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DOI/FWS RIN: 1018-AW27 Publication ID: Fall 2008 
Title: ●Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Listing the Shovelnose Sturgeon as Threatened Due to Similarity of Appearance  
Abstract: The Service proposes to list the Shovelnose sturgeon as threatened under the Act due to similarity of appearance. The shovelnose sturgeon and the endangered pallid sturgeon can be difficult to differentiate in the wild and inhabit overlapping portions the Missouri and Mississippi river basins. Five states, where the two species coexist, allow for commercial fishing of shovelnose sturgeon and their roe (eggs often sold as caviar). Because of the close resemblance in appearance between the shovelnose and pallid sturgeon, fishermen, State regulators, and law enforcement personnel have substantial difficulty in differentiating between the two species. This has resulted in the documented take of pallid sturgeon and their roe. The determination of threatened status for shovelnose sturgeon due to similarity of appearance will substantially facilitate law enforcement actions to protect pallid sturgeon. A special rule proposes to define activities that would and would not constitute take of shovelnose sturgeon under section 9 of the Act. 
Agency: Department of the Interior(DOI)  Priority: Substantive, Nonsignificant 
RIN Status: First time published in the Unified Agenda Agenda Stage of Rulemaking: Proposed Rule Stage 
Major: No  Unfunded Mandates: No 
CFR Citation: 50 CFR 17   
Legal Authority: 16 USC 1531 et seq   
Legal Deadline:  None
Timetable:
Action Date FR Cite
NPRM  12/00/2008    
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Required: No  Government Levels Affected: None 
Federalism: No 
Included in the Regulatory Plan: No 
RIN Data Printed in the FR: No 
Agency Contact:
Michelle Morgan
Endangered Species, Branch of Recovery and Delisting
Department of the Interior
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
Room 420, 4401 North Fairfax Drive,
Arlington, VA 22203
Phone:703 358-2061
Fax:703 358-1735
Email: michelle_morgan@fws.gov