[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 165 (Wednesday, August 26, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51830-51834]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-21033]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[Docket No. FWS-HQ-IA-2014-0018; FF09A1000-145-FXIA16710900000]


Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International 
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES); 
Seventeenth Regular Meeting: Taxa Being Considered for Amendments to 
the CITES Appendices

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The United States, as a Party to the Convention on 
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora 
(CITES), may propose amendments to the CITES Appendices for 
consideration at meetings of the Conference of the Parties. The 
seventeenth regular meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES 
(CoP17) is scheduled to be held in South Africa, September 24 to 
October 5, 2016. With this notice, we describe proposed amendments to 
the CITES Appendices (species proposals) that the United States might 
submit for consideration at CoP17 and invite your comments and 
information on these proposals.

DATES: We will consider written information and comments we receive by 
October 26, 2015.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments pertaining to species proposals for 
consideration at CoP17 by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-HQ-
IA-2014-0018.
     U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing, 
Attn: FWS-HQ-IA-2014-0018; Division of Policy, Performance, and 
Management Programs; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 5275 Leesburg 
Pike, MS: BPHC; Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
    We will not consider comments sent by email or fax or to an address 
not listed in ADDRESSES. We will post all comments on http://www.regulations.gov. This generally means that we will post any 
personal

[[Page 51831]]

information you provide us. If you submit a comment via http://www.regulations.gov, your entire comment--including any personal 
identifying information--will be posted on the Web site. If you submit 
a hardcopy comment that includes personal identifying information, you 
may request at the top of your document that we withhold this 
information from public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we 
will be able to do so. We will post all hardcopy comments on http://www.regulations.gov.
    Comments and materials we receive in response to this notice will 
be available for public inspection on http://www.regulations.gov, or by 
appointment between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays, at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of 
Scientific Authority, 5275 Leesburg Pike, MS: IA, Falls Church, VA 
22041-3803; phone 703-358-1708.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rosemarie Gnam Ph.D., Chief, Division 
of Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, at 703-358-
1708 (phone), 703-358-2276 (fax), or [email protected] 
(email). If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), 
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild 
Fauna and Flora, hereinafter referred to as CITES or the Convention, is 
an international treaty designed to control and regulate international 
trade in certain animal and plant species that are affected by trade 
and are now, or potentially may become, threatened with extinction. 
These species are included in the Appendices to CITES, which are 
available on the CITES Secretariat's Web site at www.cites.org. 
Currently, 181 Parties, including the United States, have joined CITES. 
The Convention calls for regular biennial meetings of the Conference of 
the Parties, unless the Conference decides otherwise, and meetings are 
typically held every 2 to 3 years. At these meetings, the Parties 
review the implementation of CITES, make provisions enabling the CITES 
Secretariat in Switzerland to carry out its functions, consider 
amendments to the list of species in Appendices I and II, consider 
reports presented by the Secretariat, and make recommendations for the 
improved effectiveness of CITES. Any country that is a Party to CITES 
may propose amendments to Appendices I and II, as well as resolutions, 
decisions, and agenda items for consideration by all the Parties.
    This is our third in a series of Federal Register notices that, 
together with an announced public meeting (time and place to be 
announced), provide you with an opportunity to participate in the 
development of the U.S. submissions and negotiating positions for the 
seventeenth regular meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES 
(CoP17), which is scheduled to be held in South Africa, from September 
24 to October 5, 2016. We published our first CoP17-related Federal 
Register notice on June 27, 2014 (79 FR 36550), in which we requested 
information and recommendations on animal and plant species proposals 
for the United States to consider submitting for consideration at 
CoP17. You may obtain information on that Federal Register notice from 
the Division of Scientific Authority at the address provided in FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT above. We published our second CoP17-
related Federal Register notice on May 11, 2015 (80 FR 26948), in which 
we requested information and recommendations on resolutions, decisions, 
and agenda items that the United States might consider submitting for 
discussion at CoP17, and provided preliminary information on how to 
request approved observer status for national nongovernmental 
organizations within the United States that wish to attend the meeting. 
Comments received on that notice may be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-HQ-IA-2014-0018. You may obtain 
information on that Federal Register notice by contacting Craig Hoover, 
Chief, Wildlife Trade and Conservation Branch, Division of Management 
Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, at 703-358-2095 (phone), 
703-358-2298 (fax), or [email protected] (email). Our 
regulations governing this public process are found in title 50 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at Sec.  23.87.

