Topic: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Migratory Bird Management (MBMO) to develop management plan for Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus anatum).
Background: When the Peregrine Falcon was removed from the Endangered Species List on 25 August 1999, responsibility for management of the species was transferred from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Endangered Species, to MBMO. On 4 October 1999, MBMO announced that it would develop two joint state/federal management plans to govern take of wild peregrine falcons under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. One management plan will address take of Peregrine Falcon nestlings in the United States. The other will address take of immature Peregrine Falcons that originate in Alaska, Canada, and Greenland, and migrate through the contiguous United States. These management plans will be developed cooperatively by MBMO and the states with input from the governments of Canada, Greenland, and Mexico. Once the plans are completed, the states will be responsible for managing the species within the framework of the plans. Management plans will continue in force until MBMO and the states agree that special management is no longer warranted.
MBMO invited comments on development of harvest strategies and management plans. These comments will be considered in development of the plans and associated Environmental Assessments. See the full notice.
Deadline for comments: Comments were due 12 November 1999.
Draft Environmental Assessment of Take of Nestlings for Falconry published 25 July 2000
Note: MBMO plans to issue the first of the two management plans (that pertaining to nestlings) by spring 2000 and the second (pertaining to take of migratory birds) by fall 2000. These plans and the accompanying environmental assessments should also be released for public review and comment. Please continue to check this page for updates.
[Federal Register: October 4, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 191)]
[Page 53686-53688]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Migratory Bird Permits; Notice of Intent To Prepare Two Management Plans and Environmental Assessments for Take of Wild Peregrine Falcons
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: The American peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus
anatum) was removed from the protection of the U.S. Endangered Species
Act (ESA) on
August 25, 1999. The arctic peregrine falcon (F. p. tundrius)
was removed from ESA protection in 1994. Due to their special status as
recently delisted subspecies, we intend to develop two
joint State/Federal management plans to govern take of wild peregrine falcons
(F. peregrinus) in the United States. We will prepare Environmental Assessments
(EAs) for public review as part of the process. One management plan will
address take of peregrine falcon
nestlings in the United States. The other will address
take of immature peregrines that originate in Alaska, Canada, and Greenland,
and migrate through the contiguous United States. These management plans
will be developed cooperatively by the Service and the States with input
from the governments of Canada, Greenland, and Mexico. Once the plans are
completed, the States will be responsible for managing the species within
the framework of the plans. Our intent is that these management plans will
apply only until the Service and the States agree that special management
is no longer warranted. Comments on development of
harvest strategies and management plans are solicited
and will be considered in development of the plans and associated Environmental
Assessments.
DATES: Written comments are requested by November 12, 1999.
ADDRESSES: Please submit written comments to the Chief, Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 634, Arlington, Virginia 22203 (fax: 703/358-2272).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: George Allen, Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, at 703/358-1714.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Three subspecies of peregrine
falcon are recognized in North America: the maritime, or Peale's peregrine
(F. p.
pealei); the tundra, or arctic peregrine; and the American
peregrine. The Peale's peregrine is a year round resident of the coastal
areas of western Canada and southern Alaska to the Aleutians. It was never
listed as endangered or threatened under the ESA. The arctic peregrine
breeds in the northern tundra regions from Alaska across Canada to Greenland.
It was listed as endangered, but breeding populations in North America
expanded considerably in recent decades, and the
subspecies was delisted in 1994 (October 5, 1994; 59
FR 50796). The American peregrine subspecies breeds from the boreal forests
of Alaska and Canada south through the western United States and northern
Mexico. Numeric recovery goals for breeding pairs in southeastern Canada
and the eastern United States have recently been met, and numbers now exceed
recovery goals over most of its North American range. We delisted the American
peregrine falcon, and removed the similarity of appearance provision for
free-flying peregrines in the conterminous states, on August 25, 1999 (64
FR 46542). That action had the effect of
eliminating the Endangered Species Act prohibitions against
take of wild-caught peregrines for falconry, raptor propagation, scientific
collecting, and other purposes permittable under the Migratory Bird Treaty
Act. However, except for scientific research, which will be considered
on a case-by-case basis, and depredation permits issued for public safety
reasons at airports, we have continued the prohibition on take of wild
peregrines until we complete management plans to govern
harvest.
Migrant juvenile
peregrines were captured by falconers along the Atlantic coast barrier
islands annually for many years prior to 1970, and migrants and nestlings
were taken less regularly elsewhere in the United States. Falconers would
like the use of wild peregrines to resume now that peregrines have met
recovery goals. Although captive-bred peregrines have been available for
falconry since 1983, wild peregrines have not been available due to ESA
restrictions, except in
Alaska where a limited take of Peale's peregrines is
allowed, and a limited take of arctic peregrines has been allowed since
its delisting.
Falconry is regulated
under a joint State-Federal permitting system (50 CFR 21.28--21.29). Regulations
provide for three progressive classes of falconry permits'apprentice, general,
and master falconer'depending on the individual's level of experience.
Apprentice falconers may possess only one raptor at a time and may take
only certain species, which do not include peregrine falcons. General falconers
may possess two raptors at a time and may take no more than
two from the wild during any 12-month period. Master
falconers may possess three raptors and take no more than two from the
wild during any 12-month period. Federal and most State falconry regulations
permit the removal from the wild of non-endangered raptors for falconry.
In anticipation
of high interest in take of wild peregrines for falconry following the
delisting of the American peregrine, we have been working with the States
to develop harvest criteria that will ensure that recovery achieved under
the ESA is sustained and that further population growth is not impeded.
