Notice of Three Public Open Houses Prior to Proposing a Revision to the Special Rule for a Nonessential Experimental Population of Red Wolves in North Carolina

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

Notice of Three Public Open Houses Prior to Proposing a Revision

to the Special Rule for a Nonessential Experimental Population of Red

Wolves in North Carolina

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of public open houses.

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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce three public open

houses in eastern North Carolina to present information to, and answer

questions from the public prior to proposing a change to the special

rule for the nonessential experimental population (NEP) of red wolves

in eastern North Carolina under section 10(j) of the Endangered Species

Act of 1973, as amended (Act).

DATES AND ADDRESSES: We will hold the first open house on Tuesday,

November 16, 1999, at the Mattamuskeet Lodge, Mattamuskeet National

Wildlife Refuge, 1 Mattamuskeet Refuge Road, Swan Quarter, North

Carolina 27885, from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm. The second open house will be

on Wednesday, November 17, 1999, at the Vernon James Research &

Extension Conference Center, 207 Research Station Road, Plymouth, North

Carolina 27962, from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm. The third open house will be

on Thursday, November 18, 1999, at Tyrrell Hall, 108 South Water

Street, Columbia, North Carolina 27925, from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Brian T. Kelly, Wildlife

Biologist/Field Projects Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,

P.O. Box 1969, 708 North Highway 64/264, Manteo, North Carolina 27954

(telephone 252/473-1131, extension 27).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The red wolf is an endangered species that is currently found in

the wild only as a NEP in northeastern North Carolina on the Alligator

River, Pocosin Lakes, and Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuges; the

U.S. Air Force's Dare County Bombing Range; and adjacent private land

in Beaufort, Dare, Hyde, Tyrrell, and Washington Counties, North

Carolina; and as an endangered species in three small island

propagation projects located on Bulls Island in South Carolina and Cape

St. George and St. Vincent Islands in Florida. These four carefully

managed wild populations contained a minimum of 48 animals as of

September 30, 1999. The remaining red wolves are located in 33 captive-

breeding facilities in the United States. The captive population

numbered 161 animals as of September 30, 1999.

We published a proposed rule in the Federal Register of July 24,

1986 (51 FR 26564), to introduce red wolves into Alligator River, Dare

County, North Carolina. We published a final rule on November 19, 1986

(51 FR 41790), making a determination to implement the proposed action

with some modifications. We determined that the red wolf population in

Dare County and adjacent Hyde, Tyrrell, and Washington Counties would

be a NEP, according to Section 10(j) of the Act. We revised the rule in

the Federal Register of November 4, 1991 (56 FR 56325), to add Beaufort

County to the list of counties where the NEP designation would apply.

We reevaluated the status of the population after 5 years and included

input from public meetings in this reevaluation.

We published a proposed rule in the Federal Register of November

24, 1993 (58 FR 62086), to revise the special rule for NEPs of red

wolves in North Carolina and Tennessee. We published a final rule in

the Federal Register of April 13, 1995 (60 FR 18940), making a

determination to implement the proposed action with some modifications.

We will hold three public open houses in eastern North Carolina.

Through these open houses, we will provide the public with a forum to

obtain information and ask questions of us before we request their

formal comment through the rulemaking process.

Author

The primary author of this notice is Brian T. Kelly (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section).

Authority

The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of

1973, as amended, 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.

Dated: October 29, 1999.

H. Dale Hall,

Acting Regional Director.

[FR Doc. 99-29000 Filed 11-4-99; 8:45 am]

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