[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 205 (Friday, October 23, 1998)] [Notices] [Pages 56913-56914] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 98-28509] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [I.D. 101598D] Marine Mammals; Permit No. 926
Agency
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
Action
Receipt of application for amendment.
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Summary
Notice is hereby given that Dr. Robin W. Baird, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3H 4J1, Canada, has requested an amendment to scientific research Permit No. 959.
Dates
Written comments must be received on or before November 23, 1998.
Addresses
The amendment request and related documents are available for review upon written request or by appointment in the following office(s): Permits Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 East- West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910 (301/713-2289); Regional Administrator, Southwest Region, National Marine Fisheries Service, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213 (562/980-4001); and Protected Resources Program Manager, Pacific Islands Area Office, 2570 Dole Street, Room 106, Honolulu, HI 96822-2396 (808/973-2987). Written data or views, or requests for a public hearing on this request should be submitted to the Chief, Permits Division, F/PR1, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Those individuals requesting a hearing should set forth the specific reasons why a hearing on this particular request would be appropriate.
For Further Information Contact
Jeannie Drevenak, 301/713-2289.
Supplementary Information
The subject amendment is requested under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.),the Regulations Governing the Taking and Importing of Marine Mammals (50 CFR Part 216), the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and the regulations governing endangered fish and wildlife permits (50 CFR Parts 217-222). The Permit Holder is currently authorized to: radio tag via suction cup attachment, killer whales (Orcinus orca) and Dall's porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli) annually in the waters of Washington, Southeast Alaska, Oregon, and California over a five year period; and to suction- cup TDR/VHF tag the following additional species of cetaceans: Baird's beaked whales (Berardius bairdii), Cuvier's beaked whales (Ziphius cavirostris), sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus), northern right whale dolphins (Lissodelphis borealis), Pacific white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens), Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus), short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus), false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens), minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), and gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus). The Permit Holder is now requesting authorization to: (1) expand the geographic research area to include Hawaii waters; (2) include suction-cup TDR/VHF tagging of several additional species of marine mammals found in Hawaii waters (i.e., spotted dolphins (Stenella attenuata), spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris), rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis), pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata), melon headed whales (Peponocephala electra), Blainville's or dense beaked whales (Mesoplodon densirostris), and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)); and (3) collect photo-identification and behavioral information on small odontocetes in Hawaii waters (i.e., those odontocete species listed above as well as bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and those species which are currently covered in the existing permit that are found in Hawaii waters (i.e., short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus), false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens), Cuvier's beaked whales (Ziphius cavirostris), sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus), Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus), and killer whales (Orcinus orca). The primary goal of the proposed research on the subject species is to study their diving behavior using time-depth recorder data. Concurrent with the publication of this notice in the Federal Register, NMFS is forwarding copies of this application to the Marine Mammal Commission and its Committee of Scientific Advisors.
Dated: October 20, 1998. Ann D. Terbush, Chief, Permits and Documentation Division, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 98-28509 Filed 10-22-98; 8:45 am]
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