[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 72 (Thursday, April 14, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22226-22229]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-07914]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[Docket No. FWS-R2-ES-2022-0018; FXES111302WOLF0-223-FF02ENWF00]


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Recovery 
Plan for the Mexican Wolf, Second Revision

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 
availability of our Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) Draft Recovery 
Plan, Second Revision (draft revised recovery plan). The Mexican wolf 
is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended (ESA), and is currently found in Arizona and New Mexico in the 
United States, and in Sonora and Chihuahua, Mexico. The draft revised 
recovery plan includes new site-specific management actions to address 
the threat of human-caused mortality, including illegal take, in 
response to a court-ordered remand of the Mexican Wolf Recovery Plan, 
First Revision (2017 recovery plan). These new actions, as well as 
their time and cost estimates, are incorporated into the draft revised 
recovery plan implementation schedule. We provide the rationale for 
each action in a new section of the draft revised recovery plan 
(``Recovery Actions Added to the Implementation Schedule to Address 
Human-Caused Mortality''). The draft revised recovery plan provides 
minor clarifying updates to explain the addition of the recovery 
actions but does not alter the recovery strategy or recovery criteria 
for the Mexican wolf. We request review and comment on the draft 
recovery plan from local, State, and Federal agencies; Tribes; and the 
public, in both the United States and Mexico.

DATES: We must receive written comments on or before May 16, 2022. 
Comments submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking Portal 
(see ADDRESSES) must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the 
closing date. Due to a court-ordered deadline, we will not be able to 
extend the date for public review and comment on this document.

ADDRESSES: Obtaining documents: The draft revised recovery plan, and 
any comments and other materials that we receive, will be available for 
public inspection at https://www.regulations.gov in Docket No. FWS-R2-
ES-2022-0018. The 2017 recovery plan will be available in the docket as 
a supporting document.
    Submitting Comments: If you wish to comment on the draft revised 
recovery plan, please submit your comments in writing by one of the 
following methods:
     Internet: https://www.regulations.gov. Search for and 
submit comments on Docket No. FWS-R2-ES-2022-0018.

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     U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No. 
FWS-R2-ES-2022-0018; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, MS: 
PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg Pike; Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
    We request that you send written comments by only the methods 
described above.
    For more information, see Public Availability of Comments under 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brady McGee, Mexican Wolf Recovery 
Coordinator, by telephone at 505-761-4704 or via email at 
[email protected]. You may also visit the Mexican Wolf Recovery 
Program's website at https://www.fws.gov/program/mexican-wolf for 
information about Mexican wolf recovery. Individuals in the United 
States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech 
disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access 
telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United 
States should use the relay services offered within their country to 
make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 
(Service), announce the availability of a draft revised recovery plan 
for the Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi).

Recovery Planning and Implementation

    Section 4(f) of the ESA requires the development of recovery plans 
for listed species, unless such a plan would not promote the 
conservation of a particular species. Also pursuant to section 4(f) of 
the ESA, a recovery plan must, to the maximum extent practicable, 
include:
    1. A description of site-specific management actions as may be 
necessary to achieve the plan's goals for the conservation and survival 
of the species;
    2. Objective, measurable criteria that, when met, would support a 
determination under section 4(a)(1) that the species should be removed 
from the List of Endangered and Threatened Species; and
    3. Estimates of the time and costs required to carry out those 
measures needed to achieve the plan's goal and to achieve intermediate 
steps toward that goal.
    In 2016, the Service revised its approach to recovery planning, and 
is now using a process termed recovery planning and implementation 
(RPI) (see https://www.fws.gov/endangered/esa-library/pdf/RPI.pdf). The 
RPI approach is intended to reduce the time needed to develop and 
implement recovery plans, increase recovery plan relevance over a 
longer timeframe, and add flexibility to recovery plans so that they 
can be adjusted to new information or circumstances. Under RPI, a 
recovery plan addresses the statutorily required elements under section 
4(f) of the ESA, including site-specific management actions, objective 
and measurable recovery criteria, and the estimated time and cost to 
recovery. The RPI recovery plan is supported by two supplementary 
documents that are incorporated into the recovery plan by reference: A 
species status assessment or biological report, which describes the 
best available scientific information related to the biological needs 
of the species and assessment of threats; and a recovery implementation 
strategy, which details the particular near-term activities needed to 
implement the recovery actions identified in the recovery plan. Under 
this approach, we can more nimbly incorporate new information on 
species biology or details of recovery implementation by updating these 
supplementary documents without concurrent revision of the entire 
recovery plan, unless changes to statutorily required elements are 
necessary.

Background of Recovery Planning for the Mexican Wolf

    The original recovery plan for the Mexican wolf was finalized in 
1982 (Service 1982). We revised the 1982 recovery plan in 2017 using 
the RPI process (82 FR 57288; December 4, 2017). The Mexican Wolf 
Recovery Plan, First Revision (2017 recovery plan), contains 
statutorily required elements, including measurable criteria, site-
specific management actions, and estimates of time and costs, along 
with a concise introduction and our strategy for how we plan to recover 
the Mexican wolf. It specifies the establishment and maintenance of a 
demographically and genetically robust population of wolves in the 
United States, and a second population in Mexico. In the United States, 
Mexican wolves inhabit the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area 
(MWEPA) in Arizona and New Mexico (80 FR 2512; January 16, 2015). We 
began reintroducing Mexican wolves from captivity into the MWEPA in 
1998 and continue to focus recovery efforts in the United States on 
this population.
    On October 14, 2021, the District Court of Arizona remanded the 
2017 recovery plan back to the Service to include site-specific 
management actions to address the threat of human-caused mortality, 
including illegal killing (No: 4:18-CV-00047-TUC-JGZ (Lead); No. 4:18-
CV-00048-TUC-JGZ (Member)). The court order specified that the Service 
must produce a draft recovery plan for public comment within 6 months 
and a final plan no later than 6 months after the draft recovery plan. 
The draft revised recovery plan maintains the recovery strategy, 
criteria, and actions from the 2017 recovery plan and includes new 
recovery actions to alleviate the threat of human-caused mortality, 
including illegal killing. These new actions, as well as their time and 
cost estimates, are incorporated into the draft revised recovery plan 
implementation schedule. We provide the rationale for each action in a 
new section of the draft revised recovery plan (``Recovery Actions 
Added to the Implementation Schedule to Address Human-Caused 
Mortality'').
    It is our intention that the actions we have added to the draft 
revised recovery plan will help alleviate the threat of excessive 
human-caused mortality, including illegal killing. We will adapt our 
implementation of recovery actions over time to address sources of 
human-caused mortality, as we assess population performance, the 
contribution of specific sources to overall mortality levels, the 
availability of resources needed for implementation of specific 
actions, and other considerations.
    Currently, at least 74 percent of documented Mexican wolf 
mortalities in the MWEPA between 1998 and 2020 are attributed to human 
causes. Illegal killing has been the largest source of human-caused 
mortality in the MWEPA between 1998 and 2020 (119 of 216 total 
documented mortalities), followed by vehicle collision (27 mortalities) 
and other human-caused mortalities (14 mortalities) (Service files). 
Some of the mortalities that we attribute to ``unknown'' causes (24 
mortalities) may also be human caused. Since the completion of the 2017 
recovery plan, human-caused mortality in the MWEPA has been variable, 
with totals of 7, 15, 12, and 25 Mexican wolf mortalities each year, 
respectively, during the period 2017-2020 (Service files). In Mexico, 
mortalities of 7, 4, 1, 2, and 4 were documented respectively during 
the consecutive years 2017-2021; these included mortalities from poison 
(7 mortalities), unknown causes (6 mortalities), vehicular collision (3 
mortalities), trapping (1 mortality), and firearm (1 mortality) 
(Universidad Aut[oacute]noma de Quer[eacute]taro/Comisi[oacute]n 
Nacional de [Aacute]reas pers. comm.).
    As we described in our January 16, 2015, final rule to list the 
Mexican wolf as an endangered subspecies (80 FR 2488), different wolf 
populations can

[[Page 22228]]

sustain themselves under varying levels of human-caused mortality (80 
FR 2488, p. 2501). Based on population viability modeling conducted for 
the 2017 recovery plan, we expect the Mexican wolf population to grow 
or remain stable if the mean adult mortality rate is less than 25 
percent, combined with mean subadult mortality rates less than 33 
percent and mean pup mortality less than 13 percent (Service 2017, p. 
21). Therefore, while some human-caused mortality can be sustained 
during the recovery effort, mean mortality rates from all sources of 
mortality (natural and human-caused) need to remain below threshold 
levels in order for the Mexican wolf to achieve demographic recovery 
criteria.
    Further, we recognize that multiple sources of mortality occurring 
in combination have a greater potential to affect the Mexican wolf than 
some single sources (80 FR 2488, p. 2508). Therefore, while one source 
of human-caused mortality, such as vehicular collision, may not occur 
at a level that hinders the recovery of the Mexican wolf independent of 
other sources of mortality, it may contribute to an overall level of 
mortality that is too high for the population performance necessary to 
achieve recovery. Because of this, recovery actions to address a 
specific source of human-caused mortality may contribute to the 
recovery effort even if that source is not independently hindering 
population growth.

