Endangered and threatened species: Yellowstone grizzly bear,

[Federal Register: November 17, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 221)]

[Proposed Rules]

[Page 69853-69884]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr17no05-25]

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Part III

Department of the Interior

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designating the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem Population of Grizzly Bears as a Distinct Population Segment; Removing the Yellowstone Distinct Population Segment of Grizzly Bears From the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife; Proposed Rule

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018-AT38

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designating the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem Population of Grizzly Bears as a Distinct Population Segment; Removing the Yellowstone Distinct Population Segment of Grizzly Bears From the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of public hearing.

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to establish a distinct population segment (DPS) of the grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) for the greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and surrounding area. We also propose to remove the Yellowstone DPS from the List of Threatened and Endangered Wildlife. The Yellowstone grizzly bear population is no longer an endangered or threatened population pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA), based on the best scientific and commercial information available. Robust population growth, coupled with State and Federal cooperation to manage mortality and habitat, widespread public support for grizzly bear recovery, and the development of adequate regulatory mechanisms, has brought the Yellowstone grizzly bear population to the point where making a change to its status is appropriate.

The proposed delisting of the Yellowstone DPS would not change the threatened status of the remaining grizzly bears in the lower 48 States, which will remain protected by the ESA. If this proposed action is finalized, the Service intends to initiate a 5-year review of grizzly bear populations in the conterminous States outside of the Yellowstone DPS based on additional scientific information that is currently being collected and analyzed. Additionally, prior to finalizing the proposed action, the Service will--(1) finalize the Conservation Strategy that will guide post-delisting management of the grizzly bear in the Greater Yellowstone Area; (2) append habitat-based recovery criteria to the Recovery Plan; (3) append genetic monitoring information to the Recovery Plan; and (4) finalize revised methodology for calculating total population size, known to unknown mortality ratios, and sustainable mortality limits for the Yellowstone grizzly bear population. Both the Conservation Strategy and the supplemental information to be appended to the Recovery Plan have already undergone public review and comment (62 FR 19777, April 23, 1997; 62 FR 47677, September 10, 1997; 64 FR 38464, July 16, 1999; 64 FR 38465, July 16, 1999; 65 FR 11340, March 2, 2000). In a subsequent notice, the revised methodology pertaining to population parameters will be made available for public review and comment. It will be finalized, with public comments incorporated, before this proposed rule is finalized. Finally, the U.S. Forest Service will finalize their Forest Plan Amendments for Grizzly Bear Conservation for the Greater Yellowstone Area National Forests prior to the Service finalizing this action.

DATES: We will consider comments on this proposed rule received until the close of business on February 15, 2006. We will hold one public hearing on this proposed rule scheduled hearing for November 15, 2005. In addition, we have scheduled four open houses (see ADDRESSES section for locations).

ADDRESSES: If you wish to comment, you may submit your comments and materials concerning this proposal by any one of several methods:

1. You may submit written comments to the Grizzly Bear Recovery Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, University Hall 309, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812.

2. You may hand deliver written comments to our Missoula office at the address given above.

3. You may send comments by electronic mail (e-mail) to FW6_grizzly_yellowstone@fws.gov. See the Public Comments Solicited section

   below for file format and other information about electronic filing.

   Comments and materials received, as well as supporting documentation used in preparation of this proposed action, will be available for inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours, at our Missoula office (see address above). In addition, certain documents such as the Conservation Strategy and information to be appended to the recovery plan are available at http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/species/mammals/grizzly/yellowstone.htm .

   The public hearing will be held at the following location:

   January 10, 2006, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Cody Auditorium, 1240 Beck Avenue, Cody Wyoming.

   The open houses will be held at the following locations:

   January 9, 2006, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Holiday Inn, 5 Baxter Lane, Bozeman, Montana.

   January 10, 2006, from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Cody Auditorium, 1240 Beck Avenue, Cody Wyoming.

   January 11, 2006, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Snow King Resort, 400 E. Snow King Avenue, Jackson, Wyoming.

   January 12, 2006, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Shilo Inn, 780 Lindsay Boulevard, Idaho Falls, Idaho.

   FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Christopher Servheen, Grizzly Bear Recovery Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, at our Missoula office (see address above) or telephone (406) 243-4903.

   SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

   Background

   Species Description

   Grizzly bears are generally larger and more heavily built than other bears (Craighead and Mitchell 1982; Schwartz et al. 2003a). Grizzly bears can be distinguished from black bears, which also occur in the lower 48 States, by longer, curved claws, humped shoulders, and a face that appears to be concave (Craighead and Mitchell 1982). A wide range of coloration from light brown to nearly black is common (LeFranc et al. 1987). Spring shedding, new growth, nutrition, and coat condition all affect coloration. Guard hairs (long, course outer hair forming a protective layer over the soft underfur) are often pale in color at the tips; hence the name ``grizzly'' (Craighead and Mitchell 1982). In the lower 48 States, the average weight of grizzly bears is generally 200 to 300 kilograms (kg) (400 to 600 pounds (lb)) for males and 110 to 160 kg (250 to 350 lb) for females (Craighead and Mitchell 1982). Grizzly bears are long-lived mammals, generally living to be around 25 years old (LeFranc et al. 1987).

   Taxonomy

   Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) are vertebrates that belong to the Class Mammalia, Order Carnivora, and Family Ursidae. The grizzly bear is a member of the brown bear species (U. arctos) that occurs in North America, Europe, and Asia; the subspecies U. a. horribilis is limited to North America (Rausch 1963; Servheen 1999). Early taxonomic descriptions of U. arctos based primarily on skull measurements described more than 90 subspecies (Merriam 1918), but this was later revised to 2 subspecies in North America, U. a. middendorfi on the islands of the Kodiak archipelago and U. a. horribilis in the rest of North America

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   (Rausch 1963). Subsequent analyses (Hall 1984) suggested seven North American subspecies. DNA analyses provide an additional tool for evaluating taxonomic classification. Using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of brown bears across their worldwide range, five lineage groups or clades have been described: Clade I brown bears from Scandinavia and southern Europe; Clade II from Admiralty, Baronoff, and Chichagof islands in Alaska; Clade III from eastern Europe, Asia, and western Alaska; Clade IV from southern Canada and the lower 48 United States; and Clade V from eastern Alaska and northern Canada (Cronin et al. 1991; Taberlet and Bouvet 1994; Kohn et al. 1995; Randi et al. 1994; Taberlet et al. 1995; Talbot and Shields 1996; Waits et al. 1998a; Waits et al. 1999). The two North American subspecies approach of Rausch (1963) is generally accepted by most taxonomists today. The original listing has been inadvertently modified in the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife to U. arctos and the range to holarctic. We propose to correct this error to reflect the original listed entity of U. arctos horribilis with a historic range of North America.

   Behavior

   Although adult bears are normally solitary (Nowak and Paradiso 1983), home ranges of adult bears frequently overlap (Schwartz et al. 2003a). Grizzly bears display a behavior called natal philopatry in which dispersing young establish home ranges within or overlapping their mother's (Waser and Jones 1983; Schwartz et al. 2003a). This type of movement makes dispersal across landscapes a slow process. For instance, McLellan and Hovey (2001) documented male and female dispersal over 20 years and found that grizzly bears gradually move farther from the center of their mother's home range over the course of 1 to 4 years. Females established home ranges an average of 9.8 kilometers (km) (6.1 miles (mi)) away from the center of their mother's home range, whereas males generally strayed further, establishing home ranges roughly 29.9 km (18.6 mi) away from their mother's (McLellan and Hovey 2001). Similarly, Proctor et al. (2004) used genetic analyses to find that, on average, females disperse only 14.3 km (8.9 mi) and males disperse 42.0 km (26.0 mi) from the center of their mother's home range.

   The home range of adult male grizzly bears is typically 3 to 5 times the size of an adult female's home range (LeFranc et al. 1987). The large home ranges of grizzly bears, particularly males, enhance genetic diversity in the population by enabling males to mate with numerous females (Blanchard and Knight 1991; Craighead et al. 1995). Grizzly bear population densities of 1 bear per 20 sq km (8 sq mi) have been reported in Glacier National Park (Martinka 1976), but most populations in the lower 48 States are much less dense (LeFranc et al. 1987). For example, estimates of grizzly bear densities in the Yellowstone area range from one bear per 50 sq km (20 sq mi) to one bear per 80 sq km (30 sq mi) (Blanchard and Knight 1980; Craighead and Mitchell 1982).

   Grizzly bears have a promiscuous mating system (Hornocker 1962; Craighead and Mitchell 1982; Schwartz et al. 2003a) with genetic studies confirming that cubs from the same litter can have different fathers (Craighead et al. 1998). Mating occurs from May through July with a peak in mid-June (Craighead and Mitchell 1982; Nowak and Paradiso 1983). Age of first reproduction and litter size may be related to nutritional state (Stringham 1990; McLellan 1994; Hilderbrand et al. 1999). Age of first reproduction varies from 3 to 8 years of age, and litter size varies from one to four cubs (Schwartz et al. 2003a). For the Yellowstone grizzly bear population, the average age of first reproduction is approximately 6 years old, and the average litter size is 2.04 cubs (Schwartz et al. 2005). Cubs are born in a den in late January or early February and remain with the female for 2 to 3 years before the mother will again mate and produce another litter (Schwartz et al. 2003a). Grizzly bears have one of the slowest reproductive rates among terrestrial mammals, resulting primarily from the late age of first reproduction, small average litter size, and the long interval between litters (Nowak and Paradiso 1983; Schwartz et al. 2003a). Given the above factors and natural mortality, it may take a single female 10 years to replace herself in a population (Service 1993). Grizzly bear females cease breeding successfully some time in their mid-to late 20s (Schwartz et al. 2003b).

