Notice of Availability of a Draft Recovery Plan for the Shenandoah Salamander for Review and Comment

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

Notice of Availability of a Draft Recovery Plan for the

Shenandoah Salamander for Review and Comment

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces the availability

for public review of a draft Recovery Plan for the Shenandoah

salamander (Plethodon shenandoah). The Shenandoah salamander is limited

to mountain slopes within the boundaries of Shenandoah National Park in

Page and Madison Counties, Virginia. It was listed as endangered in

1989 due to competition with the redbacked salamander (Plethodon

cinereus) and eventual succession of the Shenandoah salamander's talus-

slope habitat to conditions favoring the redbacked salamander. Human-

related factors potentially affecting the Shenandoah salamander include

potentially adverse physiological and/or reproductive effects

associated with acid deposition, and defoliation of trees associated

with non-native insect outbreaks. The primary recovery strategy for

this species is to minimize any human-related impacts on the Shenandoah

salamander while monitoring the effects of natural competition. The

Service solicits review and comment from the public on this draft Plan.

DATES: Comments on the draft Recovery Plan must be received September

12, 1994 to receive consideration by the Service.

ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to review the draft Recovery Plan can obtain

a copy from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Region Five, 300

Westgate Center Drive, Hadlley, Massachusetts 01035-9589, telephone

(413) 253-8628. Comments should be sent to this address, to the

attention of Mary Parkin.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary J. Parkin (see Addresses).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Restoring an endangered or threatened animal or plant to the point

where it is again a secure, self-sustaining member of its ecosystem is

a primary goal of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's endangered

species program. To help guide the recovery effort, the Service is

working to prepare Recovery Plans for most of the listed species native

to the United States. Recovery Plans describe actions considered

necessary for conservation of the species, established criteria for the

recovery level for downlisting or delisting them, and estimate time and

cost for implementing the recovery measures needed.

The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended (16 U.S.C.

1531 et seq.) requires the development of Recovery Plans for listed

species unless such a Plan would not promote the conservation of a

particular species. Section 4(f) of the Act, as amended in 1988,

requires that public notice and an opportunity for public review and

comment be provided during Recovery Plan development. The Service will

consider all information presented during a public comment period prior

to approval of each new or revised Recovery Plan. The Service and other

Federal agencies will also take these comments into account in the

course of implementing Recovery Plans.

The document submitted for review is the draft Shenandoah

Salamander (Plethodon shenandoah) Recovery Plan. This small woodland

salamander is known only from the northeast to northwest-facing talus

slopes of three mountains--Hawksbill, The Pinnacles, and Stony Man--all

within the boundaries of Shenandoah National Park in Page and Madison

Counties, Virginia.

The effects of fires, farming, and timbering operations prior to

1936 (when the Park was established) on the current limited

distribution of the Shenandoah salamander are unknown. In its present

environment, however, the primary threats to the salamander appear to

be competition with the aggressive and successful red-backed salamander

(which confines the Shenandoah salamander to a few relatively dry talus

areas not occupied by the competitor), and eventual succession of these

talus areas to moister habitat more suitable for the red-backed

salamander. The red-backed salamander is widely distributed and

completely surrounds each of the three isolates of the Shenandoah

salamander.

Against this backdrop of naturally occurring threats to the

salamander's continued existence, two major, relatively recent

anthropogenic factors appear to have the potential of further

endangering this species as well as threatening other faunal and floral

components of the ecosystem it inhabits. These include: (1) defoliation

of trees within its habitat, associated with outbreaks of gypsy moths,

hemlock woolly adelgids, or other introduced forest pest species; and

(2) further debilitation of overstory vegetation, changes in soil

chemistry, and direct impacts to the salamanders associated with acid

deposition and other sources of air pollution.

Because the Shenandoah salamander represents an unusual case in

which natural factors play a major role in its present endangerment,

the recovery objective is to stabilize this species. Recovery

activities will focus on minimizing human impacts on the Shenandoah

salamander and conducting long-term monitoring to detect any

significant changes in size or demographic structure of Shenandoah

salamander populations as well as any shifts in distribution between

this species and the red-backed salamander. Studies to examine impacts

of acid deposition, forest defoliators, and control agents will be

conducted if it is determined that Shenandoah salamander habitat is

susceptible to defoliation. All Park maintenance and management

activities will be conducted in a way that is compatible with

Shenandoah salamander populations.

The draft Recovery Plan is being submitted for agency review. After

consideration of comments received during the review period, the Plan

will be submitted for final approval.

Public Comments Solicited

The Service solicits written comments on the Recovery Plan

described. All comments received by the date specified above will be

considered prior to approval of the Plan.

Authority

The authority for this action is Section 4(f) of the Endangered

Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).

Dated: August 5, 1994.

Ralph Pisapia,

Acting for Regional Director.

[FR Doc. 94-19697 Filed 8-11-94; 8:45 am]

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