Migratory bird hunting: Early season regulations (2004-2005); frameworks,
[Federal Register: August 30, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 167)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 52969-52984]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30au04-12]
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Part II
Department of the Interior
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 20
Migratory Bird Hunting; Final Frameworks for Early-Season Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations; Final Rule
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 20
RIN: 1018-AT53
Migratory Bird Hunting; Final Frameworks for Early-Season Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Final rule.
SUMMARY: This rule prescribes final early-season frameworks from which the States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands may select season dates, limits, and other options for the 2004-05 migratory bird hunting seasons. Early seasons are those that generally open prior to October 1, and include seasons in Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. The effect of this final rule is to facilitate the selection of hunting seasons by the States and Territories to further the annual establishment of the early-season migratory bird hunting regulations.
DATES: This rule takes effect on August 30, 2004.
ADDRESSES: States and Territories should send their season selections to: Chief, Division of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior, ms MBSP-4107-ARLSQ, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC 20240. You may inspect comments during normal business hours at the Service's office in room 4107, 4501 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Millsap, Chief, or Ron W. Kokel, Division of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, (703) 358-1714.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Regulations Schedule for 2004
On March 22, 2004, we published in the Federal Register (69 FR 13440) a proposal to amend 50 CFR part 20. The proposal provided a background and overview of the migratory bird hunting regulations process, and dealt with the establishment of seasons, limits, the proposed regulatory alternatives for the 2004-05 duck hunting season, and other regulations for migratory game birds under Sec. Sec. 20.101 through 20.107, 20.109, and 20.110 of subpart K. On June 9, 2004, we published in the Federal Register (69 FR 32418) a second document providing supplemental proposals for early- and late-season migratory bird hunting regulations frameworks and the regulatory alternatives for the 2004-05 duck hunting seasons. The June 9 supplement also provided detailed information on the 2004-05 regulatory schedule and announced the Service Migratory Bird Regulations Committee (SRC) and Flyway Council meetings.
On June 23 and 24, we held open meetings with the Flyway Council Consultants at which the participants reviewed information on the current status of migratory shore and upland game birds and developed recommendations for the 2004-05 regulations for these species plus regulations for migratory game birds in Alaska, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, special September waterfowl seasons in designated States, special sea duck seasons in the Atlantic Flyway, and extended falconry seasons. In addition, we reviewed and discussed preliminary information on the status of waterfowl as it relates to the development and selection of the regulatory packages for the 2004-05 regular waterfowl seasons. On July 21, we published in the Federal Register (69 FR 43694) a third document specifically dealing with the proposed frameworks for early-season regulations.
This document is the fourth in a series of proposed, supplemental, and final rulemaking documents. It establishes final frameworks from which States may select season dates, shooting hours, and daily bag and possession limits for the 2004-05 season. These selections will be published in the Federal Register as amendments to Sec. Sec. 20.101 through 20.107, and Sec. 20.109 of title 50 CFR part 20.
Review of Public Comments
The preliminary proposed rulemaking, which appeared in the March 22 Federal Register, opened the public comment period for migratory game bird hunting regulations. The public comment period for early-season issues ended on August 2, 2004. We have considered all pertinent comments received. Comments are summarized below and numbered in the order used in the March 22 Federal Register. We have included only the numbered items pertaining to early-season issues for which we received comments. Consequently, the issues do not follow in successive numerical or alphabetical order. We received recommendations from all Flyway Councils. Some recommendations supported continuation of last year's frameworks. Due to the comprehensive nature of the Councils' annual review of the frameworks, we assume Council support for continuation of last year's frameworks for items for which we received no recommendation. Council recommendations for changes are summarized below.
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Ducks
Categories used to discuss issues related to duck harvest management are: (A) General Harvest Strategy, (B) Regulatory Alternatives, including specification of framework dates, season length, and bag limits, (C) Zones and Split Seasons, and (D) Special Seasons/Species Management. The categories correspond to previously published issues/discussions, and only those containing substantial recommendations are discussed below.
D. Special Seasons/Species Management
i. September Teal Seasons
Council Recommendations: The Central Flyway Council recommended that the Service change the status of the Nebraska September teal season from experimental to operational beginning with the 2004-05 hunting season. Criteria for Nebraska's September teal season would be the same as for other nonproduction Central Flyway States and confined to that area opened to teal hunting during the experimental phase. The Council believes that presunrise shooting hours are justified given results from evaluation of nontarget attempt rates.