   For 3 to 6 months during winter, grizzly bears across their range enter dens in an adaptive behavior which increases survival during periods of low food availability, deep snow, and low air temperature (Craighead and Craighead 1972). Grizzly bears in the lower 48 States spend up to 4 to 6 months in dens beginning in October or November (Linnell et al. 2000). During this period, they do not eat, drink, urinate, or defecate (Folk et al. 1976; Nelson 1980). Hibernating grizzly bears exhibit a marked decline in heart and respiration rate, but only a slight drop in body temperature (Nowak and Paradiso 1983). Due to their relatively constant body temperature in the den, hibernating grizzly bears can be easily aroused and have been known to exit dens when disturbed by seismic or mining activity (Harding and Nagy 1980) or by human activity (Swenson et al. 1997). Both males and females have a tendency to use the same general area year after year but the same exact den is rarely used twice by an individual (Schoen et al. 1987; Linnell et al. 2000). Females display stronger area fidelity than males and generally stay in their dens longer, depending on reproductive status (Judd et al. 1986; Schoen et al. 1987; Linnell et al. 2000).

   In preparation for hibernation, bears increase their food intake dramatically during a stage called hyperphagia. Hyperphagia is defined simply as overeating (in excess of daily metabolic demands) and occurs throughout the 2 to 4 months prior to den entry. During hyperphagia, excess food is deposited as fat, and grizzly bears may gain as much as 1.65 kg/day (3.64 lb/day) (Craighead and Mitchell 1982). Grizzly bears must consume foods rich in protein and carbohydrates in order to build up fat reserves to survive denning and post-denning periods (Rode and Robbins 2000). These layers of fat are crucial to the hibernating bear as they provide a source of energy and insulate the bear from cold temperatures and are equally important in providing energy to the bear upon emergence from the den when food is still sparse relative to metabolic requirements.

   Although the digestive system of bears is essentially that of a carnivore, bears are successful omnivores, and in some areas may be almost entirely herbivorous (Jacoby et al. 1999; Schwartz et al. 2003a). Grizzly bears are opportunistic feeders and will consume almost any available food including living or dead mammals or fish, and, sometimes, garbage (Knight et al. 1988; Mattson et al. 1991a; Schwartz et al. 2003a). In areas where animal matter is less available, grasses, roots, bulbs, tubers, and fungi may be important in meeting protein requirements (LeFranc et al. 1987). High-quality foods such as berries, nuts, insects, and fish are important in some areas (Schwartz et al. 2003a).

   The search for food has a prime influence on grizzly bear movements. In the Yellowstone area, four food sources have been identified as important to grizzly bear survival and reproductive success (Mattson et al. 2002). Winter-killed ungulates serve as an important food source in early spring before most vegetation is available (Greene et al.

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   1997; Mattson 1997). During early summer, spawning cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki) are a source of nutrition for grizzly bears in the Yellowstone population (Mattson et al. 1991a; Mattson and Reinhart 1995; Felicetti et al. 2004). Grizzly bears feed on army cutworm moths (Euxoa auxiliaris) during late summer and early fall as they try to acquire sufficient fat levels for winter (Pritchard and Robbins 1990; Mattson et al. 1991b; French et al. 1994). Lastly, whitebark pine seeds (Pinus albicaulis) serve as a crucial fall food due to their high fat content and abundance as a pre-hibernation food (Mattson and Reinhart 1994). The distribution and abundance of these grizzly bear foods vary naturally among seasons and years. In some years, whitebark pine seeds are an important food and in other years, few seeds are available and bears switch to alternate foods.

   On average, approximately 79 percent of the diet of adult male and 45 percent of the diet of adult female grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA) is terrestrial meat (Jacoby et al. 1999). In contrast, in Glacier National Park, over 95 percent of the diets of both adult male and female grizzly bears is vegetation (Jacoby et al. 1999). Ungulates rank as the second highest source of net digestible energy available to grizzly bears in the GYA (Mealey 1975; Pritchard and Robbins 1990; Craighead et al. 1995). Ungulates provide a high- quality food source in early spring before most plant foods become available. Grizzly bears with home ranges in areas with few plant foods depend extensively on ungulate meat (Harting 1985). Grizzly bears in the Yellowstone area feed on ungulates primarily as winter-killed carrion from March through May although they also depredate elk calves for a short period in early June (Gunther and Renkin 1990; Green et al. 1997; Mattson 1997). Carcass availability fluctuates with winter severity because fewer ungulates die during mild winters.

   Due to their high digestibility and protein and lipid content, spawning cutthroat trout are one of the highest sources of digestible energy available to bears during early summer in Yellowstone National Park (Mealey 1975; Pritchard and Robbins 1990). Grizzly bears are known to prey on cutthroat trout in at least 36 different streams tributary to Yellowstone Lake (Reinhart and Mattson 1990). From 1997 to 1999, Haroldson et al. (2000) identified 85 different grizzly bears that had likely fished spawning streams tributary to Yellowstone Lake. While importance varies by season and year, few bears develop a dependence on this food source. Only four individuals visited spawning streams consistently every year, suggesting that this resource is used opportunistically. Fishing activity can occur any time during the spawning runs but generally coincides with peak spawning numbers in mid-June through mid-July. In contrast to earlier studies which used different assumptions and methods (Reinhart and Mattson 1990; Mattson and Reinhart 1995), Felicetti et al. (2004) showed that male grizzly bears are the primary consumers of cutthroat trout, accounting for 92 percent of all trout consumed by Yellowstone grizzly bears.

   Alpine moth aggregations are an important food source for a considerable portion of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population (Mattson et al. 1991b). As many as 35 different grizzly bears with cubs-of-the-year have been observed feeding at moth sites in a single season (Ternent and Haroldson 2000). Some bears may feed almost exclusively on moths for a period of over 1 month (French et al. 1994). Moths have the highest caloric content per gram of any other bear food (French et al. 1994). Moths are available during late summer and early fall when bears consume large quantities of foods in order to acquire sufficient fat levels for winter (Mattson et al. 1991b). A grizzly bear feeding extensively on moths over a 30-day period may consume up to 47 percent of its annual energy budget of 960,000 calories (White et al. 1999). Moths are also valuable to bears because they are located in remote areas, thereby reducing the potential for grizzly bear/human conflicts during the late-summer tourist months.

   Due to their high fat content and potential abundance as a pre- hibernation food, whitebark pine seeds are an important fall food for bears in the GYA (Mattson and Jonkel 1990; Mattson et al. 1991a). Yellowstone grizzly bears consume whitebark pine seeds extensively when whitebark cones are available. Bears may feed predominantly on whitebark pine seeds when production exceeds 22 cones per tree (Mattson et al. 1992). During years of low whitebark pine seed availability, grizzly bears often seek alternate foods at lower elevations in association with human activities (Mattson et al. 1992; Knight and Blanchard 1995; Gunther et al. 1997, 2004).

   The production and availability of these four major foods can have a positive effect on reproduction and survival rates of Yellowstone grizzly bears (Mattson et al. 2002). For example, during years when these food sources are abundant, there are few grizzly bear/human conflicts in the GYA (Mattson et al. 1992; Gunther et al. 1997; Gunther et al. 2004). Grizzly bear/human conflicts are incidents in which bears kill or injure people, damage property, kill or injure livestock, damage beehives, obtain anthropogenic foods, or damage or obtain garden and orchard fruits and vegetables (United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) 1986). In contrast, during years when there are shortages of natural food sources, grizzly bear/human conflicts are more frequent, resulting in higher numbers of human-caused grizzly bear mortalities due to defense of life or property and management removals of nuisance bears (Mattson et al. 1992; Gunther et al. 2004). A nuisance bear is one that seeks human food in human use areas, kills lawfully present livestock, or displays unnatural aggressive behavior towards people (USDA 1986). Introduced organisms (e.g., white pine blister rust and lake trout), habitat loss, and other human activities can negatively impact the quantity and distribution of these four primary foods (Reinhart et al. 2001). The effects of invasive species on food supply and human/bear conflict are discussed in more detail in the five factor analysis.

   Recovery

   Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the grizzly bear occurred throughout the western half of the contiguous United States, central Mexico, western Canada, and most of Alaska (Roosevelt 1907; Wright 1909; Merriam 1922; Storer and Tevis 1955; Rausch 1963; Herrero 1972; Mattson et al. 1995; Schwartz et al. 2003a). Pre-settlement population levels for the western contiguous United States were believed to be in the range of 50,000 animals (Servheen 1999). With European settlement of the American west, grizzly bears were shot, poisoned, and trapped wherever they were found, and the resulting range and population declines were dramatic (Roosevelt 1907; Wright 1909; Storer and Tevis 1955; Leopold 1967; Koford 1969; Craighead and Mitchell 1982; Mattson et al. 1995). The range and numbers of grizzlies were reduced to less than 2 percent of their former range and numbers by the 1930s, approximately 125 years after first contact (Service 1993; Mattson et al. 1995; Servheen 1999). Of 37 grizzly populations present in 1922, 31 were extirpated by 1975 (Servheen 1999).

