[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 83 (Monday, May 1, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26523-26524]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09075]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XC967]


Endangered Species; File No. 24016-01

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

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

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Jason Kahn, Ph.D., National Marine 
Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910, has 
applied in due form for a permit modification to take Atlantic 
(Acipenser oxyrinchus) and shortnose (A. brevirostrum) sturgeon for 
purposes of scientific research.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or emailed comments must be received on or 
before May 31, 2023.

ADDRESSES: The application request 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. 20416-01 from the list of available applications. These documents 
are also available upon written request via email to 
[email protected].

[[Page 26524]]

    Written comments on this application should be submitted via email 
to [email protected]. Please include File No. 20416-01 in the 
subject line of the email comment.
    Those individuals requesting a public hearing should submit a 
written request via email to [email protected]. The request 
should set forth the specific reasons why a hearing on this application 
would be appropriate.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Malcolm Mohead or Erin Markin, Ph.D. 
at (301) 427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permit modification to Permit 
No. 24016, issued on January 28, 2021 (86 FR 13700, March 10, 2021), is 
requested under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended (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. 24016 currently authorizes the permit holder to conduct 
scientific research on Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon in freshwater 
and estuary areas of the Chesapeake Bay and other coastal rivers, 
assessing sturgeon population and reproductive capacity, as well as 
monitoring spawning activity, movement, and habitat through telemetry. 
Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon life stages may be captured using gill 
or trammel nets, trawls, and trapping nets (e.g., fyke, or other trap 
nets). All animals are marked with passive integrated transponder (PIT) 
and Floy tags, genetic tissue sampled, measured, weighed, photographed 
and released. Subsets of animals are also anesthetized, and internally 
or externally acoustically tagged, biologically sampled (i.e., fin ray, 
blood, gametes), endoscoped and ultrasounded. Larvae and eggs are 
currently collected with D-nets, trawls (i.e., epibenthic sleds), and 
egg mats. The applicant anticipates that up to one adult/sub-adult and 
one juvenile Atlantic sturgeon may be killed annually. The proposed 
modification focuses on activities designed to stage the reproductive 
status of eggs collected from female sturgeon captured from the York 
River (Virginia) and its tributaries. To understand sturgeon egg 
development and spawning characteristics in the York River, the Permit 
Holder is requesting to directly sample an additional 800 eggs using an 
approved egg extraction device. The permit is valid through January 31, 
2031.

    Dated: April 25, 2023.
Amy Sloan,
Deputy Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-09075 Filed 4-28-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P