17.40—Special rules—mammals.

(b) Grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis )—(1) Prohibitions. The following prohibitions apply to the grizzly bear:

(i) Taking. (A) Except as provided in paragraphs (b)(1)(i)(B) through (F) of this section, no person shall take any grizzly bear in the 48 conterminous states of the United States.

(B) Grizzly bears may be taken in self-defense or in defense of others, but such taking shall be reported, within 5 days of occurrence, to the Assistant Regional Director, Division of Law Enforcement, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 25486, Denver Federal Center, Denver, Colorado 80225 (303/236-7540 or FTS 776-7540), if occurring in Montana or Wyoming, or to the Assistant Regional Director, Division of Law Enforcement, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Lloyd 500 Building, Suite 1490, 500 Northeast Multnomah Street, Portland, Oregon 97232 (503/231-6125 or FTS 429-6125), if occurring in Idaho or Washington, and to appropriate State and Indian Reservation Tribal authorities. Grizzly bears or their parts taken in self-defense or in defense of others shall not be possessed, delivered, carried, transported, shipped, exported, received, or sold, except by Federal, State, or Tribal authorities.

(C) Removal of nuisance bears. A grizzly bear consituting a demonstrable but non immediate threat to human safety or committing significant depredations to lawfully present livestock, crops, or beehives may be taken, but only if:

(1) It has not been reasonably possible to eliminate such threat or depredation by live-capturing and releasing unharmed in a remote area the grizzly bear involved; and

(2) The taking is done in a humane manner by authorized Federal, State, or Tribal authorities, and in accordance with current interagency guidelines covering the taking of such nuisance bears; and

(3) The taking is reported within 5 days of occurrence to the appropriate Assistant Regional Director, Division of Law Enforcement, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as indicated in paragraph (b)(1)(i)(B) of this section, and to appropriate State and Tribal authorities.

(D) Federal, State, or Tribal scientific or research activities. Federal, State, or Tribal authorities may take grizzly bears for scientific or research purposes, but only if such taking does not result in death or permanent injury to the bears involved. Such taking must be reported within 5 days of occurrence to the appropriate Assistant Regional Director, Division of Law Enforcement, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as indicated in paragraph (b)(1)(i)(B) of this section, and to appropriate State and Tribal authorities.

(E) [Reserved]

(F) National Parks. The regulations of the National Park Service shall govern all taking of grizzly bears in National Parks.

(ii) Unlawfully taken grizzly bears. (A) Except as provided in paragraphs (b)(1)(ii)(B) and (iv) of this section, no person shall possess, deliver, carry, transport, ship, export, receive, or sell any unlawfully taken grizzly bear. Any unlawful taking of a grizzly bear shall be reported within 5 days of occurrence to the appropriate Assistant Regional Director, Division of Law Enforcement, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as indicated in paragraph (b)(1)(i)(B) of this section, and to appropriate State and Tribal authorities.

(B) Authorized Federal, State, or Tribal employees, when acting in the course of their official duties, may, for scientific or research purposes, possess, deliver, carry, transport, ship, export, or receive unlawfully taken grizzly bears.

(iii) Import or export. Except as provided in paragraphs (b)(1)(iii) (A) and (B) and (iv) of this section, no person shall import any grizzly bear into the United States.

(A) Federal, State, or Tribal scientific or research activities. Federal, State, or Tribal authorities may import grizzly bears into the United States for scientific or research purposes.

(B) Public zoological institution. Public zoological institutions (see 50 CFR 10.12) may import grizzly bears into the United States.

(iv) Commercial transactions. (A) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(1)(iv)(B) of this section, no person shall, in the course of commercial activity, deliver, receive, carry, transport, or ship in interstate or foreign commerce any grizzly bear.

(B) A public zoological institution (see 50 CFR 10.12) dealing with other public zoological institutions may sell grizzly bears or offer them for sale in interstate or foreign commerce, and may, in the course of commercial activity, deliver, receive, carry, transport, or ship grizzly bears in interstate or foreign commerce.