   By the 1950s, with little or no conservation effort or management directed at maintaining grizzly bears anywhere in their range, the Yellowstone area population had been reduced in numbers and was restricted largely to the confines of Yellowstone

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   National Park and some surrounding areas (Craighead et al. 1995; Schwartz et al. 2003a). High grizzly bear mortality in 1970 and 1971, following closure of the open-pit dumps in Yellowstone National Park (Gunther 1994; Craighead et al. 1995), and concern about grizzly population status throughout its remaining range prompted the 1975 listing of the grizzly bear as a threatened species in the lower 48 States under the ESA (40 FR 31734). When the grizzly bear was listed in 1975, the population estimate in the Yellowstone Ecosystem ranged from 229 (Craighead et al. 1974) to 312 (Cowan et al. 1974; McCullough 1981) individuals.

   In 1981, the Service hired a grizzly bear recovery coordinator to direct recovery efforts and to coordinate all agency efforts on research and management of grizzly bears in the lower 48 States. In 1982, the first Grizzly bear recovery plan was completed (Service 1982). The 1982 Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan identified five ecosystems within the conterminous United States thought to support grizzly bears. Today, grizzly bear distribution is primarily within, but not limited to, the areas identified as Recovery Zones (Service 1993), including the Yellowstone area in northwest Wyoming, eastern Idaho, and southwest Montana (24,000 sq km (9,200 sq mi)) at more than 580 bears (Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (Study Team) 2005); the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE) of north central Montana (25,000 sq km (9,600 sq mi)) at more than 400 bears (70 FR 24870; May 11, 2005); the North Cascades area of north central Washington (25,000 sq km (9,500 sq mi)) at less than 20 bears (Almack et al. 1993); the Selkirk Mountains area of north Idaho, northeast Washington, and southeast British Columbia (5,700 sq km (2,200 sq mi)) at approximately 40 to 50 bears (64 FR 26725, May 17, 1999; 70 FR 24870, May 11, 2005); and the Cabinet-Yaak area of northwest Montana and northern Idaho (6,700 sq km (2,600 sq mi)) at approximately 30 to 40 bears (Kasworm and Manley 1988; Kasworm et al. 2004). There is an additional Recovery Zone known as the Bitterroot Recovery Zone in the Bitterroot Mountains of east- central Idaho and western Montana (14,500 sq km (5,600 sq mi)), but this area does not contain any grizzly bears at this time (Service 1996; 65 FR 69624, November 17, 2000; Service 2000). The San Juan Mountains of Colorado also were identified as an area of possible grizzly bear occurrence (40 FR 31734, July 28, 1975; Service 1982, 1993), but no evidence of grizzly bears has been found in the San Juan Mountains since a bear was killed there in 1979 (Service 1993).

   In the initial Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan, the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Ecosystem, later called the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone, was defined as an area large enough and of sufficient habitat quality to support a recovered grizzly bear population within which the population and habitat would be monitored (Service 1982, 1993). A revised Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan (Service 1993) included additional tasks and new information that increased the focus and effectiveness of recovery efforts.

   Grizzly bear recovery has required cooperation among numerous Federal agencies, State agencies, non-government organizations (NGOs), local governments, and citizens. In recognition that grizzly bear populations were unsustainably low, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (hereafter referred to as the Study Team) was created in 1973 to provide detailed scientific information for the management and recovery of the grizzly bear in the Yellowstone area. Currently, members of the Study Team include scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the Service, academia, and each State game and fish agency involved in grizzly bear recovery. The Study Team has developed protocols to monitor grizzly bear populations and some important habitat parameters. These parameters have been used in demographic and habitat management.

   In 1983, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee was created to coordinate management efforts and research actions across multiple Federal lands and States within the various Recovery Zones to recover the grizzly bear in the lower 48 States. Its objective was to change land management practices to more effectively provide security and maintain or improve habitat conditions for the grizzly bear. The Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee is made up of upper level managers from all affected State and Federal agencies. Also in 1983, the Yellowstone Ecosystem Subcommittee, a subcommittee of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee, was formed to coordinate efforts specific to the Yellowstone area and to coordinate activities with the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee. Members of the Yellowstone Ecosystem Subcommittee are mid-level managers and include representatives from the Shoshone National Forest; the Custer National Forest; the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest; the Bridger-Teton National Forest; Gallatin National Forest; Targhee National Forest; Yellowstone National Park; Grand Teton National Park; the Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD); the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (MDFWP); the Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG); the Bureau of Land Management (BLM); the Study Team; county government from each affected State; and the Service.

   In 1994, The Fund for Animals, Inc., and 42 other organizations and individuals filed suit over the adequacy of the 1993 Recovery Plan. In 1995, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued an order that remanded for further study and clarification four issues that are relevant to the Yellowstone Ecosystem: (1) The method used to measure the status of bear populations; (2) the impacts of genetic isolation; (3) how mortalities related to livestock are monitored; and (4) the monitoring of disease (Fund for Animals v. Babbitt, 903 F. Supp. 96 (D. D.C. 1995); 967 F. Supp. 6 (D. D.C. 1997)). Following this decision, all parties filed appeals. In 1996, the parties reached a settlement whereby the Service also agreed to append habitat-based recovery criteria to the Recovery Plan. These issues and the necessary supplements to the Recovery Plan as required by the court order and subsequent settlement are discussed in detail in this section and in the threats analysis.

   Habitat Management and Habitat-based Recovery Criteria. In 1979, the Study Team developed the first comprehensive Guidelines for Management Involving Grizzly Bears in the Yellowstone area (hereafter referred to as the Guidelines) (Mealey 1979). The Service (1979) determined in a biological opinion that implementation of the Guidelines by Federal land management agencies would promote conservation of the grizzly bear. Beginning in 1979, the six affected National Forests (Beaverhead-Deerlodge, Bridger-Teton, Caribou-Targhee, Custer, Gallatin, and Shoshone), Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, and BLM in the Yellowstone area began managing habitats for grizzly bears under direction specified in the Guidelines.

   In 1986, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee modified the Guidelines to more effectively manage habitat by mapping and managing according to three different management situations:

   Management Situation (1) Grizzly habitat maintenance and improvement, and grizzly bear/human conflict minimization receive the highest management priority;

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   Management Situation (2) Grizzly bear use is important, but not the primary use of the area; or

   Management Situation (3) Grizzly habitat maintenance and improvement are not management considerations (USDA 1986).

   Accordingly, the National Forests and National Parks delineated 18 different bear management units within the Recovery Zone to aid in managing habitat and monitoring population trends. Each bear management unit was further subdivided into subunits, resulting in a total of 40 subunits contained within the 18 bear management units. The bear management units are analysis areas that approximate the lifetime size of a female's home range, while subunits are analysis areas that approximate the annual home range size of adult females. Subunits provide the optimal scale for evaluation of seasonal feeding opportunities and landscape patterns of food availability for grizzly bears (Weaver et al. 1986). The bear management units and subunits were identified to provide enough quality habitat and to ensure that grizzly bears were well distributed across the recovery area.

   Another tool employed to monitor habitat quality and assist in habitat management is the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Cumulative Effects Model. The model was designed to assess the inherent productivity of grizzly bear habitat and the cumulative effects of human activities on bear use of that habitat (Weaver et al. 1986; Dixon 1997; Mattson et al. 2002). The model uses GIS databases and relative value coefficients of human activities, vegetation, and key grizzly bear foods to calculate habitat value and habitat effectiveness (Weaver et al. 1986; Mattson et al. 2002). Habitat value is a relative measure of the average net digestible energy potentially available to bears in a subunit during each season. Habitat value is primarily a function of vegetation and major foods (Weaver et al. 1986; Dixon 1997). Habitat effectiveness is that part of the energy potentially derived from the area that is available to bears given their response to humans (Weaver et al. 1986; Dixon 1997; Mattson et al. 2002). More specifically, habitat effectiveness is a function of relative value coefficients of human activities, such as location, duration, and intensity of use for motorized access routes, non-motorized access routes, developed sites, and front- and back-country dispersed uses (Mattson et al. 2002). The Cumulative Effects Model is updated annually to reflect changes in vegetation, major foods, and the number and capacity of human activities.

   As per a court settlement (Fund for Animals v. Babbitt) and as recommended by Recovery Plan Task Y423, the Service has worked to ``establish a threshold of minimal habitat values to be maintained within each Cumulative Effects Analysis Unit in order to ensure that sufficient habitat is available to support a viable population'' (Service 1993, p. 55). On June 17, 1997, the Service held a public workshop in Bozeman, Montana, to develop and refine habitat-based recovery criteria for the grizzly bear. A Federal Register notice notified the public of this workshop and provided interested parties an opportunity to participate and submit comments (62 FR 19777, April 23, 1997). After considering 1,167 written comments, the Service developed biologically-based habitat criteria with the overall goal of maintaining or improving habitat conditions at 1998 levels.