Recommendations for Species Proposals for the United States to Consider 
Submitting for CoP17

    In our Federal Register notice of June 27, 2014 (79 FR 36550), we 
requested information and recommendations on potential species 
proposals for the United States to consider submitting for 
consideration at CoP17. We received recommendations from 22 individuals 
and the following organizations for possible proposals involving 80 
taxa (2 families, 6 genera, 70 individual species, and 2 general groups 
(U.S. and foreign softshell turtles and North American map turtles)): 
the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA); Center for Biological 
Diversity (CBD); Earthtrust; Ginseng Board of Wisconsin (GBW); Hsu's 
Ginseng Enterprises, Inc. (HGE); Humane Society International (HSI); 
International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW); International Union for 
Conservation of Nature-Species Survival Commission (IUCN-SSC) Tortoise 
and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group; Natural Resources Defense 
Council (NRDC); Pew Environment Group (PEG); Species Survival Network 
(SSN); United Plant Savers (UPS); Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS); 
and World Wildlife Fund (WWF)/TRAFFIC. We also received general 
comments from individual commenters for CITES protections on the 
following species: 7 on rhinoceroses, elephants, and lions; 44 on 
elephants; 39 on rhinoceroses; and 29,738 on polar bears, pangolins, 
nautiluses, snapping and map turtles, walruses, sea cucumbers, and 
seahorses. Additionally, the United States may submit proposals on six 
animal species, one plant species, and one plant genus currently under 
periodic review by the CITES technical committees, and is undecided 
about submitting proposals regarding four bird species based on recent 
taxonomic changes.
    We have undertaken initial assessments of the available trade and 
biological information on all of these taxa. Based on these 
assessments, we made provisional evaluations of whether to proceed with 
the development of proposals for species to be included in, removed 
from, or transferred between the CITES Appendices. We made these 
evaluations by considering the biological and trade information 
available on the species; the presence, absence, and effectiveness of 
other mechanisms that may preclude the need for species' inclusion in 
the CITES Appendices (e.g., range country actions or other 
international agreements); and availability of resources. We have also 
considered the following factors, as per the U.S. approach for CoP17 
discussed in our June 27, 2014, Federal Register notice:
    (1) Does the proposed action address a serious wildlife or plant 
trade issue that the United States is experiencing as a range country 
for species in trade?
    (2) Does the proposed action address a serious wildlife or plant 
trade issue for species not native to the United States?
    (3) Does the proposed action provide additional conservation 
benefit for a species already covered by another international 
agreement?
    Based on our initial assessments, we have assigned each taxon to 
one of three categories, which reflects the likelihood

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of our submitting a proposal. In sections A, B, and C below, we have 
listed the current status of each species proposal recommended by the 
public, as well as species proposals we have been developing on our 
own. Please note that we have only provided here a list of taxa and the 
proposed action. We have posted an extended version of this notice on 
our Web site at http://www.fws.gov/international/publications-and-media/federal-register-notices.html, with text describing in more 
detail each proposed action and explaining the rationale for the 
tentative U.S. position on each possible proposal. Copies of the 
extended version of the notice are also available from the Division of 
Scientific Authority at the above address or at www.regulations.gov at 
Docket No. FWS-HQ-IA-2014-0018.
    We welcome your comments, especially if you are able to provide any 
additional biological or trade information on these species. For each 
species, more detailed information is on file in the Division of 
Scientific Authority.

