Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reopening of Comment Period and Notice of Public Hearings on Proposed Endangered Status With Critical Habitat in Arizona, and Threatened Status in Texas, for the Cactus Ferruginous Pygmy-owl

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reopening of

Comment Period and Notice of Public Hearings on Proposed Endangered

Status With Critical Habitat in Arizona, and Threatened Status in

Texas, for the Cactus Ferruginous Pygmy-owl

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule: notice of public hearing and reopening of

comment period.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) gives notice that

public hearings will be held and the comment period reopened on the

proposed rule to list the cactus ferruginous pygmy-owl (Glaucidium

brasilianum cactorum) as an endangered species with critical habitat in

Arizona, and as threatened in Texas. The hearings and the reopening of

the comment period will allow all interested parties to submit oral or

written comments on the proposal.

DATES: The public hearings will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on May 8,

1995, in Tucson, Arizona, and from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on May 10, 1995,

in Weslaco, Texas. The comment period for this proposal will be

reopened on May 1, 1995, and will close on May 30, 1995. Comments must

be received by the closing date. Any comments that are received after

the closing date may not be considered in the final decision on the

proposal.

ADDRESSES: The public hearings will be held at the Senior Ballroom,

Student Union Memorial Building, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona

and at Hoblitzelle Auditorium, Texas A&M Experimental Station, 2145 E.

Highway 83, Weslaco, Texas. Written comments should be sent to the

State Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2321 W. Royal Palm

Road, Phoenix, Arizona 85021-4951. Comments and materials received will

be available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal

business hours at the above Service address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey A. Humphrey, State Supervisor,

Arizona Ecological Services State Office (See ADDRESSES section)

(telephone 602/640-2720; facsimile 602/640-2730)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The breeding range of the cactus ferruginous pygmy-owl extends from

south-central Arizona south through western Mexico, and from southern

Texas south through northeastern Mexico. Within these regions, the

species occurs in riverbottom woodlands, coastal plain oak

associations, thornscrub, and Sonoran desert scrub. The cactus

ferruginous pygmy-owl is threatened to varying degrees across its range

by loss and modification of habitat, lack of adequate protective

regulations, and other factors. A proposed rule to list this species as

endangered with critical habitat in Arizona, and as threatened in

Texas, was published in the Federal Register (59 FR 63975) on December

12, 1994.

Pursuant to 50 CFR 424.16(c)(2), the Service may extend or reopen a

comment period upon finding that there is good cause to do so. Full

participation of the affected public in the species listing process,

allowing the Service to consider the best scientific and commercial

data available in making a final determination on the proposed action,

is deemed as sufficient cause.

Section 4(b)(5)(E) of the Act, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.),

requires that a public hearing be held if it is requested within 45

days of the publication of a proposed rule. In response to numerous

requests, the Service is holding two hearings. The two public hearings

will be held on the dates and at the addresses described above.

Anyone wishing to make an oral statement for the record is

encouraged to provide a written copy of their statement and present it

to the Service at the start of the hearing. In the event there is a

large attendance, the time allotted for oral statements may have to be

limited. Oral and written statements receive equal consideration. There

are no limits to the length of written comments presented at the

hearings or mailed to the Service. Legal notices announcing the dates,

times, and locations of the hearings will be published in local

newspapers.

The comment period on the proposal originally closed on April 11,

1995. In order to accommodate the hearings, the Service also reopens

the public comment period. Written comments may now be submitted until

May 30, 1995, to the Service office in the ADDRESSES section.

Author

The primary author of this notice is Jeffrey A. Humphrey (see

ADDRESSES).

Authority

The authority for this action is 16 U.S.C. 1531-1544.

Dated: April 10, 1995.

Lynn B. Starnes,

Acting Regional Director, Region 2, Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 95-9233 Filed 4-13-95; 8:45 am]

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