   Recognizing that grizzly bears are opportunistic omnivores and that a landscape's ability to support grizzly bears is a function of overall habitat productivity, the distribution and abundance of major food sources, the levels and type of human activities, grizzly bear social systems, bear densities, and stochasticity, there is no known way to deductively calculate minimum habitat values. The Service instead inductively selected 1998 levels because it was known that these habitat values had adequately supported an increasing Yellowstone grizzly bear population throughout the 1990s (Eberhardt et al. 1994; Knight and Blanchard 1995; Knight et al. 1995; Boyce 2001) and that levels of secure habitat and the number and capacity of developed sites had changed little from 1988 to 1998 (USFS 2004). Specific habitat conditions or criteria include limiting road densities inside the Recovery Zone, maintaining or increasing levels of secure habitat, maintaining or improving habitat effectiveness values in secure habitat, and limiting further site development and livestock grazing allotments on public lands within the Yellowstone grizzly bear Recovery Zone. Additionally, the Service developed four general habitat-based parameters to monitor and relate to population information: (1) Productivity of the four major foods; (2) habitat effectiveness as measured by the Cumulative Effects Model; (3) grizzly bear mortality numbers, locations, and causes; grizzly bear/human conflicts; nuisance bear management actions; bear/hunter conflicts; and bear/livestock conflicts; and (4) development on private lands. A copy of the habitat- based criteria is available at http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/species/mammals/grizzly/yellowstone.htm. This revised habitat-based recovery

   criteria will be appended to the Recovery Plan and is included in the Conservation Strategy. These habitat-based criteria have been maintained successfully at 1998 levels, and the Conservation Strategy ensures they will continue to be met in the foreseeable future (see Conservation Strategy).

   Population and Demographic Management. Mortality control is a key part of any successful management effort; however, some mortality, including human-caused mortality, is unavoidable in a dynamic system where hundreds of bears inhabit thousands of square miles of diverse habitat with several million human visitors and residents. In 1977, Eberhardt documented that adult female survival was the most important of the vital rates influencing population trajectory. Low adult female survival was the critical factor causing decline in the Yellowstone area population prior to the mid-1980s (Knight and Eberhardt 1985). In the early 1980s, with the development of the first Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan (Service 1982), agencies began to control mortality and increase adult female survivorship (Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee 1983; USDA 1986; Knight et al. 1999). The Recovery Plan (Service 1982, revised 1993) established three demographic (population) goals to objectively measure and monitor recovery of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population:

   Demographic Recovery Criterion 1--Maintain a minimum of 15 unduplicated (only counted once) females with cubs-of-the-year over a running 6-year average both inside the Recovery Zone and within a 16-km (10-mi) area immediately surrounding the Recovery Zone. This recovery criterion has been met.

   Demographic Recovery Criterion 2--Sixteen of 18 bear management units within the Recovery Zone must be occupied by females with young, with no 2 adjacent bear management units unoccupied, during a 6-year sum of observations. This criterion is important as it ensures that reproductive females occupy the majority of the Recovery Zone and are not concentrated in one portion of the ecosystem. This recovery criterion has been met.

   Demographic Recovery Criterion 3--The running 6-year average for total known, human-caused mortality should not exceed 4 percent of the minimum population estimate in any 2

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   consecutive years; and human-caused female grizzly bear mortality should not exceed 30 percent of the above total in any 2 consecutive years. These recovery criteria have not been exceeded in 2 consecutive years since 1997.

   Although the Recovery Plan suggested calculating sustainable mortality as a percentage of the minimum population estimate (as outlined in Demographic Recovery Criterion 3), this method no longer represents the best scientific and commercial information available (see pages 9-11 of Study Team 2005). As per a court settlement (Fund for Animals v. Babbit) and as recommended by Recovery Plan Task Y11, the Service has worked to ``determine population conditions at which the species is viable and self-sustaining,'' and to ``reevaluate and refine population criteria as new information becomes available'' (Service 1993, p. 44). Beginning in 2000, the Study Team, at the request of the Service, began a comprehensive evaluation of the demographic data and the methodology used to estimate population size and establish the sustainable level of mortality to grizzly bears in the Yellowstone Ecosystem. Accordingly, the Study Team conducted a critical review of the current methods for calculating population size, estimating the known to unknown mortality ratio, and establishing sustainable mortality levels for the Yellowstone grizzly population (Study Team 2005). The product of this work is a 60-page report compiled by the Study Team that evaluates current methods, reviews recent scientific literature, examines alternative methods, and recommends the most valid technique based on these reviews (Study Team 2005) (accessible at http:// mountain-prairie.fws.gov/species/mammals/

   grizzly/yellowstone.htm). The end result of this review is a revised method customized for the Yellowstone grizzly bear population for calculating total population size rather than minimum population size (Study Team 2005). This revised method will be appended to the Recovery Plan and included in the Conservation Strategy.

   As with the previous method, the revised method uses counts of unduplicated females with cubs-of-the-year as the baseline data upon which the total population is calculated. From this, the total number of independent females (>2 years old) in the Yellowstone population is calculated (Keating et al. 2002). This number is then divided by the modeled sex ratio (Schwartz et al. 2005) of grizzly bears in the Yellowstone population to determine the total number of independent males (>2 years old) in the population. The last component of calculating a total population is to add the number of cubs less than 2 years old (i.e., dependent young.). This number is extrapolated from the number of females with cubs-of-the-year (Study Team 2005). Finally, by adding the number of independent males, independent females, and dependent young, the total population is determined. The revised method for calculating total population size produces a larger estimate than the current method which only calculates the minimum population size. For example, using the current method, the minimum population size in 2004 was 431 bears. Using the revised method, the total population estimate of Yellowstone grizzly bears in 2004 was 588 (Study Team 2005). The total population estimate is considered a more accurate representation of actual population size (Study Team 2005). Total population size is critical in determining sustainable mortality.

   Also outdated is the Recovery Plan's total human-caused mortality limit and female human-caused mortality limit as outlined in Demographic Recovery Criterion 3. In 1986, Harris (1986) concluded that healthy grizzly bear populations could sustain approximately 6.5 percent human-caused mortality without population decline. To account for unknown/unreported deaths, the Service assumed that for every two bears known to be killed by human causes, there was one that was unknown. This approach on unknown mortalities resulted in the Service adopting a more conservative 4 percent limit on known human-caused grizzly bear mortalities in the Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan (Service 1993).

   After critically reviewing the current method of establishing human-caused mortality limits, alternative methods, and scientific literature, the Study Team concluded that Harris' (1986) method was no longer the best available nor the most biologically valid (Study Team 2005). As a result of this effort, the Study Team recommended revising the sustainable mortality limits for the Yellowstone population (Study Team 2005). The revised mortality limits are derived from a more accurate model for establishing sustainable mortality limits for grizzly bear populations (Schwartz et al. 2005).

   The refined method resulted in new, calculated mortality limits for independent females, males, and dependent young. Unlike the previous method, which only counted human-caused mortalities against a 4 percent limit, the revised method counts all deaths of grizzly bears from any source against the limits. This includes: (1) Known and probable human- caused mortalities; (2) reported deaths due to natural and undetermined causes; and (3) calculated unreported human-caused mortalities. This new method is a much more comprehensive mortality management approach. Between 1980 and 2002, approximately 21 percent of all known grizzly bear deaths were from undetermined causes (Servheen et al. 2004). These deaths could not be counted against the 4 percent human-caused mortality limit using the previous method because the cause of death could not be confirmed. The previous method also assumed a 2-to-1 known-to-unknown mortality ratio. Many researchers hypothesize that the ratio of known-to-unknown mortality is much higher than 2-to-1 (Knight and Eberhardt 1985; McLellan et al. 1999). After careful consideration and using the best available science, the Study Team adopted a known- to-unknown mortalities ratio of 1-to-1.7 (Cherry et al. 2002; Study Team 2005).

   For independent females, the revised annual mortality limit, not to be exceeded in 2 consecutive years, which includes all sources of mortality, is 9 percent of the total number of independent females. Simulations have shown that a 9 percent adult female mortality rate allows populations to increase at 3 percent per year with a stable to increasing population 95 percent of the time (Schwartz et al. 2005).

   The revised mortality limit for independent males (>=2 years old), not to be exceeded in 3 consecutive years, is 15 percent of the total number of independent males and, like the limit for independent females, includes all sources of mortality. This level of mortality was sustainable under different population growth model scenarios simulated by Schwartz et al. (2005). The Study Team chose this limit because it approximates the level of male mortality in the GYA from 1983 to 2001, a period when population size was calculated to have increased at 4 to 7 percent each year (Schwartz et al. 2005). Independent males can endure a relatively high mortality rate without affecting the overall stability or trajectory of the population because they contribute little to overall population growth (Mace and Waller 1998; Wielgus 2002; Study Team 2005; Schwartz et al. 2005).

   For dependent young (2estimate (Keating et al. 2002) of less than 48 females with cubs-of-the-year, for 2 consecutive years; (2) exceedance of the 9 percent total mortality limit for independent females for 2 consecutive years; (3) exceedance of the total mortality limits for independent males or dependent young for 3 consecutive years; or (4) failure to meet any of the habitat standards described in the Conservation Strategy pertaining to road densities, levels of secure habitat, new developed sites, and number of livestock allotments.

   A Biology and Monitoring Review will examine habitat management, population management, or monitoring efforts of participating agencies with an objective of identifying the source or cause of failing to meet a habitat or demographic goal. The Study Team will give management recommendations to address the deviation. This Review will be completed and made available to the public within 6 months of initiation. The Coordinating Committee will respond with actions to address deviations from habitat standards or, if the desired population and habitat standards specified in the Strategy cannot be met in the opinion of the Coordinating Committee, then the Coordinating Committee will petition the Service for relisting (Service 2003). Although anyone can petition the Service for relisting, the Coordinating Committee's petition is important because it is requested by the actual management agencies in charge of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population. Additionally, the Coordinating Committee possesses the resources, data, and experience to provide the Service with a strong argument for the petition. Once a potential petition is received, the Service will determine if the petition presents substantial information. If so, we conduct a full status review to determine if relisting is warranted, warranted-but- precluded by higher priority actions, or not warranted. The Service could also consider emergency listing, in accordance with section 4(b)(7) of the ESA, if the threat were severe and immediate. Such an emergency relisting would be effective the day the proposed regulation is published in the Federal Register and would be effective for 240 days. During this time, a conventional rule regarding the listing of a species based on the five factors of section 4(a)(1) of the ESA could be drafted and take effect after the 240-day limit on the emergency relisting has expired.

