 
respondent, which is higher than the long-term average (during the 23 
years of the study) of 0.42 observations per respondent (Kitchell 2010, 
unpaginated). The number of gray fox counted during the annual 
Bowhunter Observation Survey in Arkansas have been low but stable from 
2005-2010 (Petition, unpaginated; Sasse 2011, unpaginated). The numbers 
of gray fox counted during the Iowa 2010 Bowhunter Observation Survey 
were fewer than the margin of error for some of the regions and showed 
an overall decline in the State (Petition, unpaginated; Roberts and 
Clark 2011, unpaginated). The petitioners attribute this decline to the 
loss of preferred habitat and the increase in agricultural habitat, 
which gray fox avoid (Petition, unpaginated; Cooper 2008, p. 24; 
Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 189). Although the evidence included in 
the petition and within our files shows a decline in the population of 
the prairie gray fox for several States, there are no studies included 
that specifically indicate what the population of the prairie gray fox 
was prior to human settlement or how much the population has declined 
rangewide.
Mearn's Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus mearnsi)
    Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) are members of Order 
Lagomorpha and Family Leporidae. The Mearn's eastern cottontail 
(Sylvilagus floridanus mearnsi) is a recognized subspecies of the 
eastern cottontail, as first described in 1894 by J.A. Allen (Hall and 
Kelson 1981, p. 304; Chapman et al. 1980, p. 1). We accept the 
characterization of the Mearn's eastern cottontail (S. f. mearnsi) as a 
subspecies of the eastern cottontail rabbit as described in Chapman et 
al. (1980, p. 1), and Hall and Kelson (1959, p. 262). Few references 
relate specifically to the Mearn's eastern cottontail; therefore, we 
consider information available for the eastern cottontail to represent 
the petitioned subspecies.
    The eastern cottontail is described as having a total length of 395 
to 456 mm (15.6 to 18.0 in) and weighing 801 to 1,411 g (28.3 to 49.8 
ounces (oz)) for males, and 400 to 477 mm (15.7 to 18.8 in) and 
weighing 842 to 1,533 g (29.7 to 54.1 oz) for females (Chapman et al. 
1981, p. 136). They have dense fur, ranging from brownish to greyish in 
color, with white fur on the underside of the body and tail. The 
average home range for the eastern cottontail varies from approximately 
1 to 2 acres (0.4 to 1 ha) in Wisconsin (Trent and Rungstad 1974) to 
around 4 acres (2 ha) in Pennsylvania, with male home ranges increasing 
to an average of 17 to 19 acres (7 to 8 ha) in spring and summer 
(Althoff and Storm 1989). The eastern cottontail is the most widely 
distributed cottontail species in North America (Scharine et al. 2011, 
p. 885; Hall and Kelson 1981, p. 300; Chapman et al. 1980, p. 2) and 
occurs sympatrically with six species of the genus Sylvilagus and six 
species of the genus Lepus (Chapman et al. 1980, p. 136).
    In describing eastern cottontail habitat, Chapman et al. (1980, p. 
2) stated, ``This cottontail is generally thought of as a mammal of 
farmlands, fields, and hedge rows; however, historically it occurred in 
natural glades and woodlands, deserts, swamps, prairies, hardwood 
forests, rain forests, and boreal forests.'' When comparing the eastern 
cottontail to the swamp rabbit (S. aquaticus), Scharine et al. (2011, 
p. 881) stated that the dense understory vegetation provided by early 
successional cover types are important habitat for both species; 
however, the eastern cottontail is a habitat generalist and occupies a 
larger distribution. Mankin and Warner (1999b, p. 960) identified 
eastern cottontails in old fields, grasslands, hedgerows, cropland, and 
urban areas, but found that the species preferred open shrub land.
    The Mearn's eastern cottontail occurs across a large portion of the 
eastern cottontail's range, including the entire States of Iowa, 
Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio; most of Minnesota, Illinois, 
and Kentucky; southwestern New York; northern Pennsylvania; western 
West Virginia; northern Missouri; northeastern Kansas; eastern 
Nebraska; a small portion of the southeastern corner of South Dakota; 
and the small portion of the western edge of Virginia (Figure 1) (Hall 
and Kelson 1981, p. 261; Chapman et al. 1980, p. 3).

[[Page 71764]]

[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP04DE12.025

Distinct Population Segment Evaluation

    Under the Service's Policy Regarding the Recognition of Distinct 
Vertebrate Population Segments Under the Endangered Species Act (61 FR 
4722, February 7, 1996), three elements are considered in the decision 
concerning the establishment and classification of a possible DPS. 
These are applied similarly for additions to or removal from the 
Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. These elements 
include:
    (1) The discreteness of a population in relation to the remainder 
of the taxon to which it belongs;
    (2) The significance of the population segment to the taxon to 
which it belongs; and
    (3) The population segment's conservation status in relation to the 
Act's standards for listing, delisting (removal from the list), or 
reclassification (i.e., is the population segment endangered or 
threatened).
    Our understanding of the petitioners' requested action is that the 
population of Mearn's cottontail in east-central Illinois and western 
Indiana (Figure 1) be considered a DPS and listed as endangered or 
threatened under the Act. Therefore, in this analysis, we evaluate 
whether the petition provides substantial information that the Mearn's 
eastern cottontail in east-central Illinois and western Indiana may 
constitute a DPS.
Discreteness
    Under our DPS Policy, a population segment of a vertebrate species 
may be considered discrete if it satisfies either one of the following 
conditions:
    (1) It is markedly separated from other populations of the same 
taxon as a consequence of physical, physiological, ecological, or 
behavioral factors. Quantitative measures of genetic or morphological 
discontinuity may provide evidence of this separation.
    (2) It is delimited by international governmental boundaries within 
which significant differences in control of exploitation, management of 
habitat, conservation status, or regulatory mechanisms exist that are 
significant in light of section 4(a)(1)(D) of the Act.
    The petitioners describe the area of the petitioned DPS in the 
revised petition submission (dated January 23, 2012) as follows: ``this 
region covers the former Grand Prairie region of Illinois and western 
Indiana.'' However, the submitted description does not provide exact 
boundaries or reference maps for the petitioned DPS. Therefore, the DPS 
we consider in our evaluation is based on a hand-drawn map submitted by 
the petitioners in the original petition submission (dated July 18, 
2011) (not paginated). For our DPS evaluation, we considered references 
provided with the original July 18, 2011, petition submission, 
references provided with the revised January 23, 2012, petition 
submission, and other information readily available in our files.
    The petition cites one study (Mankin and Warner 1999a) as the 
supporting evidence that the population of Mearn's eastern cottontail 
in east-central Illinois and western Indiana is: (1) Physically 
discrete from the rest of the subspecies; (2) ecologically distinct due 
to intensive agriculture leaving only artificial remnants of its 
original habitat; and (3) behaviorally distinct because individuals 
require home ranges averaging 7 times larger than other members of the 
eastern cottontail species.
    The petitioners assert that the petitioned DPS occupies an 
ecologically distinct area where intensive agriculture has left only 
artificial remnants of its original habitat. Mankin and Warner (1999a, 
p. 940) state that east-central Illinois is one of the most intensively 
farmed regions in North America. This is supported by the findings of 
Ribic et al. (1998), which suggest a decrease in the quantity of upland 
wildlife habitat in Illinois from 1920 to 1987, and an increase in 
farming disturbance, indicating an intensification of agricultural 
practices for the State during that time period. They found that the 
western and southern portions of the State had higher wildlife habitat 
values than the rest of the State and that harvest of eastern 
cottontails was higher in counties with the most upland habitat and the 
lowest amount of farming disturbance (Ribic et al. 1998,