(v) Other violations. No person shall attempt to commit, cause to be committed, or solicit another to commit any act prohibited by paragraph (b)(1) of this section.

(2) Definitions. As used in paragraph (b) of this section:

Grizzly bear means any member of the species Ursus arctos horribilis of the 48 conterminous States of the United States, including any part, offspring, dead body, part of a dead body, or product of such species.

Grizzly bear accompanied by young means any grizzly bear having offspring, including one or more cubs, yearlings, or 2-year-olds, in its immediate vicinity.

Identified means permanently marked or documented so as to be identifiable by law enforcement officials at a subsequent date.

State, Federal or Tribal authority means an employee of State, Federal, or Indian Tribal government who, as part of his/her official duties, normally handles grizzly bears.

Young grizzly bear means a cub, yearling, or 2-year-old grizzly bear.

Code of Federal Regulations

Code of Federal Regulations 109

[Please see PDF for image: EC01JN91.000 ]

(c) Primates. (1) Except as noted in paragraphs (c)(2) and (c)(3) of this section, all provisions of § 17.31 shall apply to the lesser slow loris, Nycticebus pygmaeus; Philippine tarsier, Tarsius syrichta; white-footed tamarin, Saguinus leucopus; black howler monkey, Alouatta pigra; stump-tailed macaque, Macaca arctoides; gelada baboon, Theropithecus gelada; Formosan rock macaque, Macaca cyclopis; Japanese macaque, Macaca fuscata; Toque macaque, Macaca sinica; long-tailed langur, Presbytis potenziani; purple-faced langur, Presbytis senex; Tonkin snub-nosed langur, Pygathrix (Rhinopithecus) avunculus; and, in captivity only, chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes.

(2) The prohibitions referred to above do not apply to any live member of such species held in captivity in the United States on the effective date of the final rulemaking, or to the progeny of such animals, or to the progeny of animals legally imported into the United States after the effective date of the final rulemaking, Provided, That the person wishing to engage in any activity which would otherwise be prohibited must be able to show satisfactory documentary or other evidence as to the captive status of the particular member of the species on the effective date of this rulemaking or that the particular member of the species was born in captivity in the United States after the effective date of this rulemaking. Identification of the particular member to a record in the International Species Inventory System (ISIS), or to a Federal, State or local government permit, shall be deemed to be satisfactory evidence. Records in the form of studbooks or inventories, kept in the normal course of business, shall be acceptable as evidence, provided that a notarized statement is inserted in such record to the effect that:

(i) The records were kept in the normal course of business prior to November 18, 1976, and accurately identify (by use of markers, tags, or other acceptable marking devices) individual animals; or

(ii) That the individual animal identified by the records was born in captivity on ____(Date).

The notarized statement in paragraph (c)(2)(i) of this section, shall be acceptable only if the notarization is dated on or before January 3, 1977. The notarized statement in paragraph (c)(2)(ii), of this section, shall be acceptable only if the notarization is dated within 15 days of the date of birth of the animal.

(3) The provisions of §§ 17.21, 17.22, and 17.23 shall apply to any individual chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) within the historic range of the species, regardless of whether in the wild or captivity, and also shall apply to any individual chimpanzee not within this range, but which has originated within this range after the effective date of these regulations, and also shall apply to the progeny of any such chimpanzee, other than to the progeny of animals legally imported into the United States after the effective date of these regulations. For the purposes of this paragraph, the historic range of the chimpanzee shall consist of the following countries: Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, and Zaire.

(d) Gray wolf (Canis lupus) in Minnesota.