   The management of nuisance bears within the Yellowstone DPS boundaries will be based upon existing laws and authorities of State wildlife agencies and Federal land management agencies and guided by protocols established in the Strategy and State management plans. Inside the National Parks, Yellowstone or Grand Teton National Park grizzly bear biologists will continue to respond to grizzly bear/human conflicts. In all areas outside of the National Parks, State wildlife agencies will coordinate and carry out any management actions in response to grizzly bear/human conflicts. In areas within the Yellowstone DPS boundaries that are outside of the PCA, State grizzly bear management plans will apply and State wildlife agencies will respond to and manage all grizzly bear/human conflicts. The focus and intent of nuisance grizzly bear management inside and outside the PCA will be predicated on strategies and actions to prevent grizzly bear/ human conflicts. Active management aimed at individual nuisance bears will be required in both areas.

   The Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming plans recognize that measures to reduce grizzly bear/human conflicts are paramount to successfully and completely address the issue. The State of Idaho Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Management Plan states that such measures must be given priority, as they are more effective than simply responding to problems as they occur. Similarly, the Grizzly Bear Management Plan for Southwestern Montana maintains that the key to dealing with all nuisance situations is prevention rather than responding after damage has occurred. The Wyoming Grizzly Bear Management Plan also mandates the WGFD to emphasize long-term, non-lethal solutions, but relocation and lethal removal may occur to resolve some conflicts (all three State management plans are accessible at http:// mountain-prairie.fws.gov/species/

   mammals/grizzly/yellowstone.htm). The ways in which the Strategy and the State plans intend to address preventative measures are described in detail in the ``Information and Education'' section in Factor E-- Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting Its Continued Existence. All three State plans allow for preemptive relocation of grizzly bears out of areas with a high probability of conflicting with humans or their property, including livestock. In general, humans will be given greater consideration outside of the PCA so long as human sources of conflicts are not intentional. The States are committed to responding to grizzly bear/human conflicts in an efficient, timely manner.

   The killing of grizzly bears in self-defense by humans will continue to be allowed under both Federal and State management plans. State management plans do not allow for legal take of grizzly bears by humans unless it is within the designated seasons and limits for grizzly mortality. Hunting seasons will not be instituted in any of the States until adequate scientific information exists to ensure that any such hunting take is within the sustainable mortality limits and the impact to the Yellowstone grizzly bear population is negligible. The goal of such a hunting season is to reduce grizzly density in areas of high grizzly bear/human conflicts so that future management actions would be reduced. Outside of the National Parks, individual nuisance bears deemed appropriate for removal may be taken by a licensed hunter in compliance with rules and regulations promulgated by the appropriate State wildlife agency commission. A hunt would only occur if annual mortality limits specified for the Yellowstone grizzly bear population are not exceeded.

   In summary, these State management plans provide the necessary regulatory framework and guidelines to State wildlife agencies for the continued expansion of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population into suitable habitat outside of the PCA. By identifying the agencies responsible for nuisance bear management and responding to grizzly bear/human conflicts using a clearly orchestrated protocol, these State plans create a framework within which grizzly bears and people can coexist. Effective nuisance bear management benefits the conservation of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population and State management plans adequately address this issue.

   In addition to the Conservation Strategy, National Park Superintendent's Plans, USFS Plans, and State grizzly bear management plans, more than 70 State and Federal laws, regulations, rules, and guidelines are currently in place. We are confident that these documents provide an adequate regulatory framework within which the Yellowstone grizzly bear population will continue to experience population stability, as well as protocols for future management, IE programs, and monitoring. In summary, these documents provide reasonable assurance to the Service and regulatory certainty that potential future threats to

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   the Yellowstone grizzly bear population will not jeopardize its long- term viability.

   E. Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting Its Continued Existence

   Three other considerations have the potential to affect long-term grizzly bear persistence in the Yellowstone including: (1) Genetic concerns; (2) invasive species, disease, and other impacts to food supply; and (3) human attitudes toward grizzly bear recovery and IE efforts to improve these attitudes.

   Genetic Management: Levels of genetic diversity in the Yellowstone grizzly bear population are not as low as previously feared, and the need for novel genetic material is not urgent (Miller and Waits 2003). Because the Yellowstone grizzly bear population is an isolated population, declines in genetic diversity over time due to inbreeding are expected (Allendorf et al. 1991; Burgman et al. 1993), but will occur gradually over decades (Miller and Waits 2003). Experimental and theoretical data suggest that one to two effective migrants per generation is an appropriate level of gene flow to maintain or increase the level of genetic diversity in isolated populations (Mills and Allendorf 1996; Newman and Tallmon 2001; Miller and Waits 2003). An effective migrant is defined as an individual that emigrates into an isolated population from an outside area, survives, and breeds. Based on Miller and Waits (2003), the Strategy recommends that two bears from the NCDE be introduced into the Yellowstone grizzly bear population every 10 years (i.e., one generation) to maintain current levels of genetic diversity (Service 2003).

   Federal and State agencies will continue to monitor bears on the northern periphery of the Yellowstone DPS boundaries and the southern edges of the NCDE and collect genetic samples from captured or dead bears in these areas to document gene flow between these two ecosystems. To monitor genetic isolation, the Service will establish a repository for all samples from the Yellowstone population to document any bears moving from the NCDE into the Yellowstone area. Such movement will be detected by using an ``assignment test'' which identifies the area from which individuals are most likely to have originated based on their unique genetic signature (Waser and Strobeck 1998). The Strategy dictates that if no movements are detected by 2020, one to two grizzlies will be transplanted from the NCDE by 2022 to ensure that genetic diversity in the Yellowstone area does not decline below existing levels (Service 2003).

   As long as adequate measures to address genetic concerns are continued, these issues will not adversely impact the long-term conservation of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population or its expansion into suitable habitat. Through careful monitoring of movements and levels of genetic diversity, the geographic isolation of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population will not be a threat to population persistence.

   Invasive Species, Disease, and Other Impacts to Food Supply: Four food items have been identified as major components of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population's diet (Mattson et al. 1991). These are seeds of the whitebark pine, army cutworm moths, ungulates, and spawning cutthroat trout. These food sources may exert a positive influence on grizzly bear fecundity and survival (Mattson et al. 2002) and are some of the highest sources of digestible energy available to grizzly bears in the Yellowstone area (Mealey 1975; Pritchard and Robbins 1990; Mattson et al. 1992; Craighead et al. 1995). Each of these food sources is limited in distribution and subject to natural annual fluctuations in abundance and availability. Because of this natural variability, threshold values of abundance for each food have not been established. However, whitebark pine, ungulates, cutthroat trout, and army cutworm moths are all monitored either directly or indirectly on an annual basis (see Post-Delisting Monitoring Plan section below). Monitoring these important foods provides managers with some ability to predict annual seasonal bear habitat use, and estimate, prepare for, and avoid grizzly bear/human conflicts due to a shortage of one or more foods. In response to normal changes in food supplies due to plant phenology and responses to weather (e.g., frost, rainfall), grizzly bear annual home ranges change in size and extent. By expanding the distribution and range of bears into currently unoccupied suitable habitat within the DPS boundaries, additional areas with additional food resources will be available. These additional habitats will provide habitat flexibility for bears to respond to these normal changes in annual food supplies and distribution.

   Several factors have the potential to impact Yellowstone Lake cutthroat trout populations. In 1994, nonnative lake trout (Salvelinus naymaycush) were discovered in Yellowstone Lake (Reinhart et al. 2001). Lake trout are efficient predators of juvenile cutthroat trout and, on average, consume 41 cutthroat trout per year (Ruzycki et al. 2003). In 1998, Myxobolus cerebralis, the parasite that causes whirling disease, was found in juvenile and adult cutthroat trout collected from Yellowstone Lake. The Intermountain West has experienced drought conditions for the past 6 years, which has resulted in increased water temperatures, lowered lake levels, and a reduction in peak stream flows; all of which negatively affect cutthroat trout spawning success (Koel et al. 2005). This combination of lake trout, whirling disease, and drought conditions has resulted in declines in the Yellowstone cutthroat trout population with subsequent decreases in grizzly bear fishing activity (Koel et al. 2005). In fact, bear activity (includes black bear and grizzly bear use) at spawning streams decreased 87 percent between 1989 and 2004 (Koel et al. 2005). This decrease corresponds temporally with cutthroat trout declines but may not have a significant effect on the grizzly bear population because adult grizzlies that fish in spawning streams only consume, on average, between 8 and 55 trout per year (Felicetti et al. 2004).

   In 2001, several environmental and legal organizations petitioned the Service to list the Yellowstone cutthroat trout as a threatened subspecies of cutthroat trout (66 FR 11244; February 23, 2001). A 12- month status review is currently underway and the Service will publish its findings when completed. We will consider the results of the status review fully when making a final decision on this proposed delisting.