We will develop,
cooperatively with the States, two management plans.
The first plan will deal with take of nestling (eyas) peregrines in the
United States. The second plan will deal with take of juvenile migrant
(passage) peregrines. Most migrant peregrines will originate in Canada,
Greenland, or Alaska. The management plans will include (1) biological
criteria for a harvest of peregrine falcons, (2) implementation criteria
for the harvest, and (3) procedures for evaluating and adjusting harvest
in an adaptive-management framework. The management plans will provide
overall guidance for take of peregrines. Within the framework provided
by each plan, the States will be responsible for decisions about harvest.
To avoid compromising
the restoration of peregrine populations in North America, our preliminary
objectives for the combined plans are: (1) Protect
from harvest to the extent possible, nestling and dispersing juvenile American
peregrines from natal areas in eastern Canada and eastern United States.
(2) Allow a conservative and sustainable level of take of migrant juvenile
peregrines originating from the Alaskan and Canadian arctic and Greenland.
(3) Allow a conservative and sustainable level of take of nestlingperegrines
from healthy populations in the western United States andAlaska.
The Environmental
Assessments will likely include several alternatives, such as various harvest
levels from particular management groups. Possible harvest levels include
no take, take of 5 percent or 10 percent of annual production, or no restrictions
on take beyond the existing falconry regulations (i.e., no management plan).
Because take
of nestlings is a United States issue, we expect to complete this plan
ahead of the plan for migrants, which will require international coordination
with Canada, Greenland, and Mexico. We hope to complete the plan and EA
for nestlings by spring and for migrants by fall, 2000, respectively.
The Service
has a statutory obligation under the ESA to monitor the status of delisted
species in cooperation with the States. The purpose of the ESA monitoring
plan is to ensure that recovery is sustained. We intend to publish a draft
ESA monitoring plan for the American peregrine falcon in the Federal Register
in the near future. Take of American peregrines under the MBTA pursuant
to the management plans that are the subject of this current notice will
be considered during
the ESA monitoring program. However, the management plans
under MBTA, which will govern take of all North American subspecies of
peregrine, and the monitoring plan for the American peregrine subspecies
under ESA are otherwise unrelated.
DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF TAKE
OF NESTLINGS FOR FALCONRY
[Federal Register: July 25, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 143)]
[Page 45789-45790]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Availability of Draft Environmental Assessment of Take of Nestling American Peregrine Falcons for Falconry
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: This notice is to announce the availability of
a Draft Environmental Assessment of falconry take of nestling American
peregrine falcons in the contiguous United States and Alaska. In it, we
seek to provide protection for the nationwide population of American peregrine
falcons while allowing a limited take of nestlings for falconry. We do
so by evaluating the effects of take of nestlings on American peregrine
population growth in the United States. We seek
public comment on the draft assessment.
DATES: Comments on the Draft Environmental Assessment are due by September 25, 2000.
ADDRESSES: The Draft Environmental Assessment is available from, and written comments about it should be submitted to, Chief, Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 634, Arlington, Virginia 22203-1610. You can request a copy of the Environmental Assessment by calling 703-358-1714. The fax number for a request or for comments is 703-358-2272. The Assessment also is available on the Office of Migratory Bird Management web pages at http://migratorybirds.fws.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. George T. Allen,
Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, at
703-358-
1714 or the address above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The American peregrine falcon
(Falco peregrinus anatum) occurs throughout much of North America from
the
subarctic boreal forests of Alaska and Canada south to
Mexico. The American peregrine falcon declined precipitously in North America
following World War II, a decline attributed largely to organochlorine
pesticides applied in the United States and Canada. Because of the decline,
the American peregrine was listed as endangered in 1970 (35 FR 16047).
Recovery goals
for American peregrine falcons in the United States were substantially
exceeded in some areas, and on August 25, 1999, we removed the American
peregrine falcon from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and
Plants (64 FR 46542). However, monitoring of the status of the species
is required, and it is still protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty
Act.
Anticipating
delisting, in June 1999 a number of state fish and wildlife agencies, through
the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, proposed allowing
take of nestling American peregrines for falconry. In response, in an October
4, 1999, Federal Register notice (64 FR 53686), we stated that we would
prepare two management plans and associated environmental assessments for
take of wild peregrine falcons. We further stated that we would consider
a
conservative take of nestling peregrines from healthy
populations of American peregrine falcons in the western United States
and Alaska, where recovery was most marked and where approximately 82%
of the nesting pairs in the United States were found in 1998.
The States
proposed allowing take of 5% of the annual production of nestlings in States
west of 100 deg. (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana,
Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming). In preparing
the Draft Environmental Assessment, we considered the request from the
States, as well as the effects of allowing no take, and take of 10%, 15%,
and 20% of annual production in those States. A sixth alternative we evaluated
was lifting the current restriction on take by falconry permittees. This
option would make no distinctions regarding where nestling peregrines could
be taken.
Because population
changes also are greatly influenced by survival of adults, we also assessed
the effects of different take levels with different values for adult mortality.
We concluded that 20% post-first-year mortality is a conservative and reasonable
value to use. However, we also modeled population growth using 10%, 15%,
and 25% annual mortality of adults.
The proposed
action in the Draft Environmental Assessment is to allow take of up to
5% of the nestlings produced in western States; take of any lesser amount
could be allowed by a State. The 5% level of take should still allow population
growth of 3% per year if post-first-year mortality is 20% and population
density does not affect reproduction or survival.