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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 146 / Tuesday, August 3, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
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number remains unknown, and is also subject to change with new births and deaths, it is well below population levels that would provide resiliency, redundancy, and representation to the population. We discuss this issue in greater depth above, under Deleterious Effects Associated With Small Populations.
10 Comment: One county board of supervisors indicated concern that listing would interfere with activities such as hiking and snowmobiling. They asked for an analysis of potential economic impacts prior to listing, and requested an opportunity to review any economic analyses conducted.
Our Response: As described below in Determination, the Act requires us to determine whether a species is endangered or threatened solely on the basis of the best scientific and commercial data available 16 U.S.C.
1533b1A; 50 CFR 424.11b. We are not allowed to consider economic impacts in our determination on whether to list a species under the Act.
However, at this time we have no information to indicate that public hiking or snowmobile use in accordance with applicable regulations is impacting the Sierra Nevada DPS.
Public Comments 11 Comment: One commenter noted that snowmobiles would be allowed in two near-natural roadless areas Pacific Valley and Eagle in the Stanislaus National Forest within the Sierra Nevada DPSs range if a proposed change to the Forest Plan is approved.
The commenter indicated that compaction of snow by snowmobiles could increase ease of access to a given area for coyotes, which do not move over uncompacted snow as efficiently as Sierra Nevada DPS foxes. The commenters also stated that snow compaction may impact subnivean under-snow rodent populations by lowering the temperature and decreasing the oxygen content in the compacted area. The commenter stated that this is one of the few types of potential impacts to the Sierra Nevada DPS that government institutions have the power to prevent.
Our Response: The potential change to existing snowmobile restrictions in the areas mentioned is part of the best available scientific and commercial information we must consider for our listing determination 16 U.S.C.
1533b1A. The best available information does not suggest that snowmobiling and its potential to compact snow is a risk factor to the DPS, although we note that the resulting impacts associated with the proposal
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depend on several variables, including the likelihood that the proposed changes would be adopted, the number of snowmobiles allowed and Sierra Nevada DPS foxes in the two areas, and the extent of resulting snow compactions. This, at this time, the best available information does not suggest that this proposed regulatory change constitutes a threat to the population.
However, because we are listing the Sierra Nevada DPS as an endangered species based on other information see Risk Factors Affecting the Sierra Nevada DPS of Sierra Nevada Red Fox, above, we anticipate consulting with the USFS
under section 7 of the Act to minimize effects should that agency change snowmobile regulations, thus insuring the continued existence of the species is not jeopardized as required by the Act under 16 U.S.C. 1636a2.
12 Comment: One commenter stated that poachers take more Sierra Nevada DPS foxes than recorded, and also indicated that Wildlife Services personnel wildlife pest and predator removers from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service impact the species. Another commenter stated that indiscriminate use of m44 cyanide anti-predator devices threatens the Sierra Nevada DPS. No further information was provided by either commenter regarding these statements.
Our Response: Our review of the best available scientific and commercial information does not indicate these sources are a threat to the DPS. If the commenters, or other interested parties, have additional information that might indicate otherwise, we would appreciate receiving it.
13 Comment: One commenter asked us to work with other agencies to recover the Sierra Nevada DPS and restore its role in the ecosystem. The commenter also suggested we seek additional information regarding why the Sierra Nevada DPS appears to have such low population numbers.
Our Response: We are working with State and Federal agencies, academics, environmental groups, and other interested parties as part of the Sierra Nevada Red Fox Working Group to develop a conservation strategy and recovery plan. We also will consult with Federal agencies under section 7 of the Act to avoid actions that jeopardize the species, and will work with non-Federal agencies and individuals who wish to initiate recovery actions or habitat management plans in accordance with section 10 of the Act.
Regarding reasons for the current small size of the population, new information submitted by commenters, based on research supported in part by
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us, shows that the population was likely inbred prior to the arrival of immigrants from the Great Basin see Deleterious Effects Associated With Small Populations, above. Inbreeding depression may therefore be the primary reason the population has been so small recently. It remains unclear, however, when and why the population became so low that inbreeding depression became an issue.
14 Comment: One commenter stated that the Sierra Nevada DPS is threatened by logging and farming of livestock and fish. The commenter also stated that Sierra Nevada DPS numbers had diminished to as low as 10 to 15 in the 1990s, and that no action was taken at that time.
Our Response: In our 12-month finding published on October 8, 2015
80 FR 60990, we investigated logging, livestock grazing, and fish stocking as potential threats to Sierra Nevada red fox in both the Sierra Nevada and Southern Cascades DPSs. The best available scientific and commercial information indicates that these activities have more potential for negative impacts to the Southern Cascades DPS, as foxes in the Sierra Nevada DPS typically occur at elevations above those used for grazing or logging. Additionally, as discussed in our 12-month finding 80 FR 60990, fish stocking might affect foxes in the Southern Cascades DPS because the stocked fish can potentially transmit a parasite deadly to canines that eat them;
the parasite has not been found within the range of the Sierra Nevada DPS.
The best available information does not include the population size of the Sierra Nevada DPS in the 1990s. This population was rediscovered by scientists in 2010 Statham et al. 2012, p. 122, and a rough population estimate of 14 to 50 adults was not available until 2015 Sacks et al. 2015, p. 14.
15 Comment: One commenter mentioned that according to an Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife website i.e., https www.oregoncon servationstrategy.org/strategy-species/
sierra-nevada-red-fox/, fires are a potential threat to the species, while actions that promote recruitment and maintenance of high-elevation conifer forests are beneficial. The commenter also mentioned that radio-collaring foxes to learn more about them would be beneficial.
Our Response: The Oregon website information is specific to the Southern Cascades DPS, as opposed to the Sierra Nevada DPS that is addressed in this rule. We agree that available information on the Southern Cascades DPS may be helpful to consider when
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