   Efforts to reduce introduced lake trout populations have been somewhat successful. The Yellowstone National Park managers have removed more than 100,000 lake trout since 1994, and the average size of lake trout caught has decreased, indicating that gillnetting efforts may be effective. The Yellowstone National Park managers will continue to monitor the Yellowstone Lake cutthroat trout population using fish weirs, spawning stream surveys, and hydroacoustic techniques and continue attempts to suppress nonnative lake trout in Yellowstone Lake through gillnetting, capturing on spawning grounds, and fishing regulations which target lake trout (Yellowstone National Park 2003). The Yellowstone National Park biologists will continue to assess the impacts of nonnative lake trout on cutthroat trout populations and will provide an annual summary to the Study Team regarding the abundance of both cutthroat and lake trout.

   Currently, there are two noteworthy threats to whitebark pine communities

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   in North America. These are mountain pine beetle infestation and the introduction of exotic species (Tomback et al. 2001). Fire suppression and exclusion throughout most of the western United States during the 20th century has allowed shade tolerant tree species to dominate some whitebark pine communities thereby inhibiting natural regeneration by whitebark pine (Arno 1986; Tomback et al. 2001). These later successional whitebark pine communities are more susceptible to infestations of the native mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) (Tomback et al. 2001). Their larvae feed on the inner bark, which can eventually girdle and kill trees on a landscape scale (Amman and Cole 1983).

   The introduction of white pine blister rust from Europe in the early 1900s also contributes to whitebark pine declines (Kendall and Arno 1990; Tomback et al. 2001). While there is evidence of blister rust in whitebark pines in the Yellowstone area, the blister rust has been present for more than 50 years (McDonald and Hoff 2001), and only 2 to 13 percent of whitebark pine trees display signs of infection (Kendall and Keane 2001). This proportion of infected trees is much lower than in whitebark pine communities found in the nearby Bob Marshall Wilderness (83 percent) or in communities of other 5-needled pines in Colorado in which 50 percent of pines exposed to the fungus are infected (McDonald and Hoff 2001).

   Both mountain pine beetle (Logan and Powell 2001; Williams and Liebhold 2002) and white pine blister rust (Koteen 2002) outbreaks are predicted to increase with increasing temperatures associated with global climate change. However, the ultimate impacts of climate change on whitebark pine communities are unclear (Kendall and Keane 2001).

   Although tree mortality due to white pine blister rust and mountain pine beetles has been low to date in the PCA, some whitebark pine stands are infected with blister rust. The extent of the blister rust infection and the future effects it will have on whitebark pine on the Yellowstone grizzly bear population are unknown. The USFS formed a Whitebark Pine Task Group to gather information on the status of this tree. Current work on whitebark pine includes planting in several areas, cone collection from healthy trees, silvicultural treatments to improve growth and establishment, prescribed burning to encourage natural whitebark pine seedling establishment, and surveys for healthy trees that may possess blister rust resistant genes. Currently, there are 19 whitebark pine cone production transects within the PCA, 9 of which have been monitored on an annual basis since 1980 (Knight et al. 1997). Under the Strategy, the Study Team will continue monitoring whitebark pine cone production and the prevalence of white pine blister rust using current methods (Service 2003).

   In general, grizzly bears are notoriously resourceful omnivores that will make behavioral adaptations regarding food acquisition (Weaver et al. 1996). Diets of grizzly bears vary among individuals and years (Mattson et al. 1991; Felicetti et al. 2004; Koel et al. 2005) reflecting their flexibility in finding adequate food resources as necessary. Mattson et al. (1991) hypothesized that grizzly bears are always sampling new foods in small quantities so that they have alternative options in years when preferred foods are scarce. In other areas such as the NCDE, where grizzly bears historically relied heavily on whitebark pine seeds, distributions and sighting records on the periphery of this ecosystem indicate that the population, at least in those areas, has continued to increase and thrive since the 1980s (Servheen, pers. comm. 2005) despite severe declines in whitebark pine communities in the last 50 years (Kendall and Keane 2001). Also, grizzly bear use of cutthroat trout has varied dramatically in the last three decades (Reinhart and Mattson 1990; Felicetti et al. 2004), most likely corresponding to fluctuations in the trout population, but the Yellowstone grizzly bear population has continued to increase and expand.

   Although there is no way to guarantee how the Yellowstone grizzly bear population will respond to decreases in whitebark pine crops or cutthroat trout, should they occur, we anticipate that they will compensate by shifting their foraging strategies to other foods such as forbs, fungi, ungulates, and small mammals. If there are reductions in any of these foods, they will likely be gradual reductions over decades, spanning generations of grizzly bears, thereby making adjustments to other foods gradual.

   The Study Team monitors grizzly bear mortality in relation to the abundance and distribution of all four of the major foods using measurable criteria. For instance, increases in mortality rates of radio-collared independent females are measurable criteria that could reflect decreases in food availability. Because there were no known natural mortalities of independent adult females from 1983 to 2001 (Study Team 2005), any change in this value will be noteworthy and will be investigated thoroughly by the Study Team to determine whether it is reflective of a landscape-scale trend or simply an isolated event. Significant declines in important foods also could result in reductions in cub production and increases in cub mortality over current rates of 0.362. Because human-caused mortality, natural mortality of radio- collared bears, and numbers of cubs, and cub survival rates are all measurable criteria monitored annually by the Study Team, any significant decline in important foods also would be reflected in changes in these measurable population parameters. In summary, if declines in any of the four major foods occur and, using the best available scientific data and techniques, the Study Team concludes these are related to significant increases in known and probable bear mortalities and that such increases could threaten the grizzly population, the Study Team would recommend to the Coordinating Committee that they submit a petition for relisting to the Service (see Chapter 6 of the Strategy--Implementation and Evaluation, for details on this process).

   Human Attitudes and Societal Acceptance: Public support is paramount to any successful large carnivore conservation program (Servheen 1996). Historically, human attitudes played a primary role in grizzly bear population declines through excessive human-caused mortality. Through government-endorsed eradication programs and perceived threats to human life and economic livelihood, humans settling the West were able to effectively eliminate most known grizzly populations after only 100 years of westward expansion.

   We have seen a change in public perceptions and attitudes toward the grizzly bear in the last several decades. The same government that once financially supported active extermination of the bear now uses its resources to protect the great symbol of American wildness. This change in government policy and practice is a product of changing public attitudes about the grizzly bear. Although attitudes about grizzlies vary geographically and demographically, there has been a revival of positive attitudes toward the grizzly bear and its conservation (Kellert et al. 1996).

   Public outreach presents a unique opportunity to effectively integrate human and ecological concerns into comprehensive programs that can modify societal beliefs about, perceptions of, and behaviors toward grizzly bears. Attitudes toward wildlife are shaped by numerous factors including basic wildlife values, biological and ecological understanding of species, perceptions of individual

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   species, and specific interactions or experiences with species (Kellert 1994; Kellert et al. 1996). The IE programs to teach visitors and residents about grizzly bear biology, ecology, and behavior enhance appreciation for this large predator while dispelling myths about its temperament and feeding habits. Effective IE programs have been an essential factor contributing to the recovery of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population since its listing in 1975. Being aware of specific values common to certain user groups will allow the IE working group to disseminate appropriate materials and provide workshops that address particular values and concerns most adequately. By providing general information to visitors and targeting specific user groups about living and working in grizzly country, we believe continued coexistence between grizzly bears and humans will be accomplished.

   Traditionally, residents of the GYA involved in resource extraction industries such as loggers, miners, livestock operators, and hunting guides, are the largest opponents to land-use restrictions which place the needs of the grizzly bear above human needs (Kellert 1994; Kellert et al. 1996). Surveys of these user groups have shown that they tolerate large predators when they are not seen as direct threats to their economic stability or personal freedoms (Kellert et al. 1996). Delisting would increase acceptance of grizzly bears by giving lower levels of government and private citizens more discretion in decisions which affect them. Increased flexibility regarding depredating bears in areas outside of the PCA would increase tolerance for the grizzly bear by landowners and livestock operators. A future hunting season also may increase tolerance and local acceptance of grizzly bears and reduce poaching in the GYA (McLellan et al. 1999).

   Overall, through expanded IE programs and continued monitoring of public opinion, human attitudes will not hinder the continued viability and success of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population.

   Information and Education: The future of the grizzly bear will be based on the people who live, work, and recreate in grizzly habitat and the willingness and ability of these people to learn to coexist with the grizzly and to accept this animal as a cohabitant of the land. Other management strategies are unlikely to succeed without useful and innovative public IE programs. The primary objective of the expanded public outreach program will be to proactively address grizzly/human conflicts by educating the public as to the root causes of these conflicts. By increasing awareness of grizzly bear behavior and biology, we hope to enhance public involvement and appreciation of the grizzly bear.

   Although many human-caused grizzly bear mortalities are unintentional (e.g., vehicle collisions, trap mortality), intentional deaths in response to grizzly bear/human conflicts are responsible for the majority of known and probable human-caused mortalities. Fortunately, this source of mortality can be reduced significantly if adequate IE is provided to people who live, work, and recreate in occupied grizzly bear habitat. The current IE working group has been a major component contributing to the successful recovery of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population over the last 30 years. Both Federal and State management agencies are committed to working with citizens, landowners, and visitors within the Yellowstone DPS boundaries to address the human sources of conflicts.

