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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 149 / Friday, August 6, 2021 / Rules and Regulations recovery of the species. Recovery of a species is a dynamic process requiring adaptive management that may, or may not, follow all of the guidance provided in a recovery plan.
The revised recovery plan for running buffalo clover Service 2007, p. 24
states that the ultimate goal of the recovery program is to delist running buffalo clover. The plan provides three criteria for reclassifying running buffalo clover from endangered to threatened status i.e., to downlist the species and three criteria for delisting running buffalo clover. All of the downlisting criteria have been met since 2008
Service 2008, pp. 34; Service 2011, pp. 34; Service 2017, pp. 35. The following discussion provides an assessment of the delisting criteria as they relate to evaluating the status of this species.

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Criterion 1 for Delisting Criterion 1 states that 34 populations, in total, are distributed as follows: 2 Aranked, 6 B-ranked, 6 C-ranked, and 20
D-ranked populations across at least 2 of the 3 regions in which running buffalo clover occurs Appalachian, Bluegrass, and Ozark. The number of populations in each rank is based on what would be required to achieve a 95 percent probability of persistence within the next 20 years; this number was doubled to ensure biological redundancy across the range of the species. Rankings refer to the element occurrence E.O. ranking categories.
E.O. rankings, which integrate population size and habitat integrity, are explained in detail in the recovery plan Service 2007, pp. 23. In summary, Aranked populations are those with 1,000
or more naturally occurring rooted crowns; B-ranked populations have between 100 and 999 naturally occurring rooted crowns; C-ranked populations have between 30 and 99
naturally occurring rooted crowns; and D-ranked populations have between 1
and 29 naturally occurring rooted crowns.
Populations are currently distributed as follows: 18 A-ranked, 47 B-ranked, 40
C-ranked, and 70 D-ranked, and they occur in all three regions across the range of the species. Thus, we conclude that this criterion has been substantially exceeded.
Criterion 2 for Delisting Criterion 2 states that for each Aranked and B-ranked population described in criterion 1, population viability analysis PVA indicates 95
percent probability of persistence within the next 20 years, or for any population that does not meet the 95

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percent persistence standard, the population meets the definition of viable. For delisting purposes, viability is defined as: Seed production is occurring; the population is stable or increasing, based on at least 10 years of censusing; and appropriate management techniques are in place.
Seven A-ranked and 14 B-ranked populations are considered viable, based on a PVA or 10 years of data.
Thus, we conclude that this criterion has been exceeded.
Criterion 3 for Delisting Delisting criterion 3 states that the land on which each of the 34
populations described in delisting criterion 1 occurs is owned by a government agency or private conservation organization that identifies maintenance of the species as one of the primary conservation objectives for the site, or the population is protected by a conservation agreement that commits the private landowner to habitat management for the species.
This criterion was intended to ensure that habitat-based threats for the species are addressed. At the time of listing, the Service determined that without regular management, suitable habitat for this species would be quickly lost through the process of forest succession. The revised recovery plan identified the most critical biological constraint and need for the recovery of running buffalo clover as its dependence on disturbance to maintain filtered sunlight Service 2007, p. 22. This requirement informed the recovery strategy of active management to remove competing vegetation and selectively remove trees to prevent overshading. Key to this recovery strategy was the protection and ecological management of various-sized populations throughout the species geographic range. Small populations Cand D-ranked populations were included because they contribute as much as large populations to the overall level of the species genetic diversity, which is important for survival of the species as a whole.
Currently, 22 populations meet this criterion, as follows: 2 A-ranked, 10 Branked, 6 C-ranked, and 4 D-ranked.
There are 4 more B-ranked populations than required. Although these additional higher ranked populations can count for lower ranked populations, this criterion has still not been fully met. However, 66 additional populations occur on publicly owned lands, such as national forests, State lands, and local parks, thereby minimizing threats from habitat loss and degradation.

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The forest management plans for both the Monongahela and Wayne national forests include direction and guidelines to avoid and minimize impacts of forestry practices on running buffalo clover. These forestry management practices, as conditioned through running buffalo clover measures included in their respective forest plans, are compatible with running buffalo clover conservation. The forest plans include forest-wide standards and guidelines; compliance with standards is mandatory.
The Wayne National Forest plans standards for running buffalo clover require measures to protect populations during prescribed fire activities, avoid mechanical construction of firelines in known occupied habitat, and protect populations during road and trail construction, and a forest-wide guideline restricts application of herbicides within 25 feet of known running buffalo clover populations U.S.
Forest Service 2006, p. 222. In addition, the Wayne National Forest signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Service and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources in 2021 to ensure the protection and management of running buffalo clover by maintaining the appropriate level of disturbance, controlling invasive species, and ensuring the appropriate level of sunlight where running buffalo clover is found on the national forest.
The Monongahela National Forest plan includes standards to avoid conducting prescribed burns, constructing fuel breaks, and implementing activities, such as construction of new roads or ditching for pipelines, in running buffalo clover areas. Guidelines include implementing habitat management measures to maintain and restore running buffalo clover populations, timing maintenance mowing to benefit running buffalo clover, avoiding use of potentially invasive species for seeding/mulching, and monitoring the effects of grazing on running buffalo clover U.S. Forest Service 2011, pp. II27II28. Thus, although this criterion is not met in the manner specifically identified in the recovery plan, we conclude that the intent of the criterion to ensure that sufficient populations were protected from threats into the future has been met.
Regulatory Framework Section 4 of the Act 16 U.S.C. 1533
and its implementing regulations 50
CFR part 424 set forth the procedures for determining whether a species is an endangered species or a threatened species. The Act defines an
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