SERVICE ANNOUNCES INTENT TO
DEVELOP PEREGRINE FALCON
MANAGEMENT PLANS
Taking steps to assure the continued protection of
peregrine falcons (F. peregrinus) in the wake of the falcon's
flight off the endangered species list last month, the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service announced today that it will prepare two
peregrine falcon management plans. The joint State/Federal plans
will govern the capture and use of wild peregrine falcons in the
United States, to ensure that recovery achieved under the
Endangered Species Act is maintained, while providing falconers
the opportunities they deserve.
"The delisting of the
peregrine falcon is a testament to the Endangered Species Act and
to years of effort by the biologists, conservationists, citizens
and faloners who have made it work.We want to ensure that their
hard work endures by setting management strategies that sustain
peregrine falcons and keep them from returning to the endangered
species list," said Service Director Jamie Rappaport Clark.
The August 25 delisting decision had the effect of allowing take
of wild peregrines for falconry, raptor propagation, scientific
collecting, and other purposes permissible under Migratory Bird
Treaty Act regulations. However, the Service has continued the
prohibition on take of wild peregrines except in very limited
circumstances. The prohibition will remain in place until
management plans governing take of peregrines from the wild are
completed.
"Falconers played an important role in the recovery of this
magnificent bird, and the Service supports the capture of falcons
for falconry and other legitimate purposes. But we must take
great care to evaluate the effects of these captures on
population levels to make certain we don't erase the gains of the
past three decades," Clark said. Migrant juvenile peregrines
were captured by falconers along the
Atlantic coast barrier islands annually for many years prior to
1970, and migrants and nestlings were captured less regularly
elsewhere in the United States. Falconers in many States would
like to see this traditional use of peregrines resume now that
peregrines have met recovery goals. Although captive bred
peregrines have been available for falconry since 1983, wild
peregrines have not been available due to ESA restrictions,
except in Alaska under certain circumstances. In 1970, the
Service listed the American peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus
anatum) as endangered under the Endangered Species Conservation
Act of 1969, the predecessor of the current law. The peregrine
population in the eastern United States had completely
disappeared, and populations in the west had declined by as much
as 80 to 90 percent below historical levels. By 1975, the
population reached an all-time low of 324 nesting pairs in North
America. The related arctic peregrine (Falco peregrinus tundrius)
also was listed as endangered, but was delisted in 1994.
The banning of DDT made the recovery of the peregrine falcon
possible. But the protections provided by the Endangered Species
Act and the extraordinary partnership efforts of the Service and
state wildlife agencies, universities, private ornithological
groups, and falcon enthusiasts accelerated the pace of recovery
through captive breeding programs, reintroduction efforts and the
protection of nest sites during the breeding season. Similar
efforts took place in Canada, where the Canadian Wildlife Service
and provincial agencies took the lead in a major captive breeding
and reintroduction program. Currently, there are at least 1,650
American peregrine breeding pairs in the United States and
Canada, well above the overall recovery goal of 631 pairs. Arctic
peregrines are even more abundant.
One management plan will address the take of peregrine falcon
nestlings in the United States. The other will address the take
of immature peregrines that originate in Alaska, Canada, and
Greenland, and migrate through the contiguous United States. The
plans will be developed cooperatively by the Service and the
States. The plan for migrant birds also will require cooperation
with the governments of Canada, Greenland, and Mexico. Once the
plans are completed, the States will be responsible for
managing the species within the framework of the plans. The
Service's intent is that these management plans will apply only
until the Service and the States agree that special management is
no longer warranted.
The management plans will provide overall guidance for take of
peregrines, including biological criteria for take of peregrines,
implementation criteria, and procedures for evaluating and
adjusting the take. Within the framework provided by each plan,
State wildlife agencies will be responsible for decisions about
take of peregrines. The Service has established tentative
objectives for the combined
plans that include:
-Protecting nestling and dispersing juvenile peregrines
originating from breeding areas in eastern Canada and the United
States.
-Allowing a conservative and sustainable level of take of migrant
juvenile peregrines originating from the Alaskan and Canadian
arctic and Greenland.
-Allowing a conservative and sustainable level of take of
nestling peregrines from healthy populations in the western
United States and Alaska.
The environmental assessments will likely include several
alternatives, permitting varying numbers of juvenile peregrines
to be captured from particular management groups. Potential
alternatives in the environmental assessment may include
continued prohibitions on take, take of 5 percent of the annual
production of a particular management group, 10 percent of the
annual production of a management group, or no restrictions on
take beyond the existing falconry regulations. Additional
alternatives may be identified during the public review that
begins with today's publication in the Federal Register of a
Notice of Intent to prepare two environmental assessments and two
management plans. Further public review will be sought once the
plans and assessments are drafted.
Public suggestions for the management plans are requested by
November 12, 1999. Written comments may be submitted to the
Chief, Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 634, Arlington,
Virginia 22203. Comments may also be sent via fax to
703-358-2272. For further information, contact the Office of
Migratory Bird Management at 703-358-1714. The U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for
conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants
and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American
people. The Service manages the 93-
million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System comprised of more
than 500 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands,
and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national
fish hatcheries, 64 fish and wildlife management assistance
offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency
enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered
Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores
nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores
wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign
governmentswith their conservation efforts. It also oversees the
Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of
dollars in
excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and
wildlife agencies.