(1) Zones. For purposes of these regulations, the State of Minnesota is divided into the following five zones:

(i) Zone 1—4,488 square miles. Beginning at the point of intersection of United States and Canadian boundaries in Section 22, Township 71 North, Range 22 West, in Rainy Lake, then proceeding along the west side of Sections 22, 27, and 34 in said Township and Sections 3, 10, 15, 22, 27 and 34 in Township 70 North, Range 22 West and Sections 3 and 10 in Township 69 North, Range 22 West; then east along the south boundaries of Sections 10, 11, and 12 in said Township; then south along the Koochiching and St. Louis counties line to Highway 53; thence southeasterly along State Highway 53 to the junction with County Route 765; thence easterly along County Route 765 to the junction with Kabetogama Lake in Ash River Bay; thence along the south boundary of Section 33 in Township 69 North, Range 19 West, to the junction with the Moose River; thence southeasterly along the Moose River to Moose Lake; thence along the western shore of Moose Lake to the river between Moose Lake and Long Lake; thence along the said river to Long Lake; thence along the east shore of Long Lake to the drainage on the southeast side of Long Lake in NE 1/4, Section 18, Township 67 North, Range 18 West; thence along the said drainage southeasterly and subsequently northeasterly to Marion Lake, the drainage being in Sections 17 and 18, Township 67 North, Range 18 West; thence along the west shoreline of Marion Lake proceeding southeasterly to the Moose Creek; thence along Moose Creek to Flap Creek; thence southeasterly along Flap Creek to the Vermilion River; thence southerly along the Vermilion River to Vermilion Lake; thence along the Superior National Forest boundary in a southeasterly direction through Vermilion Lake passing these points: Oak Narrows, Muskrat Channel, South of Pine Island, to Hoodo Point and the junction with County Route 697; thence southeasterly on County Route 697 to the junction with State Highway 169; thence easterly along State Highway 169 to the junction with State Highway 1; thence easterly along State Highway 1 to the junction with the Erie Railroad tracks at Murphy City; thence easterly along the Erie Railroad tracks to the junction with Lake Superior at Taconite Harbor; thence northeasterly along the North Shore of Lake Superior to the Canadian Border; thence westerly along the Canadian Border to the point of beginning in Rainy Lake.

(iv) Zone 4—20,883 square miles. Excluding Zones 1, 2 and 3, all that part of Minnesota north and east of a line beginning on State Trunk Highway 48 at the eastern boundary of the State; thence westerly along Highway 48 to Interstate Highway 35; thence northerly on I-35 to State Highway 23, thence west one-half mile on Highway 23 to State Trunk Highway 18; thence westerly along Highway 18 to State Trunk Highway 65, thence northerly on Highway 65 to State Trunk Highway 210; thence westerly along Highway 210 to State Trunk Highway 6; thence northerly on State Trunk Highway 6 to Emily; thence westerly along County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 1, Crow Wing County, to CSAH 2, Cass County; thence westerly along CSAH 2 to Pine River; thence northwesterly along State Trunk Highway 371 to Backus; thence westerly along State Trunk Highway 87 to U.S. Highway 71; thence northerly along U.S. 71 to State Trunk Highway 200; thence northwesterly along Highway 200, to County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 2, Clearwater County; thence northerly along CSAH 2 to Shevlin; thence along U.S. Highway 2 to Bagley; thence northerly along State Trunk Highway 92 to Gully; thence northerly along CSAH 2, Polk County, to CSAH 27, Pennington County; thence along CSAH 27 to State Trunk Highway 1; thence easterly on Highway 1 to CSAH 28, Pennington County; thence northerly along CSAH 28 to CSAH 54, Marshall County, thence northerly along CSAH 54 to Grygla; thence west and northerly along Highway 89 to Roseau; thence northerly along State Truck Highway 310 to the Canadian border.

(v) Zone 5—54,603 square miles. All that part of Minnesota south and west of the line described as the south and west border of Zone 4.

(vi) Map of regulatory zones follows:

Code of Federal Regulations

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(2) Prohibitions. The following prohibitions apply to the gray wolf in Minnesota.

(i) Taking. Except as provided in this paragraph (d)(2)(i) of this section, no person may take a gray wolf in Minnesota.

(A) Any person may take a gray wolf in Minnesota in defense of his own life or the lives of others.

(B) Any employee or agent of the Service, any other Federal land management agency, or the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, who is designated by his/her agency for such purposes, may, when acting in the course of his or her official duties, take a gray wolf in Minnesota without a permit if such action is necessary to:

(1) Aid a sick, injured or orphaned specimen; or

(2) Dispose of a dead specimen; or

(3) Salvage a dead specimen that may be useful for scientific study.

