Interior Department, Fish and Wildlife Service
We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce two 90-day findings on petitions to reclassify the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), or populations thereof, under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Two valid subspecies of the West Indian manatee, the Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) and Antillean manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus), are currently protected under the Act as part of the threatened West Indian manatee species-level listing. One petition requests the Puerto Rico population of the Antillean manatee be listed as an endangered distinct population segment (DPS) and critical habitat be designated for this entity under the Act. The second petition requests to reclassify the West Indian manatee, including its subspecies the Antillean manatee and Florida manatee, as endangered species under the Act. Based on our review, we find that the petitions present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this document, we announce that we plan to initiate a status review to determine whether the petitioned actions are warranted. To ensure that the status review is comprehensive, we are requesting new scientific and commercial data and other information regarding the West Indian manatee throughout its range, including information specific to the Puerto Rico population of Antillean manatee, and factors that may affect their status. Based on the status review, we will issue a 12-month petition finding, which will address whether or not the petitioned actions are warranted, in accordance with the Act.
Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 17 [Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0106; FF09E21000 FXES11130900000234] AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Notification of petition findings and initiation of status review. SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce two 90-day findings on petitions to reclassify the West Indian manatee ( Trichechus manatus ), or populations thereof, under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Two valid subspecies of the West Indian manatee, the Florida manatee ( Trichechus manatus latirostris ) and Antillean manatee ( Trichechus manatus manatus ), are currently protected under the Act as part of the threatened West Indian manatee species-level listing. One petition requests the Puerto Rico population of the Antillean manatee be listed as an endangered distinct population segment (DPS) and critical habitat be designated for this entity under the Act. The second petition ( printed page 70635) requests to reclassify the West Indian manatee, including its subspecies the Antillean manatee and Florida manatee, as endangered species under the Act. Based on our review, we find that the petitions present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this document, we announce that we plan to initiate a status review to determine whether the petitioned actions are warranted. To ensure that t…
Citation: 88 FR 70634
