Research Paper on Critical Habitat for the Candy Darter

Introduction

In accordance with the Endangered Species Act, for any species to be determined that indeed, it is endangered calls for critical habitat, which has to be designated to the maximum prudent level that is determinable. Therefore, the final action based on the proposed rule has to be found on the best scientific data that is existed, accurate as well as highly effective. Critical habitat is described as a particular region under the geographical location that is inhabited by the organisms during the period when it is recorded according to the Act where physical or biological factors are found (Shouse & Blandford, 2015). Accordingly, these features are primarily significant to the conservation of the species; thus they need special protection (Fish and Wildlife Service, 2018). Consequently, critical habitat gets its protection through section 7 of the Act under the prerequisite, which demands the Federal agency in discussion with the Service should mandate action that helps to conserve the life-threatened habitat. The critical habitat designation does not affect the ownership of land, reserve, developed refuge or any other conserved land; hence, this description does not permit the government to find admittance into private properties.

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In the case of determining the critical habitat, it is judicious as stated in section 4 (a) (3) of the Act that it is essential to determine if the critical habitat for the candy darter can be established. The regulations under this Acts states that it is not possible to decide on a critical habitat when there is not enough data to undertake the necessary analysis. In addition to that, where the genetic requirements for the organism are unknown to justify the identity of the critical habitat existence. In cases the critical habitat cannot be determined, the Act permits the Service extra one year to issue the description of the critical habitat (Fish and Wildlife Service, 2018).

To determine the specific area under the geographical location occupied by the organism during the listing of critical habitat designation, biological or physical aspects that are vital to the conservation of the species have to be determined. Importantly, this process may call for special management protection (Yates, 2017). For instance, in the case of physical aspects, it may entail protective cover for migration, or specific gravel size for spawning for maintenance of the fundamental habitat features for early-succession.

The Process of Challenging the Final Rule in Federal Court about the Proposed Management Unit 3 of Cumberland Darter

The process of appeal to challenge the final federal court regarding making into law the Management Unit 3 of Cumberland Darter entails writing a petition to the rulemaking body to challenge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service not to approve the Act into law because of various reasons. The issue for challenging the final federal court about making the Act into law include little information is known about the Cumberland Darter. As the president of an environmental non-profit organization in the area, I challenge the law because there is very little information regarding the particular needs of the Cumberland darter. It is unfortunate that the species is mainly located in low to moderate gradient, stable geomorphological streams, even though it occupies shallow pools and runs that have gentle sand-covered bedrocks substrates, which contain gravel patches (Near & Thomas, 2015). Accordingly, stable geomorphological streams transport sediments and at the same time maintain a horizontal as well as vertical dimension patterns that help to conserve the physical features of the stream. Indeed, maintenance and protection of these habitat features take care of growth, rearing, spawning, and migration among other typical characteristics of the Cumberland darter.

Additionally, there is limited information based on the downstream and upstream movements of the Cumberland darters; nonetheless, statistics on Cumberland darter indicate that there is a considerable pre-spawn shift for its nearby relative the Jonny darter. For example, in Beer Creek in Monroe County, Michigan Jonny darters have been reported to migrate some miles in between the permanent pools downstream and the temporary stream habitats. Recent reports that collected individual data in Cogur Fork, McCreary in Kentucky shows that Cumberland darters can make a similar shift like that exhibited by Jonny darter. According to individual reports identified and released by the Conservation Fisheries Inc., (CFI) as well as the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR), it reveal that the traveled distance ranged between 0.4 to 0.7 kilometers between the release date and the and the recapture date (Near & Thomas, 2015). In case of more extended periods, it is projected that Cumberland darters may use stream reaches longer than 0.7 kilometers. However, the present Cumberland darter range has been reduced to approximately thirteen streams because of habitat fragmentation and destruction, which have exposed the fish population to genetic seclusion, declined their adaptive ability, decline the space for reproduction and rearing and heightened the possibilities of running these organisms into extinction (Adler, 2017). Indeed, genomic diversity and differentiation within a species are vital for its adaptation to change in environment, recovery and long-term viability.

Based on the applicable statutes there is nothing that prevents to appeal the federal court in my role as the president for non-profit environmental conservation organization from being a proper party to appeal the rule because through the appeal it is one way of streamlining the process where matters seem not to be right.

References

Adler, J. H. (2017). The Science Charade in Species Conservation. Supreme Court Economic Review, 24(1), 109-138.

Fish and Wildlife Service. (2018). Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designation of Critical Habitat for the Candy Darter. Retrieved from https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/11/21/2018-25315/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-and-plants-designation-of-critical-habitat-for-the-candy-darter

Near, T. J., & Thomas, M. R. (2015). A New Barcheek Darter Species from Buck Creek (Cumberland River System), Kentucky (Percidae: Etheostomatinae: Catonotus: Oopareia). Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History, 56(2), 127-147.

Shouse, M. L., & Blandford, B. L. (2015). Expert Systems Model for Kentucky Arrow Darter Habitat in the Upper Kentucky River Basin. Papers in Applied Geography, 1(4), 383-390.

Yates, B. L. (2017). Water Quality's Influence on the Occupancy of Two Jeopardized Fishes: The Blackside Dace (Chrosomus Cumberlandensis) and the Cumberland Arrow Darter (Etheostoma Sagitta) in Northeast Tennessee.