Availability of a Draft Revised Recovery Plan for the Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander for Review and Comment

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

Availability of a Draft Revised Recovery Plan for the Santa Cruz

Long-Toed 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 (Service) announces the

availability for public review of a Draft Revised Recovery Plan for the

Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum croceum). The

salamander occurs near the Pacific Coast in Monterey and Santa Cruz

Counties, California.

DATES: Comments on the draft revised recovery plan must be received on

or before September 7, 1999 to receive consideration by the Service.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft revised recovery plan are available for

inspection by appointment, during normal business hours at the

following location: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2493 Portola Road,

Suite B, Ventura, California 93003 (phone: 805/644-1766). Requests for

copies of the draft revised recovery plan and written comments and

materials regarding this plan should be addressed to Ms. Diane K. Noda,

Field Supervisor, at the above Ventura address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Grace S. McLaughlin,

Herpetologist, at the above Ventura address.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Restoring endangered or threatened animals and plants to the point

where they are again secure, self-sustaining members of their ecosystem

is a primary goal of the 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 the

conservation of the species, establish criteria for the recovery levels

for downlisting or delisting them, and estimate time and cost for

implementing the recovery measures needed.

The Endangered Species Act, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)

(Act), 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 the public comment period prior to

approval of each new or revised recovery plan. Substantive technical

comments will result in changes to the plans. Substantive comments

regarding recovery plan implementation may not necessarily result in

changes to the recovery plans, but will be forwarded to appropriate

Federal or other entities so that they can take these comments into

account during the course of implementing recovery actions.

Individualized responses to comments will not be provided.

This salamander is listed as endangered. Currently it is known from

no more than seven breeding sites comprising three metapopulations in

the coastal areas of two Counties (Santa Cruz and Monterey) along the

central coast of California. The Santa Cruz long-toed salamander

inhabits temporary ponds for breeding and adjacent upland scrub and

wooded areas during the nonbreeding season. These kinds of ponds and

adjacent scrub and woodlands are restricted naturally to relatively few

areas along the central coast of California. Direct habitat loss due to

agriculture, urbanization, and road building is the main cause for

decline. Other threats include pollution, siltation, and declining

water quality in breeding ponds due to nearby development and

agricultural activities; loss of non-breeding habitat and food

resources due to the spread of exotic plants; predation by introduced

fishes, bullfrogs, and tiger salamanders; and parasites.

The objective of this plan is to provide a framework for the

recovery of the Santa Cruz long-toed salamander so that protection by

the Act is no longer necessary. The recovery strategy for the Santa

Cruz long-toed salamander is focused on providing sufficient breeding

and upland habitat to maintain self-sustaining populations of

salamanders in each of the metapopulations, and minimizing or

eliminating impacts and threats to salamander populations. This plan

describes a five-part recovery strategy with specific tasks necessary

to maintain healthy aquatic, riparian, and adjacent upland ecosystems

that provide habitat for Santa Cruz long-toed salamanders. The tasks,

when implemented, will stabilize and maintain populations throughout

the range of the Santa Cruz long-toed salamander in California by

protecting sufficient breeding and nonbreeding habitat, monitor the

status of existing populations to ensure recovery actions are

successful, identify and secure additional suitable Santa Cruz long-

toed salamander habitat and populations, conduct research to determine

the population dynamics and ecology of the species to guide management

efforts and determine the best methods for reducing threats, and

continue and expand an outreach program.

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 this plan.

Authority: The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the

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

Dated: July 1, 1999.

Elizabeth H. Stevens,

Acting Manager, California/Nevada Operations Office, Region 1, U.S.

Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 99-17276 Filed 7-8-99; 8:45 am]

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