Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reopening of Comment Period on the 90-Day Finding for a Petition To List the Bonneville Cutthroat Trout as Threatened

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reopening of

Comment Period on the 90-Day Finding for a Petition To List the

Bonneville Cutthroat Trout as Threatened

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of reopening of comment period on 90-day finding.

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SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service provides notice of the reopening

of the comment period on the 90-day finding for a petition to list the

Bonneville cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki utah) as a threatened

species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. The

initial comment period, as identified in the Federal Register notice of

the finding (63 FR 67640) published December 8, 1998, closed on January

7, 1999. To accommodate several requests for extensions, the Service is

reopening the comment period for an additional 30 days.

DATES: To be considered in the 12-month finding for this petition,

written comments and materials should be submitted to the Service by

February 12, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Information, data, or comments concerning this petition

should be submitted to the Field Supervisor, Ecological Services, Utah

Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 145 East 1300 South,

Suite 404, Salt Lake City, Utah 84115. The petition, finding, support

data, and comments are available for public inspection, by appointment,

during normal business hours, at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Janet A. Mizzi, Utah Field Office, at the above address, or telephone

801/524-5001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Bonneville cutthroat trout is native to the Bonneville Basin in

Utah, Idaho, Nevada, and Wyoming. Its habitat is widely distributed and

variable and includes both river and lake ecosystems. The subspecies

occurs in streams with coniferous and deciduous riparian trees at 3,500

meters (m) (11,483 feet (ft)) above mean sea level, to streams in sage-

steppe grasslands with herbaceous riparian zones at 1000 m (3281 ft)

above mean sea level, to lake environments.

On February 26, 1998, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service)

received a petition to list the Bonneville cutthroat trout as a

threatened species pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (Act) of

1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). On December 8, 1998, the

Service published a 90-day notice on this petition, finding that it

presented substantial information indicating that listing this species

may be warranted, and initiating a status review of the species.

Public Comments Solicited

The Service is soliciting information primarily on (1) genetic

variability and purity of the various subpopulations, (2) population

status and trends, (3) management policies and conservation plans

affecting Bonneville cutthroat trout, and (4) threats to the species,

including those identified in the petition. The original comment period

for this action expired January 7, 1999. With this notice, the comment

period is reopened for an additional 30 days, until February 12, 1999.

Comments, information and data should be submitted to the Service's

Utah Field Office (see ADDRESSES above.)

Author

The author of this notice is Janet A. Mizzi, Utah Field Office (see

ADDRESSES above), telephone 801/524-5001.

Authority

Authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as

amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

Dated: January 7, 1999.

Elliott Sutta,

Acting Regional Director.

[FR Doc. 99-720 Filed 1-12-99; 8:45 am]

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