5-Year Status Review of the Mount (Mt.) Graham red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus grahamensis)
About the Document
Title: 5-Year Status Review of the Mt. Graham red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus grahamensis)
Purpose: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is conducting a 5-year status review of the endangered Mt. Graham red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus grahamensis) under section 4 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended. The purpose of the 5-year review is to ensure that the listing classification of the species on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants (50 CFR 17.12) is accurate. The 5-year review document is an assessment of the best scientific data available at this time and will be the basis for a recommendation by the Service on whether or not to propose a change in the listing status (see Federal Register notice, 71 FR 1765).
About the Peer Review Process
Type of Review: Influential
Estimated Peer Review Timeline: April-May 2007.
Estimated Dissemination Date of the Final Five-Year Review: October 2007.
Process: The Service will conduct external peer review of the scientific background information used in the 5-year review analyses with at least three or more independent scientific reviewers with expertise in Mt. Graham red squirrel species biology, habitat, and threats; conservation biology; population and demographics; genetics; and ecology.
Peer reviewers will be selected based on the following criteria:
- Expertise: Reviewers should have knowledge in one or more of the following areas: conservation biology; non-native, invasive species; species competition; land management activities and their effects on small mammal species; and vulnerabilities inherent to small, isolated mammal populations.
- Independence: Reviewers should not be employed by the Service. Academic and consulting scientists should have sufficient independence from the Service or the Department if the government supports their work.
- Objectivity: Reviewers should be recognized by their peers as being objective, open-minded, and thoughtful. The reviewers should be comfortable sharing their knowledge and identifying their knowledge gaps.
- Advocacy: Reviewers should not be known or recognized for an affiliation with an advocacy position regarding the protection of this species under the Endangered Species Act.
- Conflict of Interest: Reviewers should not have any financial or other interest that conflicts or that could impair their objectivity.
The Service will consider the information received from the peer review in the conclusions and recommendations for the Mt. Graham red squirrel five-year review.
About Public Participation
Public comments on the 5-year review of this species were sought with a Federal Register announcement (71 FR 1765) and the distribution by mail and press release of this announcement to interested parties.
The Service will the final 5-year review document and recommendation for the Mt. Graham red squirrel, including a summary of the peer review results, on its website at http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/SpeciesReport.do?spcode=A09O.
If this 5-year review results in a recommendation to change the status of the Mt. Graham red squirrel, additional public review and comment will be sought with the publication of a proposed rule in the Federal Register to change the species status.
This peer review plan is made available on this website to allow the public to monitor our compliance with the Office of Management and Budget’s Final Information Quality Bulletin for Peer Review.
Contact: Thetis Gamberg, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Tucson suboffice, at Thetis_Gamberg@fws.gov or 520-670-6150 ext.231.