   From 1975 through 2002, as many as 59 percent (135 out of 230) of human-caused mortalities could have been avoided if adequate IE materials had been presented, understood, and used by involved parties. Educating back-country and front-country users about the importance of securing potential attractants can prevent bears from becoming food conditioned and displaying subsequent unnaturally aggressive behavior. Similarly, adhering to hiking recommendations, such as making noise, hiking with other people, and hiking during daylight hours, can further reduce back-country grizzly bear mortalities by decreasing the likelihood that hikers will encounter bears.

   Hunter-related mortalities usually involve hunters defending their life or property because of carcasses that are left unattended or stored improperly. Grizzly bear mortalities also occur when hunters mistake grizzly bears for black bears. All of these circumstances will be further reduced with enhanced IE programs.

   Outside the PCA, State wildlife agencies recognize that the key to preventing grizzly bear/human conflicts is providing IE to the public. State grizzly bear management plans also acknowledge that this is the most effective long-term solution to grizzly bear/human conflicts and that adequate public outreach programs are paramount to ongoing grizzly bear viability and successful coexistence with humans in the GYA. All three States have been actively involved in IE outreach for over a decade and management plans contain chapters detailing efforts to continue current programs and expand them when possible. State wildlife agencies have years of experience organizing and implementing effective public outreach programs. For example, WGFD created a formal human/ grizzly bear conflict management program in July 1990 and has coordinated an extensive IE program since then. Similarly, since 1993, the MTFWP has implemented countless public outreach efforts to minimize bear/human conflicts, and the IDFG has organized and implemented education programs and workshops focused on private and public lands on the western edge of grizzly bear habitat.

   Compensating ranchers for losses caused by grizzly bears is another approach to build support for coexistence between livestock operators and grizzly bears. In cases of grizzly bear livestock depredation that have been verified by USDA-APHIS-Wildlife Services, IDFG, MTFWP, or WYDGF, compensation to the affected livestock owners will continue to occur. Since 1997, this compensation has been provided primarily by private organizations, principally Defenders of Wildlife. The Defenders of Wildlife's Grizzly Bear Compensation Trust has paid over $112,000 to livestock operators within the Yellowstone DPS boundaries and in the northern Rockies for confirmed and probable livestock losses to grizzly bears. If this proposed rule to delist the Yellowstone grizzly bear population is adopted, both Idaho and Wyoming's grizzly bear management plans provide for State funding of compensation programs. In Idaho, compensation funds will come from the secondary depredation account, and the program will be administered by the appropriate IDFG Regional Landowner Sportsman Coordinators and Regional Supervisors. In Wyoming, the WYDGF will pay for all compensable damage to agricultural products as provided by State law and regulation. The WYDGF will continue efforts to establish a long-term funding mechanism to compensate property owners for livestock and apiary losses caused by grizzly bears. In Montana, MTFWP will continue to rely on Defenders of Wildlife and other private groups to compensate livestock operators for losses due to grizzly bears while MTFWP focuses on preventing such conflicts.

   Overall, these natural and manmade factors--genetic concerns, declines in natural food sources, public acceptance, and lack of adequate IE programs, if unaddressed, have the potential to affect long-term grizzly bear persistence. Through careful monitoring and adaptive management practices, the

   [[Page 69881]]

   Study Team and the States will be able to identify and address these concerns before they become problems for the Yellowstone grizzly bear at a population level. All of these issues have been scientifically researched and adequately addressed so that removing the proposed Yellowstone grizzly bear population from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife would not adversely impact its long-term survival.

   Conclusion of the 5-Factor Analysis

   As demonstrated in our 5-factor analysis, threats to this population have been sufficiently minimized throughout all of the range and all suitable habitat within the DPS, and there is no significant portion of the range where the DPS remains threatened.

   Our current knowledge of the health and condition of the Yellowstone grizzly bear DPS illustrates that the Yellowstone grizzly bear DPS is now a recovered population. Counts of unduplicated females with cubs-of-the-year have increased (Knight et al. 1995; Haroldson and Schwartz 2002; Schwartz et al. 2005a), indicating cub production has increased (Knight and Blanchard 1995, 1996; Knight et al. 1997; Haroldson et al. 1998; Haroldson 1999, 2000, 2001; Haroldson and Schwartz 2002; Haroldson 2003, 2004; Schwartz et al. 2005). Grizzly range and distribution has expanded (Basile 1982; Blanchard et al. 1992; Schwartz et al. 2002; Pyare et al. 2004). Calculations of population trajectory derived from radio-monitored female bears demonstrate an increasing population trend at a rate of 4 to 7 percent per year since the early 1990s (Eberhardt et al. 1994; Knight and Blanchard 1995; Boyce et al. 2001; Schwartz et al. 2005), due in large part to control of female mortality. In total, this population has increased from estimates ranging from 229 (Craighead et al. 1974) to 312 (Cowan et al. 1974; McCullough 1981) individuals when listed in 1975 to more than 580 animals as of 2004 (Study Team 2005).

   At the end of 2004, the number of unduplicated females with cubs- of-the-year over a 6-year average both inside the Recovery Zone and within a 16-km (10-mi) area immediately surrounding the Recovery Zone was 40, more than double the Recovery Plan target of 15. The Recovery Plan target for the number of unduplicated females with cubs-of-the- year (15) has been exceeded since 1988. In 2004, the 1-year total of unduplicated females with cubs-of-the-year within this area was 46.

   Within the Recovery Zone, the distribution of females with young, based on the most recent six years of observations in the ecosystem, was eighteen out of eighteen bear management units at the end of 2004. The range of this population also has increased dramatically, as evidenced by the 48 percent increase in occupied habitat since the 1970s (Schwartz et al. 2002; Pyare et al. 2004). Furthermore, the Yellowstone grizzly bear population continues to expand its range and distribution today. Currently, roughly 90 percent of females with cubs occupy the PCA and about 10 percent of females with cubs have expanded out beyond the PCA within the DPS (Schwartz 2005, unpublished data). Grizzly bears now occupy 68 percent of suitable habitat within the proposed DPS and may soon occupy the remainder of the suitable habitat within the proposed DPS. The Yellowstone DPS now represents a viable population that has sufficient numbers and distribution of reproductive individuals to provide a high likelihood that the species will continue to exist and be well-distributed throughout its range and additional suitable habitat for the foreseeable future. Both the threats of habitat destruction and modification, and low population levels, have been directly addressed through changes in management practices.

   As per the criteria laid out in the 1993 Recovery Plan, the 4 percent mortality limit has not been exceeded for 2 consecutive years since 1987. The human-caused female grizzly bear mortality limit has not been exceeded for 2 consecutive years since the 1995-1997 period (Haroldson and Frey 2004). Due to the conservative nature of this standard designed to facilitate population recovery, even when human- caused adult female mortality was exceeded for consecutive years during the mid-1990s (1995, 1996, 1997), the population was increasing (Boyce et al. 2001; Schwartz et al. 2005) and expanding its distribution (Schwartz et al. 2002; Pyare et al. 2004). Applying the revised mortality limits to the 1999-2004 period, these criteria have not been exceeded for 3 consecutive years for males, for 3 consecutive years for dependent young, nor for 2 consecutive years for independent females. The main threat of human predation has been addressed through carefully monitored and controlled mortality limits through the State management plans. In addition, information and education is a main component of the program to reduce grizzly bear/human conflicts.

   The State and Federal agencies' agreement to implement the extensive Conservation Strategy and State management plans will ensure that adequate regulatory mechanisms remain in place and that the Yellowstone grizzly bear population will not become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range.

   The threat of overutilization due to commercial, recreational, scientific, or education purposes has been removed due to the management of grizzly bears through State management plan mortality limits. This proposal mentions the possibility, in the future, of a carefully regulated hunt; however, should this hunt be formally proposed, all hunting mortalities would be counted toward the mortality limits for the population.

   Based on the best scientific and commercial information available, we have determined that the proposed Yellowstone DPS is a recovered population no longer meeting the ESA's definition of threatened or endangered. Therefore, we are proposing to delist the Yellowstone grizzly bear DPS.

   Post-Delisting Monitoring Plan

   To further ensure the long-term conservation of adequate grizzly bear habitat and continued recovery of the Yellowstone grizzly bear population, several monitoring programs and protocols have been developed and integrated into land management agency planning documents. The Strategy and appended State grizzly bear management plans effectively satisfy the requirements for having a Post-Delisting Monitoring Plan for the Yellowstone DPS. Monitoring programs will focus on assessing whether demographic standards and habitat criteria described in the Strategy are being achieved. A suite of indices will be monitored simultaneously to provide a highly sensitive system to monitor the health of the population and its habitat and to provide a sound scientific basis to respond to any changes or needs with adaptive management actions (Lee and Lawrence 1986). More specifically, monitoring efforts will document population trends, distribution, survival and birth rates, and genetic variability. Throughout the DPS boundaries, locations of grizzly bear mortalities on private lands will be provided to the Study Team for incorporation into their Annual Report. Full implementation of the Strategy by State and Federal agencies will allow for a sustainable population by managing all suitable habitat.

   Within the Primary Conservation Area--As discussed in previous sections, habitat criteria established for the Yellowstone grizzly bear population

   [[Page 69882]]

   will be monitored carefully and any deviations from these will be reported annually. The number and levels of secure habitat, road densities, developed sites, and livestock allotments will not be allowed to deviate from 1998 baseline measures in accordance with the implementation protocols in the Strategy.

