Proposed Information Collection; OMB Control Number 1018-0101; Monitoring Recovered Species After Delisting-American Peregrine Falcon

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

We (Fish and Wildlife Service) will ask the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to renew the information collection (IC) described below. As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, we invite the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on this IC. This IC is scheduled to expire on April 30, 2008. We may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

DATES:

You must submit comments on or before April 25, 2008.

ADDRESSES:

Send your comments on the IC to Hope Grey, Information Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service, MS 222-ARLSQ, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203 (mail); hope_grey@fws.gov (e-mail); or (703) 358-2269 (fax).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request additional information about this IC, contact Hope Grey by mail, fax, or e-mail (see ADDRESSES) or by telephone at (703) 358-2482.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

This IC implements the requirements of the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1539). There are no corresponding Service regulations for the ESA's post-delisting monitoring requirement. This IC also implements the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 U.S.C. 704) contained in Service regulations in Chapter I, Subchapter B of Title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).

The American peregrine falcon was removed from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife on August 25, 1999. Section 4(g) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires that all species that are recovered and removed from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife (delisted) be monitored in cooperation with the States for a period of not less than 5 years. The purpose of this requirement is to detect any failure of a recovered species to sustain itself without the protections of the ESA. We work with relevant State agencies and other species experts to develop appropriate plans and procedures for systematically monitoring recovered wildlife and plants.

The American peregrine falcon has a large geographic distribution that includes a substantial amount of non-Federal land. Although the ESA requires that monitoring of recovered species be conducted for not less than 5 years, the life history of American peregrine falcons is such that it is appropriate to monitor this species for a longer period of time in order to meaningfully evaluate whether or not the recovered species continues to maintain its recovered status. The Monitoring Plan for the American Peregrine Falcon is available on our website at http://www.fws.gov/endangered/pdfs/peregrin/Peregrineplan2003.pdf . Formal collection of monitoring data commenced in 2003. Rangewide population monitoring of American peregrine falcons under the Monitoring Plan will take place every 3 years through 2015.

We will use the information supplied on the FWS Forms 3-2307, 3-2308, and 3-2309 to review the status of the American peregrine falcon in the United States and determine if it remains recovered and, therefore, does not require the protections of the ESA:

(1) FWS Form 3-2307 (Peregrine Falcon Monitoring Form) addresses the reporting requirements to record observations on the nesting pair, and the numbers of eggs and young during each nest visit. Each nest will be visited two (or more) times.

(2) FWS Form 3-2308 (Peregrine Falcon Egg Contaminants Data Sheet) addresses the reporting requirements to record data on eggs collected opportunistically during a nest visit.

(3) FWS Form 3-2309 (Peregrine Falcon Feather Contaminants Data Sheet) addresses the reporting requirements to record data on feathers collected opportunistically during a nest visit. Once collected, the eggs and feathers will be archived in a deep freeze for analysis at a later time.

II. Data

OMB Control Number: 1018-0101.

Title: Monitoring Recovered Species After Delisting-American Peregrine Falcon.

Service Form Number(s): FWS Forms 3-2307, 3-2308, and 3-2309.

Type of Request: Extension of currently approved collection.

Affected Public: Professional biologists employed by State agencies and other organizations, and volunteers that have been involved in past peregrine falcon conservation efforts.

Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

Frequency of Collection: On occasion. Monitoring is conducted every 3 years. For eggs and feathers, 15-20 of each are collected over a period of no more than 5 years.

III. Request for Comments

We invite comments concerning this IC on:

(1) whether or not the collection of information is necessary, including whether or not the information will have practical utility;

(2) the accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection of information;

(3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents.

Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of public record. We will include and/or summarize each comment in our request to OMB to approve this IC. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment, including your personal identifying information, may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.