[[Page 71765]]

pp. 307, 311). This differentiation is also supported by Mankin and 
Warner (1999b, p. 962), who showed that counties in east-central 
Illinois had the greatest decline in cottontail abundance and the 
highest increase in intense row-cropping.
    The petitioners also cite Mankin and Warner (1999a) in stating that 
the DPS represents a population of Mearn's cottontail that is broken 
into small populations and is behaviorally distinct from other Mearn's 
cottontails. Mankin and Warner (1999a) studied the responses of Mearn's 
eastern cottontails to intensive row-crop agriculture in Ford County, 
Illinois, which is in the center of the proposed DPS. They found that 
the Mearn's eastern cottontail had a home range 2.3 times larger during 
the growing season for the crops than during the non-growing season 
(Mankin and Warner 1999a, p. 943). The cottontails in the study also 
had an overall home range that was 7 to 8 times larger than those found 
by previous research (Mankin and Warner 1999a, p. 945). Mankin and 
Warner (1999a, p. 945) specifically compared their findings to home 
ranges of Mearn's eastern cottontail in Wisconsin by Trent and Rongstad 
(1974), and indicated they were 8 times larger than Wisconsin males' 
home ranges and 7 times larger than females'. Chapman et al. (1980, p. 
136) indicate that there have been many studies of home ranges of the 
eastern cottontail, with a mean for males of 0.95 ha (2.34 acres) to 
2.8 ha (6.9 acres) and for females of 0.95 ha (2.34 acres) to 1.2 ha 
(2.96 acres). Mankin and Warner (1999a, pp. 944-945) found the 
population of cottontails in the Ford County, Illinois study area to be 
sparse yet stable. Although the cottontails used the crop ground 
extensively and 23 percent of the home ranges occurred on farmsteads, 
farmsteads made up less than 2 percent of the available habitat.
    Based on the information submitted with the petition and 
information in our files, we find that the petition presents 
substantial information to suggest there may be a markedly separate 
population of Mearn's eastern cottontail in east-central Illinois and 
western Indiana due to behavioral differences when compared to the 
subspecies located elsewhere. The population of Mearn's eastern 
cottontail in east-central Illinois and western Indiana may be discrete 
from the rest of the Mearn's population because they occupy an area of 
intensive agriculture that leads to the behavior of maintaining 
different home-range sizes than the subspecies in the rest of the 
range. Therefore, this population of Mearn's cottontail may meet the 
discreteness criterion that it is markedly separated from other 
populations of the same taxon based on behavioral reasons.
    There are no international governmental boundaries associated with 
this subspecies that are significant. The population of Mearn's eastern 
cottontail in east-central Illinois and western Indiana lies wholly 
within the United States. Because this element is not relevant in this 
case for a finding of discreteness, it was not considered in reaching 
this determination.
Significance
    If a population segment is considered discrete under one or more of 
the conditions described in our DPS policy, its biological and 
ecological significance will be considered in light of Congressional 
guidance that the authority to list DPSes be used ``sparingly'' while 
encouraging the conservation of genetic diversity. In making this 
determination, we consider available scientific evidence of the 
discrete population segment's importance to the taxon to which it 
belongs. As precise circumstances are likely to vary considerably from 
case to case, the DPS policy does not describe all the classes of 
information that might be used in determining the biological and 
ecological importance of a discrete population. However, the DPS policy 
does provide four possible reasons why a discrete population may be 
significant. As specified in the DPS policy (61 FR 4722), this 
consideration of the population segment's significance may include, but 
is not limited to, the following:
    (1) Persistence of the discrete population segment in an ecological 
setting unusual or unique to the taxon;
    (2) Evidence that loss of the discrete population segment would 
result in a significant gap in the range of a taxon;
    (3) Evidence that the discrete population segment represents the 
only surviving natural occurrence of a taxon that may be more abundant 
elsewhere as an introduced population outside its historical range; or
    (4) Evidence that the discrete population segment differs markedly 
from other populations of the species in its genetic characteristics.
    A population segment needs to satisfy only one of these criteria to 
be considered significant. Furthermore, the list of criteria is not 
exhaustive; other criteria may be used as appropriate.
    The petitioners assert that the population of Mearn's eastern 
cottontail in east-central Illinois and western Indiana is significant 
because it represents approximately 20 percent of the range of the 
subspecies that was not hybridized by the introductions of other 
species, and thus its loss would result in a significant gap in the 
range of the subspecies. The petition cites one reference, Chapman and 
Morgan 1973, to support their assertion. Chapman and Morgan (1973, p. 
6) discuss the introduction of many species and subspecies of rabbits 
into the eastern United States from 1920 to 1950, and the impacts on 
the native rabbit species in western Maryland and the nearby portions 
of West Virginia. They found evidence of hybridization between native 
eastern cottontails and other rabbit species and subspecies from other 
parts of the country and the hybridization of the subspecies S. f. 
mallurus with other subspecies. The intergrade (hybridization) zone of 
eastern cottontail in the East has expanded, and it now out-competes 
the New England cottontail (S. transitionalis) in its traditional 
habitat (Chapman and Morgan 1973, p. 51). Although the study suggests 
that the eastern cottontail subspecies interbreed where they overlap, 
it does not specifically discuss how much habitat may be lost by each 
subspecies to hybridization. Therefore, when determining how much of 
the Mearn's eastern cottontail range is included in the petitioned DPS, 
we used the range from Hall and Kelson (1981, p. 303) as cited in the 
petition and the hand-drawn map from the original petition to generate 
the map in Figure 1. Using ArcGIS, we calculated that the area 
petitioned as a DPS makes up 3.6 percent of the Mearn's cottontail 
range and not the approximate 20 percent asserted by the petitioners. 
To calculate the size of the proposed DPS, we scanned the hand-drawn 
map included in the petition, georeferenced it to a map of the United 
States, and digitized the DPS boundary from the georeferenced scanned 
map. We used the same procedures to georeference the range of the 
Mearn's eastern cottontail from Hall's map (Hall 1980, p. 303). We were 
able to calculate the total acres of both the DPS and the Mearn's 
eastern cottontail range with the new digitized georeferenced maps. We 
then clipped the DPS from the full range to calculate the difference in 
acres and the percentage of the Mearn's eastern cottontail range that 
the DPS includes. Although the population of Mearn's eastern cottontail 
in east-central Illinois and western Indiana is located in the center 
of the subspecies' range, the petition does not provide substantial 
information, nor is there information available in our files, to 
suggest that loss