Service Response: We concur. iv. Canvasbacks
Council Recommendations: The Atlantic Flyway Council and the Upper- and Lower-Region Regulations Committees of the Mississippi Flyway Council recommended modifying the current Canvasback Harvest Strategy to allow partial seasons within the regular duck season. The harvest management strategy would include 3 levels: closed, ``restrictive'' season length, and full season.
The Central Flyway Council recommended managing canvasbacks with the ``Hunters Choice Bag Limit'' (aggregate daily bag limit of 1 hen mallard, mottled duck, pintail, or canvasback). The Council further recommends that until the ``Hunter Choice Bag Limit'' becomes available, the current strategy should be modified to include three levels of harvest opportunity: full, closed, and partial seasons. The partial season would consist of the ``restrictive'' season length (39 days in the Central Flyway).
The Pacific Flyway Council recommended modifying the current canvasback harvest management
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strategy to allow partial canvasback seasons within regular duck season frameworks. The harvest management strategy would include four levels for the Pacific Flyway: ``liberal''--107 days, ``moderate''--86 days, ``restrictive''--60 days, and closed seasons. The Council also recommended that the strategy include a statement specifying that Alaska's season will maintain a fixed restriction of one canvasback daily in lieu of the annual prescriptions from the strategy.
Service Response: The Service concurs with the Atlantic, Mississippi, and Central Flyway Council recommendations for modification of the canvasback harvest strategy to allow for two potential levels of canvasback seasons:
(1) An open season with daily bag and possession limits of 1 and 2, respectively, for the entire regular duck season whenever the allowable harvest projects a breeding population in the subsequent year of 500,000 or more canvasbacks;
(2) A partial season at the ``restrictive'' package level (30 days in the Atlantic and Mississippi Flyways, 39 days in the Central Flyway, and 60 in the Pacific Flyway) within the regular duck season whenever a full season projects a breeding population in the subsequent year of less than 500,000 but a partial season projects a breeding population of 500,000 or more birds; and
(3) Whenever the allowable harvest under both the full and partial seasons projects a breeding population in the subsequent year of less than 500,000, the season will be closed in all Flyways.
Season splits must conform to each State's zone/split configuration for duck hunting. If a State is authorized to split its regular duck season and chooses not to do so, the partial season may still be split into two segments. In Alaska, a 1-bird daily bag limit for the entire regular duck season length will be used in all years unless we determine that a complete season closure is in the best interest of the canvasback resource and believe it necessary to close the season in Alaska as well as in the lower 48 States. v. Pintails
Council Recommendations: The Atlantic Flyway Council recommended modifying the Interim Strategy for Northern Pintail Harvest Management to allow partial seasons within the regular duck season. The Council recommended using partial seasons to allow hunting opportunity for this species when (1) a full season is predicted to return a breeding population below 1.5 million (the threshold for season closure) and (2) when a partial season is expected to return a breeding population at or above 1.5 million.
The Upper- and Lower-Region Regulations Committees of the Mississippi Flyway Council recommended that the current interim pintail harvest management strategy be modified to allow partial seasons within the regular duck hunting season. The harvest management strategy would include 3 levels: closed, ``restrictive'' season length, and full season.
The Central Flyway Council recommended that the interim pintail harvest strategy be revised as follows:
In the Central Flyway, pintails will be included in a ``Hunters Choice'' daily bag limit (hen mallard, or mottled duck, or pintail, or canvasback--daily bag of 1). When the interim pintail harvest strategy model projections allow for a daily bag of >=2, pintails will be removed from the 1-bird aggregate bag and the prescribed daily bag limit will be selected.
If this recommendation was not approved, the Council recommended the following modification to the existing harvest strategy:
When the May Breeding Population Survey in the traditional survey areas is below 1.5 million or the projected fall flight is predicted to be below 2 million (as calculated by the models in the interim strategy), adopt the ``restrictive'' AHM package season length (39 days in the Central Flyway) with a daily bag limit of 1, if these regulations are projected to produce harvest at levels that would provide for the 6% annual growth identified as an objective in the strategy. If the Restrictive package regulations are expected to provide for