   The Study Team will prepare Annual Reports summarizing the habitat criteria and population statistics. The Study Team will be responsible for counting the number of unduplicated females with cubs-of-the-year and monitoring mortality, distribution, and genetic diversity (see Appendix I of the Strategy). To examine reproductive rates, survival rates, causes of death, and overall population trends, the Study Team will strive to radio collar and monitor a minimum of 25 adult female grizzly bears at all times. These bears will be spatially distributed throughout the ecosystem as determined by the Study Team.

   The Study Team, with participation from Yellowstone National Park, the USFS, and State wildlife agencies, also will monitor grizzly bear habitats, foods, and impacts of humans. Documenting the abundance and distribution of the major foods will be an integral component of monitoring within the PCA as it allows managers some degree of predictive power to anticipate and avoid grizzly bear/human conflicts related to a shortage of one or more foods. Major foods, habitat value, and habitat effectiveness will be monitored according to Appendices E and I in the Strategy and as described in Factor A, ``The Present or Threatened Destruction, Modification, or Curtailment of Its Habitat or Range'' in this proposed rule.

   Outside of the Primary Conservation Area--State wildlife agencies will be responsible for monitoring habitat and population parameters in areas outside of the PCA. The three State grizzly bear management plans detail what habitat and demographic criteria each State will monitor. All three States will document sightings of females with cubs and provide this information to the Study Team. Additionally, State wildlife agencies will provide known mortality information to the Study Team, which will annually summarize this data with respect to location, type, date of incident, and the sex and age of the bear for the DPS area.

   In Idaho, the IDFG will be responsible for monitoring population trends and habitat parameters. Outside of the PCA, the IDFG will establish data analysis units to facilitate monitoring of grizzly bear distribution, abundance, and mortality. Habitat criteria will be monitored within each unit but will not be established strictly for grizzly bears. Instead, habitat standards will be incorporated into current management plans for other game species. However, the IDFG will monitor important food sources for grizzly bears including elk, deer, moose, Kokanee salmon, and cutthroat trout. The IDFG also will encourage and work with other land management agencies on public lands to monitor wetland and riparian habitats, whitebark pine production, important berry-producing plants, and changes in motorized access route density. On private lands, the IDFG will work with citizens, counties, and other agencies to monitor development activities and identify important spring habitat for grizzly bears, then work with landowners to minimize impacts to bears.

   In Montana, the MTFWP will monitor populations using data from research, distribution changes, DNA samples, confirmed sightings, and known mortalities. The MTFWP will collect and analyze habitat data and monitor habitat changes pertaining to key grizzly bear foods, road densities, road construction and improvements, and coal bed methane activities. In addition, the MTFWP will continue to use Statewide habitat programs to conserve key wildlife habitats in southwestern Montana, working closely with private landowners to conserve private lands via lease, conservation easements, or fee title acquisition.

   In Wyoming, the WGFD will establish grizzly bear management units to collect and analyze demographic and distributional data. The WGFD will monitor habitat changes, human activities, road densities, and construction. Habitat standards will be monitored in a manner consistent with those already in place for other wildlife and will not focus specifically on the habitat needs of grizzly bears.

   Monitoring systems in the Strategy allow for adaptive management as environmental issues change (Lee and Lawrence 1986). The agencies have committed in the Strategy to be responsive to the needs of the grizzly bear through adaptive management actions based on the results of detailed annual population and habitat monitoring. These monitoring efforts would reflect the best scientific and commercial data and any new information that has become available since the delisting determination or most recent status review. The entire process would be dynamic so that when new science becomes available it will be incorporated into the management planning and monitoring systems outlined in the Strategy (Service 2003). The results of this extensive monitoring would allow wildlife and land managers to identify and address potential threats preemptively thereby allowing those managers and the Service to be certain that the Yellowstone grizzly bear population is not threatened with extinction in the foreseeable future.

   Clarity of the Rule (E.O. 12866)

   Executive Order 12866 requires agencies to write regulations that are easy to understand. We invite your comments on how to make this rule easier to understand including answers to the following: (1) Is the discussion in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of the preamble helpful in understanding the proposal?; (2) Does the proposal contain technical language or jargon that interferes with its clarity?; (3) Does the format of the proposal (grouping and order of sections, use of headings, etc.) aid or reduce its clarity; and (4) What else could we do to make the rule easier to understand?

   Send a copy of any comments that concern how we could make this proposed rule easier to understand to the Office of Regulatory Affairs, Department of the Interior, Room 7229, 1849 C St., NW., Washington, DC 20240.

   Public Comments Solicited

   We intend that any final action resulting from this proposed rule will be as accurate and as effective as possible. Therefore, we solicit comments or suggestions from the public, other concerned governmental agencies, the scientific community, industry, or any other interested party concerning this proposed rule. Generally, we seek information, data, and comments concerning the status of grizzly bears in the Yellowstone ecosystem. Specifically, we seek documented, biological data on the status of the Yellowstone ecosystem grizzly bears and their habitat, and the management of these bears and their habitat.

   Submit comments as indicated under ADDRESSES. If you wish to submit comments by e-mail, please avoid the use of special characters and any form of encryption. Please also include your name and return address in your e-mail message.

   Our practice is to make comments, including names and home addresses of respondents, available for public review during regular business hours. Individual respondents may request that we withhold their home address from the rulemaking record, which we will honor to the extent allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in which we would withhold from the

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   rulemaking record a respondent's identity, as allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name or address, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your comment. However, we will not consider anonymous comments. We will make all submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, available for public inspection in their entirety. Comments and other information received, as well as supporting information used to write this rule, will be available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at our Missoula Office (see ADDRESSES). In making a final decision on this proposed rule, we will take into consideration the comments and any additional information we receive. Such communications may lead to a final rule that differs from this proposal.

   Public Hearing

   The ESA provides for public hearings on this proposed rule. We have scheduled one public hearing on this proposed rule as specified above in DATES and ADDRESSES.

   Public hearings are designed to gather relevant information that the public may have that we should consider in our rulemaking. During the hearing, we will present information about the proposed action. We invite the public to submit information and comments at the hearing or in writing during the open public comment period. We encourage persons wishing to comment at the hearing to provide a written copy of their statement at the start of the hearing. This notice and public hearing will allow all interested parties to submit comments on the proposed rule for the grizzly bear. We are seeking comments from the public, other concerned governmental agencies, Tribes, the scientific community, industry, or any other interested parties concerning the proposal.

   Peer Review

   In accordance with our policy published on July 1, 1994 (59 FR 34270), we will solicit the expert opinions of at least three appropriate and independent specialists for peer review of this proposed rule. The purpose of such review is to ensure that decisions are based on scientifically sound data, assumptions, and analyses. We will send peer reviewers copies of this proposed rule immediately following publication in the Federal Register. We will invite peer reviewers to comment, during the public comment period, on the specific assumptions and conclusions regarding the proposed DPS and its delisting. We will summarize the opinions of these reviewers in the final decision document, and we will consider their input as part of our process of making a final decision on the proposal.

   Paperwork Reduction Act

   This rule does not contain any new collections of information other than those already approved under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and assigned Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number 1018-0094, which expires on September 30, 2007. An agency 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. For additional information concerning permit and associated requirements for endangered species, see 50 CFR 17.21 and 17.22.

   National Environmental Policy Act

   The Service has determined that Environmental Assessments and Environmental Impact Statements, as defined under the authority of the NEPA of 1969, need not be prepared in connection with actions adopted pursuant to section 4(a) of the ESA. A notice outlining the Service's reasons for this determination was published in the Federal Register on October 25, 1983 (48 FR 49244).

   References Cited

   A complete list of all references cited herein is available upon request from the Grizzly Bear Recovery Coordinator (see ADDRESSES above).

   List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 17

   Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.

   Proposed Regulation Promulgation

   Accordingly, we propose to amend part 17, subchapter B of chapter I, title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations as set forth below:

   PART 17--[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for part 17 continues to read as follows:

   Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1361-1407; 16 U.S.C. 1531-1544; 16 U.S.C. 4201-4245; Pub. L. 99-625, 100 Stat. 3500; unless otherwise noted.

   Sec. 17.11 [Amended]

2. Amend Sec. 17.11(h) by revising the listing for ``Bear, grizzly'' under ``MAMMALS'' in the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife to read as follows:

   Sec. 17.11 Endangered and threatened wildlife.

   * * * * *

   (h) * * *

   [[Page 69884]]

   Species

   Vertebrate population

   Historic range where endangered or Status When listed Critical Special Common name

   Scientific name

   threatened

   habitat

   rules

   Mammals

   * * * * * * * Bear, grizzly.................. Ursus arctos North America.... U.S.A., conterminous T

   1, 2D, 9

   NA

   17.40(b) horribilis.

   (lower 48) States, except: (1) Where listed as an experimental population; and (2) that portion of Idaho that is east of Interstate Highway 15 and north of U.S. Highway 30; that portion of Montana that is east of Interstate Highway 15 and south of Interstate Highway 90; that portion of Wyoming South of Interstate Highway 90, west of Interstate Highway 25, Wyoming State Highway 220, and U.S. Highway 287 south of Three Forks (at the 220 and 287 intersection), and north of Interstate Highway 80 and U.S. Highway 30. Do........................... ......do......... ......do......... U.S.A. (portions of ID XN

   706

   NA

   17.84(l) and MT, see 17.84(l)).

   * * * * * * *

   Dated: November 9, 2005. H. Dale Hall, Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

   [FR Doc. 05-22784 Filed 11-15-05; 1:00 pm]

   BILLING CODE 4310-55-U