Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Change in Listing Status of Steller Sea Lion

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is reclassifying the Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) population segment west of 144 deg. W. longitude (a line near Cape Suckling, AK) as endangered and the remainder of the Steller sea lion population will remain threatened on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. This measure, authorized by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), corresponds with a determination to reclassify this species based on biological information indicating that there are two distinct population segments, as authorized under the Act, by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) which has jurisdiction for this species.