Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Final Rule To List the Alabama Sturgeon as Endangered

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), determine the Alabama sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus suttkusi) to be endangered under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The Alabama sturgeon's historic range once included about 1,600 kilometers (km) (1,000 miles (mi)) of the Mobile River system in Alabama (Black Warrior, Tombigbee, Alabama, Coosa, Tallapoosa, Mobile, Tensaw, and Cahaba Rivers) and Mississippi (Tombigbee River). Since 1985, all confirmed captures have been from a short, free-flowing reach of the Alabama River below Millers Ferry and Claiborne Locks and Dams in Clarke, Monroe, and Wilcox Counties, Alabama. The decline of the Alabama sturgeon is attributed to over-fishing, loss and fragmentation of habitat as a result of historical navigation-related development, and water quality degradation. Current threats primarily result from its reduced range and its small population numbers. These threats are compounded by a lack of information on Alabama sturgeon habitat and life history requirements. This action extends the Act's protection to the Alabama sturgeon.