Quiero saber acerca de...

37837

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 134 / Friday, July 16, 2021 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 31 ANNUAL ESTIMATED TAKES BY LEVEL A AND LEVEL B HARASSMENT FOR MARINE MAMMALS IN THE PMSR
STUDY AREA EXCLUDING SNI AND THE NUMBER INDICATING THE INSTANCES OF TOTAL TAKE AS A PERCENTAGE OF
STOCK ABUNDANCEContinued Proposed annual take by Level A and Level B
harassment Common name
Stock/DPS
Behavioral response
Rissos dolphins
Short-beaked common dolphin.
Sperm whale
Striped dolphin
Harbor seal
Northern elephant seal.
California sea lion Guadalupe fur seal .

Abundance 2020 draft SARS

Total take
California, Oregon, and Washington.
California, Oregon, and Washington.
California, Oregon, and Washington.
California, Oregon, and Washington.
California
California
U.S. Stock
Mexico to California.

TTS

PTS

Percent taken by abundance
6

3

1

10

6,336

0.16

90

65

15

170

969,861

0.02

1

1

0

2

1,997

0.10

1

1

0

2

29,211

0.01

202
37

120
63

14
22

336
122

30,968
179,000

1.08
0.07

8
1

12
1

2
0

22
2

257,606
34,187

0.01
0.01

Note: Percentages taken by abundance may be less for some stocks as the abundance would be less in the PMSR Study Area depending on the range of a particular stock.
ESA-listed species in PMSR Study Area.

TABLE 32ANNUAL ESTIMATED TAKES BY LEVEL A AND LEVEL B HARASSMENT FOR PINNIPED ON SNI AND THE NUMBER
INDICATING THE INSTANCES OF TOTAL TAKE AS A PERCENTAGE OF STOCK ABUNDANCE
Species
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS2

California sea lion
Harbor seal
Northern elephant seal

In the discussions below, the estimated takes by Level B harassment represent instances of take, not the number of individuals taken the much lower and less frequent takes by Level A harassment are far more likely to be associated with separate individuals.
The total take numbers by any method of taking for species are compared to their associated abundance estimates to evaluate the magnitude of impacts across the species and to individuals.
Abundance percentage comparisons are less than three percent for all species and stocks and nearly all are one percent or less and zero in many cases for explosives and less than five percent for all species on SNI from target and missile launch activities. This means that: 1 Not all of the individuals will be taken, and many will not be taken at all; 2 barring specific circumstances suggesting repeated takes of individuals such as in circumstances where all activities resulting in take are focused in one area and time where the same individual marine mammals are known to congregate, such as pinnipeds on SNI, the average or expected number of days taken for those individuals taken is
VerDate Sep<11>2014

17:54 Jul 15, 2021

Jkt 253001

Proposed annual take by Level B
harassment
Stock
U.S.
California California
11,000
480
40

one per year; and 3 we would not expect any individuals to be taken more than a few times in a year, or for those days to be sequential.
To assist in understanding what this analysis means, we clarify a few issues related to estimated takes and the analysis here. An individual that incurs PTS or TTS may sometimes, for example, also be subject to direct behavioral disturbance at the same time.
As described above in this section, the degree of PTS, and the degree and duration of TTS, expected to be incurred from the Navys activities are not expected to impact marine mammals such that their reproduction or survival could be affected. Similarly, data do not suggest that a single instance in which an animal incurs PTS
or TTS and also has an additional direct behavioral response would result in impacts to reproduction or survival.
Accordingly, in analyzing the numbers of takes and the likelihood of repeated and sequential takes, we consider all the types of take, so that individuals potentially experiencing both threshold shift and direct behavioral responses are appropriately considered. The number
PO 00000

Frm 00049

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4702

Abundance 2020 draft SARS
257,606
30,968
179,000

Percent taken by abundance
Proposed 7year total take by Level B
harassment
4.27
1.55
0.02

77,000
3,360
280

of Level A harassment takes by PTS are so low and zero in most cases compared to abundance numbers that it is considered highly unlikely that any individual would be taken at those levels more than once.
On the less severe end, exposure to comparatively lower levels of sound at a detectably greater distance from the animal, for a few or several minutes, could result in a behavioral response such as avoiding an area that an animal would otherwise have moved through or fed in, or breaking off one or a few feeding bouts. More severe behavioral effects could occur when an animal gets close enough to the source to receive a comparatively higher level of sound, is exposed continuously to one source for a longer time, or is exposed intermittently to different sources throughout a day. Such effects might result in an animal having a more severe flight response and leaving a larger area for a day or more, or potentially losing feeding opportunities for a day.
However, such severe behavioral effects are not expected to occur.
Occasional, milder behavioral reactions are unlikely to cause long-term
E:FRFM16JYP2.SGM

16JYP2