[[Page 71766]]

of this population would result in a significant gap in the range of a 
taxon.
    The petition does not present information to suggest the population 
of Mearn's eastern cottontail in east-central Illinois and western 
Indiana may persist in an ecological setting unusual or unique to the 
taxon, evidence that the population represents the only surviving 
natural occurrence of a taxon that may be more abundant elsewhere as an 
introduced population outside its historical range, or evidence that 
the population differs markedly from other populations of the species 
in its genetic characteristics. Additionally, we do not have 
information in our files to indicate that these characteristics are 
met.
    Substantial information is not presented in the petition, nor is it 
available in our files, to suggest that the population of Mearn's 
eastern cottontail in east-central Illinois and western Indiana is 
biologically or ecologically significant to the remainder of the taxon. 
Therefore, we determine, based on the information provided in the 
petition and in our files that the population of Mearn's eastern 
cottontail in east-central Illinois and western Indiana does not meet 
the significance criterion of the 1996 DPS policy.

Finding for Mearn's Eastern Cottontail

    We reviewed the information presented in the petition and evaluated 
that information in relation to information readily available in our 
files. On the basis of this review, we find that neither the petition, 
nor information readily available in our files, suggests that the 
Mearn's eastern cottontail population in east-central Illinois and 
western Indiana meets the criteria for being significant under our DPS 
policy. Although the population may meet the criteria for being 
discrete under the DPS policy, neither the information in the petition, 
nor the information readily available in our files, suggests that this 
population of Mearn's eastern cottontail may be significant to the 
remainder of the taxon. Because both discreteness and significance are 
required to satisfy the DPS policy, we have determined that the Mearn's 
eastern cottontail population in east-central Illinois and western 
Indiana does not satisfy the elements of being a DPS under our 1996 
policy and, therefore, is not a listable entity under section 3(16) of 
the Act. Because the petition does not present substantial information 
that the population of Mearn's eastern cottontail in east-central 
Illinois and western Indiana is a DPS, we did not evaluate whether the 
information contained in the petition regarding the conservation status 
was substantial.
    We encourage interested parties to continue to gather data that 
will assist with the conservation of the population of Mearn's eastern 
cottontail in east-central Illinois and western Indiana. If you wish to 
provide information regarding the Mearn's eastern cottontail, you may 
submit your information or materials to the Field Supervisor at the 
Rock Island, Illinois Ecological Service Field Office (see ADDRESSES), 
at any time.

Evaluation of Information for This Finding

    Section 4 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1533) and its implementing 
regulations at 50 CFR part 424 set forth the procedures for adding a 
species to, or removing a species from, the Federal Lists of Endangered 
and Threatened Wildlife and Plants. A species may be determined to be 
an endangered or threatened species due to one or more of the five 
factors described in section 4(a)(1) of the Act:
    (A) The present or threatened destruction, modification, or 
curtailment of its habitat or range;
    (B) Overutilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or 
educational purposes;
    (C) Disease or predation;
    (D) The inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms; or
    (E) Other natural or manmade factors affecting its continued 
existence.
    In considering what factors might constitute threats, we must look 
beyond the mere exposure of the species to the factor to determine 
whether the species responds to the factor in a way that causes actual 
impacts to the species. If there is exposure to a factor, but no 
response, or only a positive response, that factor is not a threat. If 
there is exposure and the species responds negatively, the factor may 
be a threat and we then attempt to determine how significant a threat 
it is. If the threat is significant, it may drive or contribute to the 
risk of extinction of the species such that the species may warrant 
listing as an endangered or threatened species as those terms are 
defined by the Act. This does not necessarily require empirical proof 
of a threat. The combination of exposure and some corroborating 
evidence of how the species is likely impacted could suffice. The mere 
identification of factors that could impact a species negatively may 
not be sufficient to compel a finding that listing may be warranted. 
The information must contain evidence sufficient to suggest that these 
factors may be operative threats that act on the species to the point 
that the species may meet the definition of an endangered or threatened 
species under the Act.
    In making this 90-day finding, we evaluated whether information 
regarding threats to the prairie gray fox and the plains spotted skunk, 
as presented in the petition and other information available in our 
files, is substantial, thereby indicating that the petitioned action 
may be warranted. Our evaluation of this information is presented 
below.

