Contacts
For Release: PIEA-02-09
Contact: Barbara Maxfield, 808 541 2749 or 349 1409 RO-02-20
Critical habitat areas for Kauai’s cave wolf spider and amphipod – unique blind animals found only in cave habitats in the southern part of the island – were proposed today by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The proposed rule responds to a federal court order requiring the agency to designate critical habitat.
"We are publicly identifying these habitat areas with some bit of trepidation," said Anne Badgley, the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Pacific regional director. "Suitable habitat for these species is very limited, and these species are particularly sensitive to human disturbance. We appeal to cave explorers to help us protect the Kauai cave wolf spider and amphipod by staying out of these caves."
Under the Endangered Species Act, a critical habitat designation identifies geographic areas that are essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species and that may require special management considerations or protection. However, a designation does not set up a preserve or refuge, nor does it affect the activities of citizens engaged in private activities on their land. Rather, its sole impact is that federal agencies must consult with the Service on activities they authorize, undertake, or fund that might affect critical habitat to ensure that those activities do not destroy or adversely modify the critical habitat.
The proposed rule identifies 4,193 acres in three units in the Koloa region of Kauai as potential critical habitat. The Koloa area consists of younger lava flows compared to the rest of the island. Most lava tubes elsewhere on the island have collapsed or filled with sediments.
Almost all of the proposed critical habitat is on private land, though 311 acres are on state lands and county lands. The proposed areas include those currently occupied by the Kauai cave wolf spider and Kauai cave amphipod and areas within the region containing similar geologic and soil conditions to those occupied by the species.
The Kauai cave wolf spider is a small (1 ½ inch) hunting spider that has completely lost its eyes as part of its adaptation to life in lava tubes. Instead of building webs, it chases and grabs its prey. Unlike most wolf spiders, the Kauai cave wolf spider produces only 15 to 30 eggs per clutch. Newly hatched spiderlings are unusually large and are carried on the back of the female for only a few days.
The Kauai cave amphipod is a small (0.25 to 0.4-inch), pale landhopper that resembles a shrimp. Like the cave wolf spider, the Kauai cave amphipod has lost its eyes. It feeds on the decaying roots of surface vegetation that reach into the cave system, as well as rotting sticks, branches, and other plant materials. This amphipod is believed to be a food source for the Kauai cave wolf spider.
The Service listed the two species as endangered in January 2000. In June 2000, the U.S. District Court in Hawaii ordered the Service to publish a final critical habitat designation for them. Although the Service did find critical habitat prudent in the final listing rule, biologists have since found evidence of increased entry and vandalism in known cave habitats. The Service is concerned that critical habitat designation and publication of maps showing cave locations may lead to increased human use of the caves and negative impacts on the species.
"Both of these animals are ‘troglobites,’ which mean they require cave environments to survive," explained Paul Henson, field supervisor of the Service’s Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office. "They are very sensitive to changes in humidity, temperature, and light. Although we understand that caves can be great fun to explore, we need to educate people that their presence in these habitats can mean the extinction of these species."
Henson pointed to the example of the effects of cigarette smoke on cave inhabitants, explaining that nicotine is a potent insecticide. "Even with the poor air circulation found in cave systems, smoke permeates not only the caves but the cracks and crevices associated with them. Add to that the danger of trampling these creatures, the fact that garbage left behind attracts competitors and predators such as cockroaches, and the urban development that may be occurring on the surface, and it’s easy to understand why we’re concerned about these Kauai cave species," Henson said.
The proposed rule designating critical habitat was published in the Federal Register on March 27 for a 60-day public comment period. Copies of the proposed rule are available through the Federal Register’s website at http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html,or by calling the Fish and Wildlife Service at 808/541 3441. Written comments may be submitted to the Field Supervisor, Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office, 300 Ala Moana Blvd., Room 3-122, Box 50088, Honolulu, HI 96850.
The Service is particularly interested in comments on whether or not any areas should be designated as critical habitat for these species, new information on the number and/or distribution of the Kauai cave wolf spider and Kauai cave amphipod, whether lands within proposed critical habitat are already being managed to conserve these species, and current or planned activities in the subject areas that may impact the proposed critical habitat.
An economic analysis of critical habitat designation for these cave animals will be published for public comment at a later date.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses nearly 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands, and other special management areas. It also operates 70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
– FWS –
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