A. What species proposals is the United States likely to submit for 
consideration at CoP17?

    The United States is likely to develop and submit proposals for the 
following taxa. Most of the taxa in this section are undergoing 
periodic review of the CITES Appendices by the Animals Committee (AC) 
and Plants Committee (PC), in accordance with Resolution Conf. 14.8 
(Rev. CoP16). This is a regular process under CITES to evaluate whether 
listings of taxa in CITES Appendices I and II continue to be 
appropriate, based on current biological and trade information. These 
taxa are at various stages in the periodic review process. This process 
includes an initial assessment that is put before the appropriate 
Committee (Plants or Animals) for discussion, which may result in an AC 
or PC recommendation that a taxon be uplisted (transferred from 
Appendix II to Appendix I); or downlisted (transferred from Appendix I 
to Appendix II, or deleted from Appendix II); or that no change be made 
to the listing.
Plants
1. Saw-toothed Lewisia (Lewisia serrata)--Potential amendment to 
Appendix-II listing
2. Fishhook cactus (Sclerocactus spp.)--Potential amendments to 
Appendix-I and Appendix-II listings
Invertebrates
3. Wabash riffleshell (Epioblasma sampsonii)--Potential amendment to 
Appendix-I listing
Reptiles
4. Puerto Rican boa (Epicrates inornatus)--Amendment to Appendix-I 
listing
Mammals
5. Caribbean monk seal (Monachus tropicalis)--Potential amendment to 
Appendix-I listing
6. Guam flying-fox (Pteropus tokudae)--Potential amendment to Appendix-
II listing
7. Eastern cougar (Puma concolor couguar) and Florida panther (P. 
concolor coryi)--Potential amendments to Appendix I listings--Potential 
amendments to Appendix-II listings
8. Polar bear (Ursus maritimus)--Transfer from Appendix II to Appendix 
I

B. On what species proposals is the United States still undecided, 
pending additional information and consultations?

    The United States is still undecided on whether to submit proposals 
for CoP17 for the following taxa. In most cases, we have not completed 
our consultations with relevant range countries. In other cases, we 
expect meetings to occur in the immediate future, at which participants 
will generate important recommendations, trade analyses, or biological 
information on the taxon in question that may be useful to our final 
decision-making.
Invertebrates
1. Sea cucumbers native to the United States: Pepino de mar (Actinopyga 
agassizii), Deep-water redfish (A. echinites), Stonefish (A. lecanora), 
Surf redfish (A. mauritiana), Blackfish (A. miliaris), Giant California 
sea cucumber (Apostichopus californicus), Warty sea cucumber (A. 
parvimensis), Furry sea cucumber (Astichopus multifidus), Leopard fish 
(Bohadschia argus), Brown sandfish (B. vitiensis), Orange-footed sea 
cucumber (Cucumaria frondosa), Tripang (Holothuria arenicola), 
Lollyfish (H. atra), Zanga fleur (H. cinerascens), Snakefish (H. 
coluber), Pinkfish (H. edulis), Red snakefish (H. flavomaculata), 
Labuyo (H. fuscocinerea), White teatfish (H. fuscogilva), Elephant 
trunkfish (H. fuscopunctata), Tiger tail (H. hilla), Spotted sea 
cucumber (H. impatiens), Golden sandfish (H. lessoni), White threadfish 
(H. leucospilota), Pepino de mar (H. mexicana), Bantunan (H. pardalis), 
``Unknown'' (H. pervicax), Black teatfish (H. whitmaei), Four-sided sea 
cucumber (Isostichopus badionotus), Blackspotted sea cucumber 
(Pearsonothuria graeffei), Greenfish (Stichopus chloronotus), Curryfish 
(S. herrmanni), Selenka's sea cucumber (S. horrens), Prickly redfish 
(Thelenota ananas), Amber fish (T. anax), and Lemonfish (T. 
rubralineata)--Inclusion in Appendix II
2. Chambered nautiluses (Allonautilus spp. and Nautilus spp.)--
Inclusion in Appendix II
3. Red and pink corals (Corallium spp. and Paracorallium spp.)--
Inclusion in Appendix II
Fishes
4. American eel (Anguilla rostrata)--Inclusion in Appendix II
5. Lined seahorse (Hippocampus erectus)--Transfer from Appendix II to 
Appendix I
6. Dwarf seahorse (Hippocampus zosterae)--Transfer from Appendix II to 
Appendix I
7. Devil rays (Mobula spp.): Pygmy devil ray (M. eregoodootenkee), 
Atlantic devil ray (M. hypostoma), Spinetail devil ray (M. japanica), 
Shortfin devil ray (M. kuhlii), Giant devil ray (M. mobular), 
Smoothtail devil ray (M. munkiana), Lesser Guinean devil ray (M. 
rochebrunei), Sicklefin devil ray (M. tarapacana), and Smoothtail devil 
ray (M. thurstoni))--Inclusion in Appendix II
Reptiles
8. Chaco side-necked turtle (Acanthochelys pallidipectoris)--Inclusion 
in Appendix II or Appendix I
9. African and Middle Eastern softshell turtles in the family 
Trionychidae: Aubry's flapshell turtle (Cycloderma aubryi); Zambezi 
flapshell turtle (C. frenatum); Nubian flapshell turtle (Cyclanorbis 
elegans); Senegal flapshell turtle (C. senegalensis); Euphrates 
softshell turtle (Rafetus euphraticus); and African or Nile softshell 
turtle (Trionyx triunguis)--Inclusion in Appendix II
10. African pygmy chameleons (Rhampholeon spp. and Rieppeleon spp): 
Mount Gorongosa pygmy chameleon (Rhampholeon gorongosae), Marshall's 
pygmy chameleon (R. marshalli), Cameroon stumptail chameleon (R. 
spectrum), East Usambara pygmy