Plains Spotted Skunk (Spilogale putorius interrupta)

A. The Present or Threatened Destruction, Modification, or Curtailment 
of Its Habitat or Range

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners claim that threats to the plains spotted skunk 
include habitat loss and modification. The petition suggests that loss 
of grassland and early successional habitat has contributed to 
declining population trends of 90 to 100 percent throughout the 
subspecies' range (Petition, unpaginated). Plains spotted skunks 
require some early successional component to their habitat to provide 
cover and denning areas (Petition, unpaginated; Lesmeister 2007, p. 56; 
Lesmeister et al. 2009, pp. 23-24). Before European settlement, this 
need was satisfied by both natural disturbances (e.g., fire, storms, 
beaver, elk, and bison) and disturbance by Native Americans (Petition, 
unpaginated; Sewell 2009, p. 11). Grasslands and successional habitats 
were prevalent across the landscape. However, anthropogenic changes 
lead to landscapes that were more conducive to species that need early 
successional habitat, such as the plains spotted skunk. Such species 
shifted their use from naturally created, early successional habitats 
to those that were created by humans, and the species now seem to 
depend on these human-created habitats to some extent (Petition, 
unpaginated; Sewell 2009, p. 12).
    The petition claims that the plains spotted skunk has since 
declined (Petition, unpaginated; Gompper and Hackett 2005, pp. 199-200) 
because of changes in agriculture, silviculture, and climate. Because 
plains spotted skunks rely on early successional habitat, management 
activities or lack of management that reduce the occurrence of dense 
vegetative stands or modify forest structure to more open, mature 
stands could be detrimental to the subspecies (Petition, unpaginated; 
Lesmeister 2007, p. 56; Lesmeister 2009, pp. 23-24).

[[Page 71767]]

Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    The information readily available in our files supports the 
petitioners' claims that the plains spotted skunk may be declining 
rangewide due to loss, degradation, and modification of early 
successional habitat. The plains spotted skunk has apparently undergone 
long-term fluctuations in population (Choate et al. 1973, pp. 228-233; 
Novak et al.1987, pp. 223-226; Gompper and Hackett 2005, pp. 199-200). 
Increases in abundance in the early 1900s likely were facilitated by 
human presence and influence on the landscape, as were subsequent 
declines (Choate et al. 1973, pp. 228-233). Construction of houses, 
outbuildings, haystacks, and brush piles provided shelter, and the 
storage of crops provided a direct source of food, as well as an 
indirect food source (mice and rats that were attracted to stored 
grain) (Choate et al. 1973, p. 230). Exploitation of these novel 
features allowed the expansion and increase of the plains spotted skunk 
(Choate et al. 1973, p. 230). Subsequent removal of anthropogenic 
features, as small farms were deserted and incorporated into larger 
farms reduced the amount of available habitat (Choate et al. 1973, p. 
231). However, the plains spotted skunk has declined throughout its 
range, not just in the parts of the range where the subspecies exists 
in anthropogenic landscapes. Harvest by fur trappers has consistently 
decreased from the mid-1940s to present (Novak et al. 1987, pp. 223-
226). Gompper and Hackett (2005, pp. 199-200) analyzed harvest data 
from seven States (Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, 
Minnesota, and Arkansas) in the range of the plains spotted skunk and 
confirmed the population decline, demonstrated that the timing of the 
onset of decline differed among States, and determined that the decline 
was not an artifact of harvest effort or pelt demand.
    Although there does not appear to be a single cause of decline, a 
suite of potential factors are suggested consistently in the 
literature. The decline of small farms, the advent of agriculture 
practices that encourage removal of fence rows and brush piles, 
intensive use of pesticides, improved grain management practices, and 
the end of large haystack construction are implicated as potential 
causes for the species' decline in landscapes dominated by human 
activity (Choate et al. 1973, pp. 229-231; Gompper and Hackett 2005, p. 
199). Following the Great Depression, many small farms were deserted 
and incorporated into larger agricultural units. Farm buildings were 
removed that had provided both shelter and sources of prey, such as 
rodents (Choate et al. 1973, p. 230; Nilz and Finck 2008, pp. 19-20). 
This change in the agricultural landscape was intensified by the 
drought of 1933-1940, during which thousands of small farmers moved to 
other areas, abandoning many of the farms that remained. Arid 
conditions impacted natural riparian habitats of plains spotted skunks 
along watercourses, likely making them uninhabitable. The continued 
introduction of technology and mechanization into farming operations 
caused further decline of small, diverse farms and replaced them with 
large monocultures (Choate et al. 1973, p. 231). Plains spotted skunks 
avoid expansive open areas, such as pasture lands, that are devoid of 
overhead cover, and plains spotted skunks are likely intolerant of this 
habitat type (Lesmeister et al. 2009, p. 23). Finally, the widespread 
application of insecticides, such as Dichloro-diphenyl-trichlorethane 
(DDT), in industrial farming might have contributed to the decline in 
the 1940s. Because the plains spotted skunk is primarily an 
insectivore, application of pesticide likely reduced the main food 
source for the subspecies. Foraging opportunities were historically and 
continue to be further limited by dietary preference; competition with 
other species, such as striped skunk and weasels, for an alternate food 
source; or both (Kinlaw 1995, p. 4; Nilz and Finck 2008, pp. 19-20).
    Habitat loss or modification might also be currently occurring in 
more natural forested landscapes where the plains spotted skunk occurs. 
In the Ouachita Mountains and Ozark Plateau, use of forested areas was 
limited to young forest stands with closed canopy and dense understory, 
areas with fallen logs and brushpiles, ravine bottoms, or stands that 
had undergone timber stand improvement (TSI) and had high levels of 
ground litter and slash (McCullough 1983, pp. 40-41; Lesmeister et al. 
2009, p. 23). Young shortleaf pine stands were the only early 
successional habitat present in the Ouachita Mountains study area and 
were preferred over the dominant habitat type, mature shortleaf pine. 
Mature shortleaf pine stands offer more open canopy conditions and are 
considered suboptimal habitat for the plains spotted skunk compared to 
young stands that provide more desirable structural characteristics 
(Lesmeister et al. 2009, p. 24). Similar to the results in the Ouachita 
Mountains, plains spotted skunks in the Ozark Plateau preferred young 
oak-hickory forest stands over mature oak-hickory forest (McCullough 
1983, p. 41). Considering that the subspecies seems to require 
structural complexity provided by early successional habitats, 
management priorities that endeavor to create landscapes dominated by 
mature forest stands could negatively impact the plains spotted skunk. 
For example, such conflicts in habitat management might occur where the 
ranges of the red-cockaded woodpecker and plains spotted skunk are 
coincident. Red-cockaded woodpeckers require open, mature pine 
woodlands and savannahs maintained by frequent fire (USFWS 2003, p. 5). 
Management for red-cockaded woodpeckers focuses on restoration of pine 
forests to old, open stands with canopy and herbaceous layers but no 
hardwood midstory (USFWS 2003, pp. 2, 41). This type of pine 
restoration is currently occurring in Arkansas on the Ouachita National 
Forest (Hedrick et al. 2007, pp. 1-8).
    In summary, we find that the information provided in the petition, 
as well as other information available in our files, presents 
substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the 
petitioned action may be warranted due to historical and currently 
ongoing habitat loss and degradation due to modifications of early 
successional habitat. Further assessment of population declines due to 
the loss of early successional habitat caused by changes in 
agricultural practices, changes in silvicultural practices, and 
reduction in food availability by intensive use of pesticides is 
necessary.

