Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Initiation of 5-Year Status Reviews of 22 Species in the Southwest

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[Docket No. FWS-R2-ES-2023-N105; FXES11130200000-245-FF02ENEH00]

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Initiation of 5-Year Status Reviews of 22 Species in the Southwest

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of initiation of reviews; request for information.

SUMMARY:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, are conducting 5-year status reviews under the Endangered Species Act, of 22 animal and plant species. A 5-year status review is based on the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of the review; therefore, we are requesting submission of any such information that has become available since the last reviews for the species.

DATES:

To ensure consideration, we are requesting submission of new information no later than February 26, 2024. However, we will continue to accept new information about any listed species at any time.

ADDRESSES:

For details on how to request or submit information, see Request for Information and How Do I Ask Questions or Provide Information? in the

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For information on a particular species, contact the appropriate person or office listed in the table in the

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

section. For general information, contact Beth Forbus, by telephone at 505-248-6681; or by email at

Beth_Forbus@fws.gov

.

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:

Why do we conduct 5-year reviews?

Under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531

et seq.

), we maintain Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants (which we collectively refer to as the List) in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17.11 (for animals) and 17.12 (for plants). Section 4(c)(2)(A) of the ESA requires us to review each listed species' status at least once every 5 years. Our regulations at 50 CFR 424.21 require that we publish a notice in the

Federal Register

announcing those species under active review. For additional information about 5-year status reviews, refer to our factsheet at

https://www.fws.gov/project/five-year-status-reviews

.

What information do we consider in our review?

A 5-year status review considers all new information available at the time of the review. In conducting these reviews, we consider the best scientific and commercial data that have become available since the listing determination or most recent status review, such as:

(A) Species biology, including but not limited to population trends, distribution, abundance, demographics, and genetics;

(B) Habitat conditions, including but not limited to amount, distribution, and suitability;

(C) Conservation measures that have been implemented that benefit the species;

(D) Threat status and trends in relation to the five listing factors (as defined in section 4(a)(1) of the ESA); and

(E) Other new information, data, or corrections, including but not limited to taxonomic or nomenclatural changes, identification of erroneous information contained in the List, and improved analytical methods.

Any new information will be considered during the 5-year status review and will also be useful in evaluating the ongoing recovery programs for the species.

Which species are under review?

The species in the following table are under active 5-year status review.

Common name

Scientific name

Listing status

Lead state

Final listing rule

(

Federal Register

citation and

publication date)

Contact person, phone, email

Contact person's U.S. mail

address

ANIMALS

Comal Springs dryopid beetle

Styoparnus comalensis

Endangered

Texas

62 FR 66295; 12/18/1997

Karen Myers, Field Supervisor, 512-490-0057 (phone) or

karen_myers@fws.gov

(email)

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Austin Ecological Services Office, 10711 Burnet Road, Suite 200, Austin, TX 78758.

Comal Springs riffle beetle

Heterelmis comalensis

Endangered

Texas

62 FR 66295; 12/18/1997

Mexican long-nosed bat

Leptonycteris nivalis

Endangered

Texas

53 FR 38456; 9/30/1988

Peck's Cave amphipod

Stygobromus (=Stygonectes) pecki

Endangered

Texas

62 FR 66295; 12/18/1997

Government Canyon Bat Cave meshweaver

Cicurina vespera

Endangered

Texas

65 FR 81419; 12/26/2000

Comanche Springs pupfish

Cyprinodon elegans

Endangered

Texas

32 FR 4001; 3/11/1967

Leon Springs pupfish

Cyprinodon bovinus

Endangered

Texas

45 FR 54678; 8/15/1980

San Marcos salamander

Eurycea nana

Threatened

Texas

45 FR 47355; 7/14/1980

Gulf Coast jaguarundi

Herpailurus (=Felis) yagouaroundi cacomitli

Endangered

Texas

41 FR 24062; 6/14/1976

Field Supervisor, 281-286-8282 (phone) or

HoustonESFO@fws.gov

(email)

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Texas Coastal Ecological Services Field Office, 17629 El Camino Real, Suite 211, Houston, TX 77058.

American burying beetle

Nicrophorus americanus

Threatened

Oklahoma

54 FR 29652; 7/13/1989

Field Office Supervisor, 918-581-7458 (phone), or

OKProjectReview@fws.gov

(email)

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Oklahoma Ecological Services Field Office, 9014 East 21st Street, Tulsa, OK 74129.

Whooping crane

Grus americana

Threatened

Texas

32 FR 4001; 3/11/1967

Kevin McAbee, Whooping Crane Recovery Coordinator, 303-482-7425 (phone) or

kevin_mcabee@fws.gov

(email)

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 160 Zillicoa Street, Suite B, Asheville, NC 28801.

Narrow headed gartersnake

Thamnophis rufipunctatus

Threatened

Arizona

79 FR 38678; 7/8/2014

Field Supervisor, 602-242-0210 (phone) or

incomingazcorr@fws.gov

(email)

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Arizona Ecological Services Office, 9828 North 31st Avenue, #C3, Phoenix, AZ 85051-2517.

Southwestern willow flycatcher

Empidonax trailii extimus

Endangered

Arizona

60 FR 10694; 2/27/1995

Sonoyta mud turtle

Kinosternon sonoriense longifemorale

Endangered

Arizona

82 FR 43897; 9/20/2017

Masked bobwhite

Colinus virginianus ridgwayi

Endangered

Arizona

32 FR 4001; 3/11/1967

San Bernardino springsnail

Pyrgulopsis bernardina

Threatened

Arizona

77 FR 23060; 4/17/2012

Yaqui catfish

Ictalurus pricei

Threatened

Arizona

49 FR 34490; 8/31/1984

PLANTS

Pima pineapple cactus

Coryphantha scheeri var. robustispina

Endangered

Arizona

58 FR 49875; 9/23/1993

Field Supervisor, 602-242-0210 (phone) or

incomingazcorr@fws.gov

(email)

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Arizona Ecological Services Office, 9828 North 31st Avenue, #C3, Phoenix, AZ 85051-2517.

Siler pincushion cactus

Pediocactus (=Echinocactus,= Utahia) sileri

Threatened

Arizona

44 FR 61786; 10/26/1979

Gierisch mallow

Sphaeralcea gierischii

Endangered

Arizona

78 FR 49149; 8/13/2013

Sentry milk-vetch

Astragalus cremnophylax var. cremnophylax

Endangered

Arizona

55 FR 50184; 12/5/1990

Huachuca water-umbel

Lilaeopsis schaffneriana var. recurva

Endangered

Arizona

62 FR 665; 1/6/1997

Request for Information

To ensure that a 5-year status review is complete and based on the best available scientific and commercial information, we request new information from all sources. See What Information Do We Consider in Our Review? for specific criteria. If you submit information, please support it with documentation such as maps, bibliographic references, methods used to gather and analyze the data, and/or copies of any pertinent publications, reports, or letters by knowledgeable sources.

How do I ask questions or provide information?

If you wish to provide information for any species listed above, please submit your comments and materials to the appropriate contact in the table above. You may also direct questions to those contacts (also see

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

).

Public Availability of Comments

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—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Completed and Active Reviews

A list of all completed and currently active 5-year status reviews can be found at

https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp/report/species-five-year-review

.

Authority

This document is published under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531

et seq.

).

Jeffrey Fleming,

Acting Regional Director, Southwest Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 2024-01493 Filed 1-24-24; 8:45 am]

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