[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 25 (Wednesday, February 6, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Page 2172]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-01203]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XF215


Endangered Species; File No. 20315

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of an application for a permit modification.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Kristen Hart, Ph.D., U.S. 
Geological Survey, 3205 College Ave., Davie, FL 33314 has requested a 
permit modification to Permit No. 20315.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or 
before March 8, 2019.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review by selecting ``Records Open for Public Comment'' from the 
``Features'' box on the Applications and Permits for Protected Species 
(APPS) home page, https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then selecting File 
No. 20315-04 from the list of available applications.
    These documents are also available upon written request or by 
appointment in the 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.
    Written comments on the application should be submitted to the 
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, at the address listed above. 
Comments may also be submitted by facsimile to (301) 713-0376, or by 
email to [email protected]. Please include the File No. in the 
subject line of the email comment.
    Those individuals requesting a public hearing should submit a 
written request to the Chief, Permits and Conservation Division at the 
address listed above. The request should set forth the specific reasons 
why a hearing on the application would be appropriate.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Markin or Amy Hapeman, (301) 427-
8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permit modification is requested 
under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended 
(ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the regulations governing the taking, 
importing, and exporting of endangered and threatened species (50 CFR 
parts 222-226).
    Permit No. 20315 issued on August 11, 2017 (82 FR 11181) authorizes 
Dr. Hart to take green (Chelonia mydas), hawksbill (Eretmochelys 
imbricata), and loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtles for research 
in in the U.S. Virgin Islands, including Buck Island Reef National 
Monument, Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument, and Virgin 
Islands National Park. Researchers may conduct vessel surveys for sea 
turtle counts, captures (by hand or dip, tangle, and cast nets), 
examination, observation, marking, biological sampling, tagging, and 
morphometrics. The objectives of the research are to identify inter-
nesting habitats, foraging zones, and movement corridors and 
characterize fine- and broad-scale spatial and temporal patterns of sea 
turtle habitat use. The permit holder requests authorization to add a 
new research project that requires the following changes to the permit: 
(1) Add new objectives to assess the population structure and describe 
fine scale dive profiles for turtle species; (2) expand the research 
area to include the Dry Tortugas to Appalachicola Florida, Florida 
Keys, Everglades and Biscayne National Parks, and the Atlantic coast up 
to the North Carolina/Virginia border; (3) increase the annual number 
of sea turtles that may be taken (an additional 240 green, 140 
hawksbill, and 190 loggerhead), and add takes of another species (60 
Kemp's ridley [Lepidochelys kempii] sea turtles) for study; (4) add 
methods to include strike nets as a capture method and to obtain 
animals for study that were captured by another legal authority in lieu 
of directed capture efforts; and (5) extend the duration of the permit 
until September 30, 2026.

    Dated: February 1, 2019.
Julia Marie Harrison,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-01203 Filed 2-5-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P