[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 239 (Wednesday, December 12, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73986-73987]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-29971]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XC371


Marine Mammals; Issuance of Permits

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

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permits.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that individuals and institutions have 
been issued Letters of Confirmation for activities conducted under the 
General Authorization for Scientific Research on marine mammals. See 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for a list of names and address of 
recipients.

ADDRESSES: The Letters of Confirmation and related documents are 
available for review upon written request or by appointment in the 
following office:
    Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910; 
phone (301)427-8401; fax (301)713-0376.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Protected Resources, Permits 
and Conservation Division, (301)427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The requested Letters of Confirmation have 
been issued under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 
1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), and the regulations 
governing the taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216). 
The General Authorization allows for bona fide scientific research that 
may result only in taking by level B harassment of marine mammals. The 
following Letters of Confirmation (LOC) were issued in Fiscal Year 
2012.
    File No. 809-1902: Issued to the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science 
Center Foundation, Virginia Beach, VA on February 21, 2007, was 
extended on March 8, 2012. The purpose of the research is to collect 
and maintain a long-term record of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops 
truncatus) in the coastal waters of Virginia and to test the current 
stock hypothesis for Atlantic coastal dolphins. The expiration date of 
the LOC was extended from February 28, 2012 to November 30, 2012.
    File No. 13427: Issued to Gregory D. Kaufman, Pacific Whale 
Foundation,

[[Page 73987]]

Wailuku, HI on March 26, 2012, authorized an amendment to LOC No. 
13427-03 to change the Principal Investigator to Itana Silva. This 
replaced version 13427-03, issued on July 26, 2011. A subsequent 
amendment to LOC No. 13427 was issued on July 9, 2012 to change the 
Principal Investigator to Emmanuelle Martinez. The LOC expires on June 
15, 2013.
    File No. 17263: Issued to the Alaska SeaLife Center, Seward, AK 
(Responsible Party: Tara Reimer Jones, Ph.D.), on June 1, 2012, for 
research on harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) in Alaska. Activities include 
(1) remote video monitoring of seals (installation, removal, repair, 
and maintenance of remote video cameras that require vessel and 
helicopter access), (2) aerial surveys and photo-ID of seals on land 
and ice haulouts, and (3) oceanographic surveys in ice habitats. 
Surveys may be conducted along the coastline on the southern Kenai 
Peninsula and western Prince William Sound, Alaska. Other marine 
mammals that may be harassed during surveys include: Dall's porpoise 
(Phocoenoides dalli); harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena); killer whale 
(Orcinus orca), excluding the endangered Southern resident distinct 
population segment; minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata); and gray 
whale (Eschrichtius robustus), excluding the endangered Western North 
Pacific population. The LOC expires on May 31, 2017.
    File No. 17245: Issued to John H. Schacke, Ph.D., Georgia Dolphin 
Ecology Program, Commerce, GA on June 4, 2012, to construct and 
supplement catalogs of individually identifiable bottlenose dolphins in 
the southeastern United States; to record behavioral observations of 
individual animals; and to document how bottlenose dolphins use the 
estuarine and near-shore waters of the Georgia coast. Research will 
occur within the coastal waters of Georgia, primarily between St. 
Catherine's and Altamaha Sounds, including embayments, rivers, and 
estuaries. Bottlenose dolphins of the Western North Atlantic South 
Carolina/Georgia Coastal Stock, Northern Georgia/Southern South 
Carolina Estuarine System Stock, and Southern Georgia Estuarine System 
Stock will be taken. The LOC expires on June 30, 2017.
    File No. 17259: Issued to Paul Webb, Department of Biology, Roger 
Williams University, Bristol, RI on June 5, 2012, for level B 
harassment of Western North Atlantic stocks of harbor seals (Phoca 
vitulina concolor), gray seals (Halichoerus grypus), and harp seals 
(Pagophilus groenlandica) resulting from close approach, behavioral 
observations, and scat collection. The purpose of the research is to 
examine the demographic structure of the local populations and factors 
affecting the haul-out behavior of harbor seals at sites in 
Narragansett Bay. The LOC expires on June 15, 2017.
    File No. 17260: Issued to Kayla Causey, Ph.D., California State 
University, Fullerton, CA, on June 11, 2012, to conduct photo-
identification, observations, passive acoustic recordings, underwater 
videography, and focal follows during vessel surveys of the California 
coastal stock of bottlenose dolphins within Newport Harbor and the 
surrounding Orange County coastline of California. The purpose of the 
research is to (1) develop an activity budget of dolphins in Newport 
Harbor for comparison to dolphins in surrounding coastal zones; (2) 
provide a better understanding of the temporal scale of site fidelity 
in Newport Harbor and the Orange County region for a population of 
dolphins known to engage in long-shore reversals; (3) gain insight into 
dolphin social dynamics, structure, information transfer, and cognition 
using underwater observation; and (4) determine how dolphins respond to 
vessels and people in the region. Other marine mammals that may be 
harassed during surveys include: California sea lions (Zalophus 
californianus), harbor seals, common dolphins (Delphinus delphis and D. 
capensis), and Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus). The LOC expires on 
June 15, 2017.
    In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a final determination has been made that the 
activities are categorically excluded from the requirement to prepare 
an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.

     Dated: December 7, 2012.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-29971 Filed 12-11-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P