Foreign Endangered Species; Receipt of Permit Applications
We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), invite the public to comment on applications to conduct certain activities with foreign species that are listed as endangered u...
Notice of receipt of permit applications; request for comments.
SUMMARY:
We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), invite the public to comment on applications to conduct certain activities with foreign species that are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). With some exceptions, the ESA prohibits activities with listed species unless Federal authorization is issued that allows such activities. The ESA also requires that we invite public comment before issuing permits for any activity otherwise prohibited by the ESA with respect to any endangered species.
DATES:
Comments will be accepted on or before September 9, 2026. Comments submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking Portal (see
ADDRESSES
, below) must be received by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on the closing date.
To ensure your comment is received and considered, you must submit it using one of the methods identified in the
ADDRESSES
section of this document. Comments submitted through any method not authorized in this document, or sent to an address not listed here, will not be considered.
ADDRESSES:
Comment submission:
All submissions must include the docket number FWS-HQ-IA-2026-2707, for this document. You must submit comments using one of the following methods:
Electronic submission:
Federal eRulemaking Portal at:
www.regulations.gov.
In the Search box, enter FWS-HQ-IA-2026-2707, which is the docket number for this action. Then click the Search button. On the resulting page, you may submit a comment by clicking on “Comment.” Please ensure that you have found the correct document before submitting your comments.
U.S. mail:
Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No. FWS-HQ-IA-2026-2707, Policy and Regulations Branch, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB (JAO/3W), 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
Comments submitted through any method not authorized in this document, or sent to an address not listed here, will not be considered. We will not accept comments via email, fax, or hand delivery. We are not required to consider comments that are submitted after the comment period ends or that are submitted via a method outside of these instructions. Comments containing profanity, vulgarity, threats, or other inappropriate content will not be considered.
We will post all comments at
www.regulations.gov.
You may request that we withhold personal identifying information from public review; however, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. See Request for Public Comments for more information. For more information, see Public Comment Procedures under
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Timothy MacDonald, by phone at 703-358-2185 or via email at
DMAFR@fws.gov.
Individuals in the United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay services offered within their country to make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
To help us carry out our conservation responsibilities for affected species, and in consideration of section 10(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531et seq.), we invite public comments on permit applications before final action is taken. With some exceptions, the ESA prohibits certain activities with listed species unless Federal authorization is issued that allows such activities. Permits issued under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA allow otherwise prohibited activities for scientific purposes or to enhance the propagation or survival of the affected species. Service regulations regarding prohibited activities with
( printed page 51508)
endangered species, captive-bred wildlife registrations, and permits for any activity otherwise prohibited by the ESA with respect to any endangered species are available in title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations in part 17.
II. Permit Applications
We invite comments on the following applications.
Applicant: Tanganyika Wildlife Foundation DBA Tanganyika Wildlife Park, Goddard, KS; Permit No. PER33760718
The applicant requests a permit to import two male captive-born cheetahs (
Acinonyx jubatus) from African Lion Safari, Cambridge, Canada, for the purpose of enhancing the propagation or survival of the species. This notification is for a single import.
Applicant: Clark R. Bavin National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory, Ashland, OR; Permit No. PER34378491
The applicant requests a permit to import, export, and re-export biological samples derived from captive-born and wild animals as well as artificially propagated and wild plants, many of unknown origin, for all species listed under the ESA for the purpose of enhancing the propagation or survival of the species. This notification covers activities to be conducted by the applicant over a 5-year period.
The applicant requests a permit to import biological samples derived from wild Goeldi's marmoset (
Callimico goeldii) from the Museo Nacional de Historia Natural, La Paz, Bolivia, for the purpose of scientific research. This notification is for a single import.
The applicant requests authorization to import biological samples derived from wild gorilla (
Gorilla gorilla) in Uganda for the purpose of scientific research. This notification covers activities to be conducted by the applicant over a 5-year period.