B. Overutilization for Commercial, Recreational, Scientific, or 
Educational Purposes

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners did not present information regarding the 
overutilization of the plains spotted skunk for commercial, 
recreational, scientific, or educational purposes.
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    Harvest pressure on the plains spotted skunk during the 1930s has 
received little consideration for contributing to the decline of the 
subspecies, but might have been a factor historically (Nilz and Finck 
2008, p. 19). Available harvest records from the 1930s to 1940s (Novak 
et al. 1987, pp. 223-226) show high harvest numbers for most States in 
the subspecies' range, but since the mid-1940s, harvest numbers have

[[Page 71768]]

consistently decreased. The population status and dynamics of plains 
spotted skunks during this period of heavy harvest are not fully 
understood, but the plains spotted skunk appears to have been common in 
most landscapes in the early 1900s (Choate et al. 1973, pp. 227-230). 
Based on information readily available in our files, overutilization 
appears to be a potential cause of historical decline, but we do not 
have information to indicate that the overutilization for commercial, 
recreational, scientific, or educational purposes is presenting an 
ongoing threat to the plains spotted skunk. However, as we proceed with 
the 12-month status review, we will further investigate this factor to 
determine whether overutilization for commercial, recreational, 
scientific, or educational purposes is an ongoing threat to the 
subspecies.

C. Disease or Predation

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners did not present information regarding diseases that 
may affect the plains spotted skunk. The petitioners claim that the 
plains spotted skunk is experiencing unnaturally high levels of 
predation, mainly by birds of prey, because of loss of protective cover 
provided by early successional habitat (Petition, unpaginated). 
Lesmeister et al. (2009, pp. 23-24) observed 18 mortalities of plains 
spotted skunks in the Ouachita Mountains, most of which were caused by 
avian predators and occurred in mature shortleaf pine forests that 
provide little in the way of protective cover. They noted that stands 
of young shortleaf pine seem to be less preferred by typical predators 
of plains spotted skunk, such as coyote (Canis latrans), bobcats (Lynx 
rufus), and great horned owls (Bubo virginanus), which prefer more open 
habitats. Open conditions in mature forest stands might be more 
favorable for the presence of predators and consequently less favorable 
to plains spotted skunks (Lesmeister et al. 2009, p. 24).
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    Based on our review of information provided by the petitioners and 
readily available in our files, the plains spotted skunk may be 
declining rangewide due to predation. The most common natural predators 
of the plains spotted skunks are owls and mesocarnivores (Kinlaw 1995, 
p. 4; Schwartz and Schwartz 2001, p. 329). Lesmeister et al. (2010, pp. 
54-58) observed a relatively low survival rate for plains spotted skunk 
in the Ouachita Mountains. Sixty-three percent of documented 
mortalities were attributed to avian predators, 26 percent to mammalian 
predators, and 11 percent to unknown causes. Eleven of the 12 avian-
caused mortalities occurred in mature shortleaf pine stands with an 
open canopy and herbaceous understory, whereas all of the mammal-caused 
mortalities occurred in young shortleaf pine stands (Lesmeister et al. 
2010, p. 54). These results suggest that there is a difference between 
the amount and source of predation that occurs in habitat that is 
considered optimal (young shortleaf pine) and suboptimal (mature 
shortleaf pine) for plains spotted skunk (Lesmeister et al. 2010, pp. 
55-56). Plains spotted skunks avoided use of mature forest stands and 
selected young forest stands (Lesmeister et al. 2009, pp. 23-24); 
mortality due to predation was disproportionate to habitat use because 
the highest mortality occurred in the least-used mature forest habitat. 
While predation plays a natural role in the life history dynamics of 
the plains spotted skunk, there is some evidence that it may be 
occurring at a higher rate that could have a negative affect on 
populations of the species.
    Diseases affecting the subspecies include pneumonia, coccidiosis, 
and rabies (Kinlaw 1995, p. 4). The plains spotted skunk, however, is 
often overrated as a carrier of rabies; fewer cases were documented in 
spotted skunks than in domestic cats, cattle, dogs, or striped skunks 
(Hazard 1982, p. 145). Viral disease, such as parvovirus, or mink 
enteritis virus, may contribute to localized population declines, and 
some viral diseases can exhibit rapid spread and long-term impacts to 
local population viability, but do not appear to impact the species as 
a whole (Gompper and Hackett 2005, p. 200). Based on information 
readily available in our files, disease may have been a cause of 
historical decline, but we do not have information to indicate that 
disease is presenting an ongoing threat to the plains spotted skunk. As 
we proceed with the 12-month status review, we will further investigate 
whether disease is an ongoing threat to the subspecies.
    In summary, the petition and information in our files identifies 
excessive predation that may be occurring at a higher rate than 
naturally expected as a threat to the plains spotted skunk. Therefore, 
we find that the information provided in the petition, as well as other 
information readily available in our files, presents substantial 
scientific and commercial information to indicate that the plains 
spotted skunk may warrant listing due to predation.

D. The Inadequacy of Existing Regulatory Mechanisms

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners state that there currently is no mechanism to 
protect habitat or garner appropriate resources for species 
conservation.
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    We do not have any information in our files to indicate whether any 
regulatory mechanisms that are designed to alleviate threats to the 
species (i.e., loss of early successional habitat due to changes in 
agricultural practices, changes in silvicultural practices, climatic 
fluctuations, reduction in food availability by intensive use of 
pesticides, or excessive predation) exist. Therefore, we find that the 
petition and the information readily available in our files do not 
provide substantial scientific or commercial information to indicate 
that the inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms is a threat to 
the plains spotted skunk such that the petitioned action may be 
warranted. However, as we proceed with the 12-month finding status 
review, we will further investigate whether the inadequacy of existing 
regulatory mechanisms may be a threat to the plains spotted skunk.

E. Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting Its Continued Existence

Information Provided in the Petition
    Humans are reported as the main cause of mortality in less natural 
landscapes (Kinlaw 1995, p. 4). Death is caused by vehicle collision, 
poisoning, shooting, domestic dogs and cats, and trappers who target 
plains spotted skunks or take them incidentally when trapping for other 
species (Jones et al. 1983, p. 304; Wires and Baker 1994, p. 4). A 
common source of sightings for plains spotted skunks are those that are 
found as road kill. Of 72 total possible sightings of the plains 
spotted skunk within a 5-year period in Minnesota, 11 were road kills 
and an additional 13 were killed by the individual reporting the 
sighting (Wires and Baker 1994, p. 4).
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    We do not have information in our files to indicate any potential 
threat to the plains spotted skunk due to other natural or manmade 
factors. Based on

[[Page 71769]]

information provided in the petition, direct human-caused mortality 
(e.g., vehicle collision, poisoning, shooting, domestic dogs and cats, 
and trapping) may be impacting individual skunks, but we do not have 
information to indicate that such mortality is presenting a population-
level threat to the plains spotted skunk. Therefore, we find that the 
petition and information readily available in our files do not provide 
substantial scientific or commercial information to indicate that other 
natural or manmade factors present a threat to the plains spotted skunk 
such that the petitioned action may be warranted. However, as we 
proceed with the 12-month status review, we will further investigate 
whether other natural or manmade factors, such as potential impacts 
from climate change and direct human-caused mortality, may be a threat 
to the plains spotted skunk.

Finding for Plains Spotted Skunk

    We reviewed the information presented in the petition and evaluated 
that information in relation to information readily available in our 
files. On the basis of our determination under section 4(b)(3)(A) of 
the Act, we determine that the petition does present substantial 
scientific or commercial information indicating that listing the plains 
spotted skunk as an endangered or threatened species throughout its 
entire range may be warranted. This finding is based on information 
provided under factors A and C.
    Because we have found that the petition presents substantial 
information indicating that listing the plains spotted skunk may be 
warranted, we are initiating a status review to determine whether 
listing the plains spotted skunk as an endangered or threatened species 
under the Act is warranted.
    The ``substantial information'' standard for a 90-day finding 
differs from the Act's ``best scientific and commercial data'' standard 
that applies to a status review to determine whether a petitioned 
action is warranted. A 90-day finding does not constitute a status 
review under the Act. In a 12-month finding, we will determine whether 
a petitioned action is warranted after we have completed a thorough 
status review of the species, which is conducted following a 
substantial 90-day finding. Because the Act's standards for 90-day and 
12-month findings are different, as described above, a substantial 90-
day finding does not mean that the 12-month finding will result in a 
warranted finding.

Prairie Gray Fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus ocythous)

A. The Present or Threatened Destruction, Modification, or Curtailment 
of Its Habitat or Range

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners claim that habitat loss and modification are 
threats to the prairie gray fox. The petitioners state that the gray 
fox requires early successional cover, grassland, or dense forest, and 
that the decline of this habitat within the range of this subspecies 
has contributed to its decline (Petition, unpaginated). The gray fox's 
use of deciduous or pine woody habitat is well established in the 
literature (Chamberlain and Leopold 2000, p. 749; Jones et al. 1985, p. 
264; Haroldson and Fritzell 1984, p. 226; Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, 
p. 4). Cooper (2008, p. 24) reported a lower relative abundance of gray 
fox for Illinois counties where agricultural patches were larger and 
occurred in a wider variety of shapes and sizes. Conversely, Cooper 
(2008, pp. 24-25) reported higher relative abundances of gray fox in 
Illinois counties that contained a greater availability of grassland 
dispersed into the landscape, with forest patch size highly variable 
and closer together. Haroldson and Fritzell (1984, p. 226) found that 
gray fox relied heavily on forested habitats in Missouri. They found 
that gray fox used dense stands of young trees during the day, stating 
that ``dense protective cover is characteristic of the diurnal retreats 
of gray fox throughout their range'' (Haroldson and Fritzell 1984, p. 
227; Petition, unpaginated). The petitioners indicate that habitat 
important to the gray fox, such as early successional cover, grassland, 
or dense forest, are in decline (Petition, unpaginated; Gillen 2011). 
Gillen (2011, p. 9) evaluated the relationship of mast-producing trees 
(trees that produce acorns or nuts), small mammal densities, and the 
occurrence of carnivores in forests in southern Illinois and 
hypothesized that the decline of oak-dominated forests in the eastern 
United States may cause declines in small mammals that consume acorns, 
and in turn the carnivores that consume small mammals. Gillen (2011, p. 
1) cited several studies that indicate oak-dominated forests are 
declining due to the reduced regeneration and secondary succession of 
shade-tolerant species such as maple and beech. Gillen (2011, p. 9) 
cited studies by Haroldson and Fritzell (1984, p. 226) that found that 
gray fox select forests with high densities of prey. Gillen (2011, p. 
10) reported a decrease in red and gray fox populations in Illinois, 
and hypothesized that the decline may be worsened by additional 
succession of oak-dominated forests.
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    The petitioners assert that the gray fox requires early 
successional cover, grassland, or dense forest and that the decline of 
this habitat type has contributed to the subspecies decline (Petition, 
unpaginated). Gray fox prefer wooded habitat, areas of mixed grassland 
and forest, and early successional areas (Cooper 2008, p. 4; 
Chamberlain and Leopold 2000, p. 749; Haroldson and Fritzell 1984, p. 
226; Fritzell and Haroldson 1982, p. 4). Gray fox utilize this dense 
protective cover especially during the day when they are not as active 
(Haroldson and Fritzell 1984, p. 227). There is evidence that gray fox 
are more abundant in areas where there is woody or dense cover and less 
abundant in agricultural areas (Cooper 2008, p. 4). Cooper (2008, p. 
26) suggests that habitat loss is one of the gray fox's biggest threats 
and that the changes in the landscape, predominantly to agriculture in 
the Midwest, have adversely affected gray fox populations. The 
petitioners have provided evidence of low or declining numbers of gray 
fox within the range of the prairie gray fox subspecies (Blair 2011, p. 
31; Roberts and Clark 2011, unpaginated; Sasse 2011, unpaginated; 
Kitchell 2010, unpaginated; U.S. Department of the Interior 1981, pp. 
38-98; U.S. Department of the Interior 1980, pp. 40-100). The 
conversion from native woody habitat to agricultural practices has 
likely impacted the prairie gray fox as all of the States within its 
range have agriculture to differing degrees. When settlers arrived in 
the Midwest, the forests were converted to agriculture before the 
technology was available to convert prairie lands (U.S. Geological 
Survey 1998, p. 4). For example, prior to 1860, forest areas were the 
primary source of cropland in Illinois (U.S. Geological Survey 1998, p. 
4). Due to the conversion to agriculture, timber harvest, and 
development, approximately 70 percent of the available forest land in 
the Midwest has been lost since 1920 (U.S. Geological Survey 1998, p. 
4), and landcover in the Midwest consists of approximately 44 percent 
agriculture (Mankin and Warner 1999a, p. 956). Although the petitioners 
do not provide information on the amount of habitat that has been lost 
throughout the prairie gray fox's range, we believe there is 
substantial

