Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Spruce-Fir Moss Spider Determined To Be Endangered

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) determines the spruce-fir moss spider (Microhexura montivaga) to be an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). This spider is currently known from four mostly small populations located in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. The spider's damp, high-elevation forest habitat is deteriorating rapidly due primarily to exotic insects and possibly past land use history, air pollution, and other factors not yet fully understood. The species' current low numbers also increase its vulnerability to harm from other threats. This final rule extends Federal protection under the Act to the spruce-fir moss spider.