[[Page 51833]]

chameleon (R. temporalis), Rare (Green) pygmy chameleon (R. viridis), 
Nguru spiny pygmy chameleon (R. acuminatus), Beraducci's pygmy 
chameleon (R. beraduccii), Boulenger's pygmy chameleon (R. boulangeri), 
Chapman's pygmy chameleon (R. chapmanorum), Udzungwa pygmy chameleon 
(R. moyeri), Nchisi pygmy chameleon (R. nchisiensis), Mulanje pygmy 
chameleon (R. platyceps), Uluguru pygmy chameleon (R. uluguruensis), 
Mount Inago pygmy chameleon (R. bruessoworum), Mount Namuli pygmy 
chameleon (R. tilburyi), Mount Chiperone pygmy chameleon (R. 
nebulauctor), Mount Mabu pygmy chameleon (R. maspictus), Zomba pygmy 
chameleon (Rieppeleon brachyurus), Bearded pygmy chameleon (R. 
brevicaudatus), Kenya leaf chameleon (R. kerstenii)--Inclusion in 
Appendix II
Birds
11. Four Indo-Pacific bird species: Loria's bird-of-paradise 
(Cnemophilus loriae), Crested bird-of-paradise (C. macgregorii), 
Yellow-breasted bird-of-paradise (Loboparadisea sericea), and 
Macgregor's bird-of-paradise (Macgregoria pulchra)--Removal from 
Appendix II
12. African grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus)--Transfer from Appendix 
II to Appendix I
Mammals
13. Pangolins (Manis spp.)--Transfer from Appendix II to Appendix I
14. Narwhal (Monodon monoceros)--Transfer from Appendix II to Appendix 
I
15. African lion (Panthera leo leo)--Transfer from Appendix II to 
Appendix I

C. What species proposals is the United States not likely to submit for 
consideration at CoP17, unless we receive significant additional 
information?