(4) Designated employees or agents of the Service or the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources may take a gray wolf without a permit in Minnesota, in zones 2, 3, 4, and 5, as delineated in paragraph (d)(l) of this section, in response to depredations by a gray wolf on lawfully present domestic animals: Provided, that such taking must occur within one-half mile of the place where such depredation occurred and must be performed in a humane manner: And provided further, that any young of the year taken on or before August 1 of that year must be released.

(C) Any employee or agent of the Service or the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, when operating under a Cooperative Agreement with the Service signed in accordance with section 6(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, who is designated by the Service or the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for such purposes, may, when acting in the course of his or her official duties, take a gray wolf in Minnesota to carry out scientific research or conservation programs.

(ii) Export and commercial transactions. Except as may be authorized by a permit issued under § 17.32, no person may sell or offer for sale in interstate commerce, import or export, or in the course of a commercial activity transport, ship, carry, deliver, or receive any Minnesota gray wolf.

(iii) Unlawfully taken wolves. No person may possess, sell, deliver, carry, transport, or ship, by any means whatsoever, a gray wolf taken unlawfully in Minnesota, except that an employee or agent of the Service, or any other Federal land management agency, or the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, who is designated by his/her agency for such purposes, may, when acting in the course of his official duties, possess, deliver, carry, transport, or ship a gray wolf taken unlawfully in Minnesota.

(3) Permits. All permits available under § 17.32 (General Permits—Threatened Wildlife) are available with regard to the gray wolf in Minnesota. All the terms and provisions of § 17.32 apply to such permits issued under the authority of this paragraph (d)(3).

(e) African elephant (Loxodonta africana )—(1) Definitions. For the purposes of this paragraph (e):

(i) African elephant shall mean any member of the species Loxodonta africana, whether live or dead, and any part or product thereof.

(ii) Raw ivory means any African elephant tusk, and any piece thereof, the surface of which, polished or unpolished, is unaltered or minimally carved.

(iii) Worked ivory means any African elephant tusk, and any piece thereof, which is not raw ivory.

(iv) Lip mark area means that area of a whole African elephant tusk where the tusk emerges from the skull and which is usually denoted by a prominent ring of staining on the tusk in its natural state.

(2) Prohibitions. Except as provided in the exceptions in paragraph (e)(3) of this section, it shall be unlawful for any person to:

(i) Import or export any African elephant,

(ii) Possess, sell or offer for sale, receive, deliver, transport ship, or export any African elephant which was illegally imported into the United States,

(iii) Sell or offer for sale any sport-hunted trophy imported into the United States in violation of permit conditions.

(3) Exceptions. (i) African elephants, other than sport-hunted trophies and raw and worked ivory, may be imported or exported provided all permit requirements of 50 CFR parts 13 and 23 have been complied with.

(ii) Ivory. (A) Raw or worked ivory (other than sport-hunted trophies) may be imported only if:

(1) It is a bona fide antique of greater than 100 years of age on the day of import, or

(2) It was exported from the United States after being registered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

(B) Worked ivory may be exported in accordance with the permit requirements of 50 CFR parts 13 and 23.

(iii) Sport-hunted trophies may be imported into the United States provided:

(A) The trophy originates in a country for which the Service has received notice of that country's African elephant ivory quota for the year of export;

(B) All of the permit requirements of 50 CFR parts 13 and 23 have been complied with;

(C) A determination is made that the killing of the animal whose trophy is intended for import would enhance survival of the species; and

(D) The trophy is legibly marked by means of punch-dies, under a marking and registration system established by the country of origin, that includes the following information: Country of origin represented by the two-letter code established by the International Organization for Standardization (see appendix A to chapter I) followed by the registration number assigned to the last two digits of the year of registration and the weight of raw ivory to the nearest kilogram. Any mark must be placed on the lip mark area and indicated by a flash of color which serves as a background for such mark.