[[Page 71770]]

information to suggest that a decline in the population of this 
subspecies may be due to the loss of habitat.
    In summary, we find that the information provided in the petition, 
as well as other information available in our files, presents 
substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the 
petitioned action may be warranted due to the loss of early 
successional cover, grassland, or dense forest habitat within the range 
of this subspecies.

B. Overutilization for Commercial, Recreational, Scientific, or 
Educational Purposes

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners state that the threats of continued human hunting 
and trapping of this subspecies is ``an additional stressor'' but do 
not provide information as to the numbers of gray fox being harvested 
in any of the States within the range of the prairie gray fox 
(Petition, unpaginated).
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    Fritzel and Haroldson (1984, p. 4) state that ``undoubtedly the 
most important predator of gray fox is man,'' referencing specific 
citations indicating the importance of gray fox pelts in the 1970s. An 
estimated 26,109 gray fox pelts were harvested in the United States 
during the 1970-1971 season, increasing to 163,458 during the 1975-1976 
season. It was estimated in 1977 that approximately half of the gray 
fox population in Wisconsin was harvested annually (Fritzel and 
Haroldson 1984, p. 4). Illinois hunters harvested 9,086 gray fox pelts 
in the winter of 1977-1978 (McFarland 2007, p. 9). More recently, 
during the 2010-2011 season, gray fox harvested in the State of 
Missouri increased 112 percent, while the annual Archer's Index to 
Furbearer Populations (where deer and turkey archery hunters record 
sightings of furbearers each fall) shows a 75 percent decline in gray 
fox numbers since 1983 (Petition, unpaginated; Missouri Department of 
Conservation 2011 Furbearer Program Annual Report, pp. 11-12; Blair 
2011, p. 31). According to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission 2010-
2011 Furbearing Animal Report, 976 gray fox were purchased by licensed 
fur buyers in the State (Sasse 2011, unpaginated). The report indicates 
that there was an overall increase in pelts purchased for this season 
after an overall low in 2009-2010, with the number of pelts purchased 
increasing by 91 percent. The report also indicates actual numbers of 
furbearers harvested is likely underreported.
    Although there is evidence in the literature that gray fox have 
been hunted in the past and continue to be harvested to some degree, 
which may have individual and localized impacts, neither the petition 
nor information readily available in our files indicates that harvest 
is affecting the subspecies overall. Therefore, based on information 
readily available in our files, overutilization may have occurred and 
may have potentially caused historical decline, but neither the 
petition nor the information readily available in our files indicate 
that the overutilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or 
educational purposes is a current threat to the prairie gray fox. 
However, as we proceed with the 12-month status review, we will further 
investigate this factor to determine whether overutilization for 
commercial, recreational, scientific, or educational purposes is an 
ongoing threat to the subspecies.