Species Background and Current Status

    The Mexican wolf is listed as an endangered subspecies throughout 
its range, without critical habitat, due to the individual and 
cumulative effects of excessive human-caused mortality, including 
illegal killing; genetic issues, including inbreeding, loss of 
heterozygosity, and loss of adaptive potential; and demographic 
stochasticity (decreases in survival or reproduction) associated with 
small population size (80 FR 2488, January 16, 2015). For detailed 
listing history, biological background, and additional information on 
recovery and reintroduction efforts, including previous Federal actions 
for the Mexican wolf subspecies and experimental population, see our 
final rule to list the Mexican wolf as an endangered subspecies on 
January 16, 2015 (80 FR 2488); our notice of availability of the 2017 
recovery plan on December 4, 2017 (82 FR 57288); and our proposed rule 
to revise the nonessential experimental population of the Mexican wolf 
on October 29, 2021 (86 FR 59953).
    The Service and our regional and binational partners continue to 
implement the recovery strategy and actions in the 2017 recovery plan 
to address threats to the Mexican wolf and achieve recovery in the 
United States and Mexico. Although the Mexican wolf remains critically 
endangered, population growth in the wild in recent years has improved 
the status of the species and the outlook for recovery. We and our 
partners are employing adaptive management to utilize new field 
techniques in the United States such as diversionary food caching to 
prevent depredations and cross-fostering to support the genetic needs 
of the expanding population in the MWEPA in Arizona and New Mexico 
(Service 2019). In addition, the captive population, numbering 55 
facilities housing 369 wolves as of June 30, 2020, remains robust and 
capable of supporting the reintroduction and recovery efforts in both 
countries, while also enabling scientists to engage in reproductive and 
genetic research that may contribute to the ongoing genetic management 
of the captive and wild populations (Scott et al. 2020, entire).
    Progress toward the demographic and genetic recovery criteria in 
the 2017 recovery plan is documented annually. Due to disparate timing 
and methods of data collection between the United States and Mexico, 
available information as of January 19, 2022, varies between the two 
countries. The minimum population count for the MWEPA at the end of 
2020 was 186 wolves, with 7 released wolves (wolves born in captivity) 
surviving to breeding age in the spring of 2020. The MWEPA 2021 minimum 
population count and a report on the number of released wolves 
surviving to breeding age as of the spring of 2021 will be available in 
February and March 2022, respectively. In Mexico, the population was 
estimated at approximately 40 wolves at the end of 2021, with 4 
released wolves surviving to breeding age as of the end of 2021 
(Service files; UAQ/CONANP pers. comm.). In 2023, the Service will 
conduct an evaluation of progress toward recovery, using data from both 
countries' programs through 2022, as specified in the 2017 recovery 
plan (see Service 2017, p. 26).

Request for Public Comments

    Section 4(f) of the ESA requires us to provide public notice and an 
opportunity for public review and comment during recovery plan 
development. It is also our policy to request peer review of draft 
recovery plans (59 FR 34270, July 1, 1994). We will summarize and 
respond to the comments the public and peer reviewers provide and make 
our responses available to the public. Substantive comments may or may 
not result in changes to the recovery plan. Comments regarding recovery 
plan implementation will be forwarded as appropriate to Federal or 
other entities for consideration as the Service implements recovery 
actions. Pursuant to the court order, the Service must produce a final 
revised recovery plan by October 14, 2022.
    We invite written comments on the draft revised recovery plan. In 
particular, we are interested in comments or additional information 
pertaining to the new recovery actions in the implementation schedule 
of the draft revised recovery plan, including:
    1. Will these new actions reduce the threat of excessive human-
caused mortality?
    2. Do these actions support achieving the recovery criteria for the 
Mexican wolf?
    3. Is there additional information pertaining to the time and cost 
estimates for the new actions we have recommended?
    4. Are there additional actions that could reduce the threat of 
excessive human-caused mortality? Please provide a description of the 
action, your rationale, and any supporting data or literature.
    We will accept comments about the Mexican wolf at any time, but due 
to the court-ordered deadline on this action, only comments received 
during the comment period that are germane to the remand will be taken 
into account as we develop the final revised recovery plan. We do not 
intend to revise any part of the recovery plan other than the recovery 
actions. Prior to final approval of the plan, we will consider all 
comments we receive by the date specified in DATES.

Public Availability of Comments

    All comments received, including names and addresses, will become 
part of the administrative record and will be available to the public. 
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other 
personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware 
that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--will be publicly available. While you may request in your 
comment that we withhold your personal identifying information from 
public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

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Authority

    We developed our draft recovery plan and publish this notice under 
the authority of section 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

Amy L. Lueders,
Regional Director, Southwest Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-07914 Filed 4-13-22; 8:45 am]
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