(f) Leopard. (1) Except as noted in paragraph (f)(2) of this section, all prohibitions of § 17.31 of this part and exemptions of § 17.32 of this part shall apply to the leopard populations occurring in southern Africa to the south of a line running along the borders of the following countries: Gabon/Rio Muni; Gabon/Cameroon; Congo/Cameroon; Congo/Central African Republic; Zaire/Central African Republic; Zaire/Sudan; Uganda/Sudan; Kenya/Sudan; Kenya/Ethiopia; Kenya/Somalia.

(2) A sport-hunted leopard trophy legally taken after the effective date of this rulemaking, from the area south of the line delineated above, may be imported into the United States without a Threatened Species permit pursuant to § 17.32 of this part, provided that the applicable provisions of 50 CFR part 23 have been met.

(g) Utah prairie dog (Cynomys parvidens ). (1) Except as noted in paragraph (g)(2) of this section, all prohibitions of 50 CFR 17.31 (a) and (b), and exemptions of 50 CFR 17.32 shall apply to the Utah prairie dog.

(2) A Utah prairie dog may be taken on private land throughout its range under a permit issued by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, in accordance with the laws of the State of Utah, provided that such taking does not exceed 6,000 animals annually and that such taking is confined to the period from June 1 to December 31. Records on permitted take maintained by the State shall be made available to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on request.

(3) If the Service receives substantive evidence that takings pursuant to paragraph (g)(2) of this section are having an effect that is inconsistent with the conservation of the Utah prairie dog, the Service may immediately prohibit or restrict such taking as appropriate for the conservation of the species.

(h) Mountain lion (Felis concolor ). (1) Except as allowed in paragraphs (h)(2), (h)(3), and (h)(4) of this section, no person shall take any free-living mountain lion (Felis concolor) in Florida.

(2) A mountain lion (Felis concolor) may be taken in this area under a valid threatened species permit issued pursuant to 50 CFR 17.52.

(3) A mountain lion (Felis concolor) may be taken in Florida by an employee or designated agent of the Service or the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission for taxonomic identification or other reasons consistent with the conservation of the endangered Florida panther (Felis concolor coryi ). When it has been established by the Service, in consultation with the State, that an animal in question is not a Florida panther (Felis concolor coryi) or an eastern cougar (Felis concolor couguar ), such animals may be removed from the wild. The disposition of animals so taken shall be at the discretion of the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, with the concurrence of the Fish and Wildlife Service.

(4) Take for reasons of human safety is allowed as specified under 50 CFR 17.21(c)(2) and 17.21(c)(3)(iv).

(5) Any take pursuant to paragraph (h)(4) of this section must be reported in writing to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Law Enforcement, P.O. Box 3247, Arlington, Virginia 22203, within 5 days. The specimen may only be retained, disposed of, or salvaged in accordance with directions from the Service.

(i) Louisiana black bear (Ursus americanus luteolus ). (1) Except as noted in paragraph (i)(2) of this section, all prohibitions of § 17.31 and exemptions of § 17.32 shall apply to any black bear within the historic range of the Louisiana black bear (Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi).

(2) Sub section 17.40(i)(1) and § 17.31 shall not prohibit effects incidental to normal forest management activities within the historic range of the Louisiana black bear except for activities causing damage to or loss of den trees, den tree sites or candidate den trees. For purposes of this exemption, normal forest management activities are defined as those activities that support a sustained yield of timber products and wildlife habitats, thereby maintaining forestland conditions in occupied habitat. For purposes of this special rule, candidate den trees are considered to be bald cypress and tupelo gum with visible cavities, having a minimum diameter at breast height (DBH) of 36 inches, and occurring in or along rivers, lakes, streams, bayous, sloughs, or other water bodies.

(3) This express exemption for normal forest management activities provided by this special rule is subject to modification or withdrawal if the Service determines that this provision fails to further the conservation of the Louisiana black bear.

(j) Argali (Ovis ammon) in Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, and Tajikistan. (1) Except as noted in paragraph (j)(2) of this section, all prohibitions of § 17.31 of this part and exemptions of § 17.32 of this part shall apply to this species in Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, and Tajikistan