Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Proposed Rule To List Four Southwestern California Plants as Endangered or Threatened

Résumé

The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) proposes to list Allium munzii (Munz's onion) and Atriplex coronata var. notatior (San Jacinto Valley crownscale) as endangered and Brodiaea filifolia (thread-leaved brodiaea) and Navarretia fossalis (spreading navarretia) as threatened throughout their respective ranges in southwestern California and northwestern Baja California, Mexico, pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Critical habitat is proposed for Atriplex coronata var. notatior. These four plants occur in vernal pools and other wetlands or on clay soils and moist grasslands and are threatened by a variety of factors including: habitat destruction and fragmentation from agricultural and urban development, pipeline construction, alterations of wetland hydrology by draining or channelization, clay mining, off-road vehicle activity, cattle and sheep grazing, weed abatement, fire suppression practices, and competition from alien plant species. This proposed rule, if made final, would extend the Act's protection to these four plants.