The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has completed initial reviews of ten petitions to list, delist or reclassify species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and found that four of those petitions presented substantial information that the petitioned action may be warranted. These are for petitions to list the Joshua tree, Florida scrub lizard, Lassics lupine and Lesser Virgin Islands skink. The Service will now initiate a thorough status review of each species to determine whether or not listing under the ESA is warranted. To ensure that Service reviewers have access to the best information available, we are requesting scientific and commercial data and other information on the species from the public.
The Federal Register docket numbers for these four species are as follows:
Species | Range | Docket Number | Docket link |
Florida scrub lizard (list) | FL | FWS-R4-ES-2015-0087 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R4-ES-2015-0087 |
Lesser Virgin Islands skink (list) | Virgin Islands | FWS-R4-ES-2015-0098 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R4-ES-2015-0098 |
Joshua tree (list) | AZ, CA, NV, UT | FWS-R8-ES-2016-0088 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R8-ES-2016-0088 |
Lassics lupine (list) | CA | FWS-R8-ES-2016-0089 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R8-ES-2016-0089 |
The six petitions that did not present substantial information that the petitioned action may be warranted were to list the American pika, Fourche Mountain salamander, Ricord's rock iguana of Haiti and Wyoming pocket gopher, and to delist the spectacled eider and the Alaska population of Stellers’ eider. The Service will take no further action on these species.
The Federal Register docket numbers for these six species are as follows:
Species | Range | Docket Number | Docket link |
Fourche Mountain salamander (list) | AR | FWS-R4-ES-2016-0096 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R4-ES-2016-0096 |
American pika (list) | CA, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, OR, UT, WY, CA | FWS-R6-ES-2016-0091 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R6-ES-2016-0091 |
Ricord's rock iguana (list) | Dominican Republic, Haiti | FWS-HQ-ES-2016-0092 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-HQ-ES-2016-0092 |
Wyoming pocket gopher (list) | WY | FWS-R6-ES-2016-0094 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R6-ES-2016-0094 |
Spectacled eider (delist) | AK | FWS-R7-ES-2016-0041 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R7-ES-2016-0041 |
Alaska Population of Steller’s eider (delist) | AK | FWS-R7-ES-2016-0093 | https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FWS-R7-ES-2016-0093 |
The notice for the above findings will be available in the Federal Register Reading Room on September 13, 2016 at https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection by clicking on the 2016 Notices link under Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants.
The Service is opening a 60-day public comment period for each species for which a status review is being initiated. Information can be submitted from the date of publication in the Federal Register until November 14, 2016. Complete instructions for submitting comments are provided in the Federal Register notice.
For more information on the ESA listing process, including 90-day findings and status reviews, please go to www.fws.gov/endangered/esa-library/pdf/listing.pdf.
The ESA provides a critical safety net for fish, wildlife and plants and has prevented the extinction of hundreds of imperiled species, as well as promoting the recovery of many others. The Service is actively engaged with conservation partners and the public in the search for improved and innovative ways to conserve and recover imperiled species.