    The United States does not intend to submit proposals for the 
following taxa unless we receive significant additional information 
indicating that a proposal is warranted. As described further in the 
extended version of this notice on our Web site, information currently 
available for each of the taxa listed below does not support a 
proposal.
Plants
1. Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis)--Removal from Appendix II
2. American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius)--Amendment of the Appendix-II 
listing annotation to exclude sliced roots from CITES control
3. Hawaiian sandalwoods (Santalum spp.)--Inclusion in Appendix II
Invertebrates
4. Sea cucumbers not native to the United States: Deepwater blackfish 
(Actinopyga palauensis), Burying blackfish (A. spinea), Japanese sea 
cucumber (Apostichopus japonicas), Brown-spotted sandfish (Bohadschia 
marmorata), Falalyjaka (B. subrubra), Japanese cucumaria (Cucumaria 
japonica), Black teatfish (Holothuria nobilis), Sandfish (H. scabra), 
Selenka's sea cucumber (Stichopus monotuberculatus), Selenka's sea 
cucumber (S. naso)--Inclusion in Appendix II
Fishes
5. Thresher sharks (Alopias spp.): Bigeye thresher shark (A. 
pelagicus), Pelagic thresher shark A. superciliosus), Common thresher 
shark (A. vulpinus)--Inclusion in Appendix II
6. Dusky shark (Carcharhinus obscurus)--Inclusion in Appendix II
7. Silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis)--Inclusion in Appendix II
8. Mako sharks: Longfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) and shortfin 
mako shark (I. paucus)--Inclusion in Appendix II
9. Blue shark (Prionace glauca)--Inclusion in Appendix II
10. Hammerhead sharks (Sphyrnidae Family): Winghead shark (Eusphyra 
blochii), Scalloped bonnethead (Sphyrna corona), Whitefin hammerhead 
(S. couardi), Scoophead shark (S. media), Bonnethead shark (S. tiburo), 
Smalleye hammerhead shark (S. tudes)--Inclusion in Appendix II
11. Humphead wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus)--Transfer from Appendix II to 
Appendix I
Reptiles
12. North American softshell turtles in the Genus Apalone: Spiny 
softshell (A. spinifera, including 6 subsp.*); Smooth softshell (A. 
mutica, including 2 subsp.); and Florida softshell (A. ferox)--
Inclusion in Appendix II [* excluding A.s. atra, which is in Appendix I 
and found in Mexico]
13. North American map turtles (Graptemys spp.): Barbour's map turtle 
(G. barbouri); Cagle's map turtle (G. caglei); Escambia map turtle (G. 
ernsti); Yellow-blotched map turtle (G. flavimaculata); Northern map 
turtle (G. geographica); Pascagoula map turtle (G. gibbonsi); Black-
knobbed map turtle (G. nigrinoda); Ringed map turtle (G. oculifera); 
Ouachita map turtle (G. ouachitensis); Pearl River map turtle (G. 
pearlensis); False map turtle (G. pseudogeographica); Alabama map 
turtle (G. pulchra); Texas map turtle (G. versa)--Transfer from 
Appendix III to Appendix II
14. Chinese softshell turtle (Pelodiscus sinensis)--Inclusion in 
Appendix II
15. Alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii)--Transfer from 
Appendix III to Appendix II
Mammals
16. Cape fur seal (Arctocephalus pusillus)--Transfer to Appendix I
17. White rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum)--Inclusion of the entire 
species in Appendix I
18. African elephant (Loxodonta africana)--Inclusion of the entire 
species in Appendix I
19. Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus)--Inclusion in Appendix I

Future Actions

    As stated above, the next regular meeting of the Conference of the 
Parties (CoP17) is scheduled to be held in South Africa, September 24 
to October 5, 2016. The United States must submit any proposals to 
amend Appendix I or II, or any draft resolutions, decisions, or agenda 
items for discussion at CoP17, to the CITES Secretariat 150 days (April 
27, 2016) prior to the start of the meeting. In order to meet this 
deadline and to prepare for CoP17, we have developed a tentative U.S. 
schedule. Approximately 12 months prior to CoP17, we plan to publish a 
Federal Register notice announcing draft resolutions, draft decisions, 
and agenda items the United States is considering submitting for CoP17 
and soliciting further information and comments on them. Approximately 
4 months prior to CoP17, we will post on our Web site an announcement 
of the species proposals, draft resolutions, draft decisions, and 
agenda items submitted by the United States to the CITES Secretariat 
for consideration at CoP17.
    Through a series of additional notices and Web site postings in 
advance of CoP17, we will inform you about preliminary negotiating 
positions on resolutions, decisions, and amendments to the Appendices 
proposed by other

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Parties for consideration at CoP17. We will also publish an 
announcement of a public meeting to be held approximately 3 months 
prior to CoP17. That meeting will enable us to receive public input on 
our positions regarding CoP17 issues. The procedures for developing 
U.S. documents and negotiating positions for a meeting of the 
Conference of the Parties to CITES are outlined in 50 CFR 23.87. As 
noted in paragraph (c) of that section, we may modify or suspend the 
procedures outlined there if they would interfere with the timely or 
appropriate development of documents for submission to the CoP and of 
U.S. negotiating positions.

Author

    The primary author of this notice is Patricia De Angelis, Ph.D., 
Division of Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Authority

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

    Dated: August 17, 2015.
Daniel M. Ashe,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-21033 Filed 8-24-15; 12:00 pm]
 BILLING CODE 4310-55-P