C. Disease or Predation

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners did not present information regarding disease 
affecting the prairie gray fox. The petitioners claim that the loss of 
dense cover available to the prairie gray fox due to habitat 
degradation has made the subspecies more susceptible to predation from 
coyotes (Canis latrans), stating coyotes are the gray fox's only major 
non-human predator (Petition, unpaginated). The petitioners cite a 
personal communication with Stan Gehrt from Ohio State University 
asserting that gray fox in northern Illinois are being ``wiped out'' 
due to coyote predation because they do not have adequate cover 
(Petition, unpaginated). The petition states that Gehrt cited 
additional research suggesting that coyote killed gray fox; however, 
they did not consume them (Petition, unpaginated). The petitioners cite 
McFarland (2007), which discusses studies being conducted in Illinois 
on coyote-gray fox interactions in northern and southern Illinois, with 
Gehrt cited as one of the researchers. McFarland (2007, p. 11) quotes 
Gehrt in reference to the study: ``We identified a family of gray foxes 
living in a cemetery in an intensely urban area on the south side of 
Chicago, the amazing thing is, it was a place nobody would expect to 
find even a red fox. On top of that, coyotes still found their hiding 
spot and killed them.'' In McFarland (2007, p. 11), Gehrt suggests that 
gray fox have been unable to adapt to the increase in coyote predation 
like red fox have. McFarland (2007, p. 11) indicates that the increase 
in coyote numbers in Illinois may be due to a shift in agricultural 
practices and movement of humans to urban areas, and a subsequent 
decrease in coyote hunters and an increase in the coyote's food supply.
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    Jones et al. (1985, p. 264) and Fritzell and Haroldson (1982, p. 5) 
both mention coyote and bobcat (Lynx rufus) as a predator of the gray 
fox. In their study of coyote, fox, and bobcat interactions in 
California, Fedriani et al. (2000, p. 262) predicted the dominance of 
coyote over the other two carnivores. During their 2-year study, 
Fedriani et al. (2000, p. 262) found 7 gray fox killed by coyote and 2 
by bobcat, and found remains of gray fox in coyote feces. They 
suggested that ``the sum of population losses due to coyote predation 
plus the avoidance of areas of high coyote predation risk by fox limit 
the size and range of gray fox populations in the Santa Monica 
Mountains, whereas no evidence of food limitation is indicated'' 
(Fedriani et al. 2000, p. 268). Chamberlain and Leopold (2005, pp. 171-
178) studied similar interactions among bobcat, coyote, and gray fox in 
central Mississippi. They found that the home ranges of coyote and gray 
fox intersected and that gray fox maintained home ranges within the 
larger range of the coyote (Chamberlain and Leopold 2005, p. 175). 
However, they found that the amount of overlap of core areas was 
negligible, suggesting that gray fox avoid areas of greater coyote 
concentration. They considered the interspecific competition between 
coyotes and gray fox minimal, as there were 2 deaths of gray fox from 
coyotes (of the 37 gray fox studied). Researchers also indicated there 
were two instances of den abandonment due to coyote disturbance 
(Chamberlain and Leopold 2005, p. 177). The coyote's range in the 
United States has expanded dramatically since pre-settlement; however 
it has always been a part of the prairie gray fox's range (Parker 1995, 
p. 17). Before the 1900s, coyote was limited to the prairies of the 
central United States from Canada south into Mexico (Parker 1995, p. 
17). Although the available information shows that coyote and bobcat do 
prey on gray fox, it does not indicate whether the predation rate has 
increased beyond a natural level or that such predation is causing a 
population-level effect.
    We found few sources in our files referencing the effects of 
disease on gray fox populations. Fritzell and Haroldson

[[Page 71771]]

(1982, p. 5) state that canine distemper virus (CDV) and rabies may 
affect local populations. Cooper 2008 (p. 1) also mentions that rabies, 
canine parvovirus, and CDV affect the gray fox. Cooper 2008 (p. 1) also 
states that CDV is, ``the most significant mortality factor for gray 
foxes,'' citing several references supporting the adverse effects CDV 
has had on gray fox populations.
    The information provided by the petitioners and within our files 
indicates that the gray fox is being preyed on by coyotes and, to a 
lesser degree, bobcats; however, we do not have information as to 
whether the predation rate has increased beyond a natural level. Our 
files also contain some information that the impacts of disease may be 
detrimental to individual populations of the prairie gray fox, but we 
do not have information as to what impact disease is having on the 
subspecies.
    Therefore, based on information readily available in our files, 
gray fox are currently being preyed on by coyotes, but we do not have 
information to indicate that disease or predation is an ongoing threat 
to the prairie gray fox. As we proceed with the 12-month status review, 
we will further investigate whether disease or predation are an ongoing 
threat to the subspecies.

D. The Inadequacy of Existing Regulatory Mechanisms

Information Provided in the Petition
    No information on this factor is provided in the petition.
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    We do not have any information in our files to indicate the amount 
of protection currently being afforded the prairie gray fox within 
individual States. Therefore, we find that the petition and the 
information readily available in our files do not provide substantial 
scientific or commercial information to indicate that the inadequacy of 
existing regulatory mechanisms is a threat to the prairie gray fox such 
that the petitioned action may be warranted. However, as we proceed 
with the 12-month status review, we will further investigate whether 
the inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms may be a threat to the 
prairie gray fox.

E. Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting Its Continued Existence

Information Provided in the Petition
    The petitioners did not present information on whether or how other 
natural or manmade factors are affecting the prairie gray fox.
Evaluation of Information Provided in the Petition and Available in 
Service Files
    We do not have information in our files to indicate any potential 
threat to the prairie gray fox due to other natural or manmade factors. 
Therefore, we find that the petition and information readily available 
in our files do not provide substantial scientific or commercial 
information to indicate that other natural or manmade factors present a 
threat to the prairie gray fox such that the petitioned action may be 
warranted. However, as we proceed with the 12-month status review, we 
will further investigate whether other natural or manmade factors, such 
as potential impacts from climate change, may be a threat to the 
prairie gray fox.

Finding for Prairie Gray Fox

    We reviewed the information presented in the petition and evaluated 
that information in relation to information readily available in our 
files. On the basis of our determination under section 4(b)(3)(A) of 
the Act, we determine that the petition does present substantial 
scientific or commercial information indicating that listing the 
prairie gray fox throughout its entire range may be warranted. This 
finding is based on information provided under factor A.
    Because we have found that the petition presents substantial 
information indicating that listing the prairie gray fox may be 
warranted, we are initiating a status review to determine whether 
listing the prairie gray fox under the Act is warranted.
    The ``substantial information'' standard for a 90-day finding 
differs from the Act's ``best scientific and commercial data'' standard 
that applies to a status review to determine whether a petitioned 
action is warranted. A 90-day finding does not constitute a status 
review under the Act. In a 12-month finding, we will determine whether 
a petitioned action is warranted after we have completed a thorough 
status review of the species, which is conducted following a 
substantial 90-day finding. Because the Act's standards for 90-day and 
12-month findings are different, as described above, a substantial 90-
day finding does not mean that the 12-month finding will result in a 
warranted finding.

References Cited

    A complete list of references cited is available on the Internet at 
http://www.regulations.gov and upon request from the Rock Island, 
Illinois Ecological Service Field Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT).

Authors

    The primary authors of this notice are the staff members of the 
Columbia, Missouri, and Rock Island, Illinois Ecological Services Field 
Offices.

Authority

    The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of 
1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: November 20 2012.
Rowan Gould,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-29188 Filed 12-3-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P