The applicant requests authorization to import biological samples of wild chimpanzee (
Pan troglodytes) from the Jane Goodall Institute, Kigoma, Tanzania, for the purposes of scientific research. This notification covers activities to be conducted by the applicant over a 5- year period.
Applicant: Zoological Society of San Diego DBA San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, San Diego, CA; Permit No. PER33995016
The applicant requests a permit to import one female captive-born mandrill (
Mandrillus sphinx) from Zoo de Granby, Granby, Canada, for the purpose of enhancing the propagation or survival of the species. This notification is for a single import.
Applicant: Akron Zoological Park, Akron, OH; Permit No. PER34194881
The applicant requests authorization to import two female, captive-born snow leopards (
Uncia uncia) from Toronto Zoo, Toronto, Canada for the purpose of enhancing the propagation or survival of the species. This notification is for a single import.
The applicant requests authorization to import biological samples of wild but captive-held neotropical otter (
Lontra longicaudis) from the Universidade Estadua de Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil, for the purposes of scientific research. This notification is for a single import.
Applicant: LWF LLC, DBA Salt Branch Wildlife, George West, TX; Permit No. PER34236370
The applicant requests a captive-bred wildlife registration under 50 CFR 17.21(g) for the following species, to enhance the propagation or survival of the species. This notification covers activities to be conducted by the applicant over a 5-year period.
Common name
Scientific name
Arabian oryx
Oryx leucoryx.
Red lechwe
Kobus leche.
Applicant: LWF LLC, DBA Salt Branch Wildlife, George West, TX; Permit No. PER34236393
The applicant requests a permit authorizing the culling of excess Arabian oryx (
Oryx leucoryx) and Red lechwe (
Kobus leche) from the captive herd maintained at their facility, to enhance the species' propagation and survival. This notification covers activities to be conducted by the applicant over a 5-year period.
Multiple Trophy Applicants
The following applicants request permits to import sport-hunted trophies of male bontebok (
Damaliscus pygargus pygargus) culled from a captive herd from the Republic of South Africa, for the purpose of enhancing the propagation or survival of the species.
We invite the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on these applications. Before issuing any of the requested permits, we will take into consideration any information that we receive during the public comment period.
You may submit your comments and materials by one of the methods in
ADDRESSES
. We will not consider comments sent by email or to an address not in
ADDRESSES
. We will not consider or include in our administrative record comments we receive after the close of the comment period (see
DATES
).
When submitting comments, please specify the name of the applicant and the permit number at the beginning of your comment. Provide sufficient information to allow us to authenticate any scientific or commercial data you include. The comments and recommendations that will be most useful and likely to influence agency decisions are: (1) Those supported by quantitative information or studies; and (2) those that include citations to, and analyses of, the applicable laws and regulations.
B. May I review comments submitted by others?
You may view and comment on others' public comments at
www.regulations.gov
unless our allowing so would violate the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) or Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552).
C. Who will see my comments?
If you submit a comment at
www.regulations.gov,
your entire comment, including any personal identifying information, will be posted on the website. If you submit a hard
( printed page 51509)
copy comment that includes personal identifying information, such as your address, phone number, or email address, you may request at the top of your document that we withhold this information from public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. Moreover, all submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, will be made available for public disclosure in their entirety.
IV. Next Steps
After the comment period closes, we will make decisions regarding permit issuance. If we issue permits to any of the applicants listed in this notice, we will publish a notice in the
Federal Register
. You may locate the notice announcing the permit issuance by searching
www.regulations.gov
for the permit number listed above in this document. For example, to find information about the potential issuance of Permit No. 12345A, you would go to
regulations.gov
and search for “12345A”.
V. Authority
We issue this notice under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531et seq.), and its implementing regulations.
Scott Carleton,
Acting Branch Chief, Branch of Permits, Division of Management Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
www.regulations.gov
16 U.S.C. 1531
title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations