Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species Status for Russian, Ship, Persian, and Stellate Sturgeon

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are extending the public comment period on our May 25, 2022, proposed rule to list the Russian sturgeon (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii), ship sturgeon (A. nudiventris), Persian sturgeon (A. persicus), and stellate sturgeon (A. stellatus), all large fish native to the Black, Azov, Aral, Caspian, and northern Aegean Sea basins and their rivers in Europe and western Asia, as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We are extending the proposed rule’s comment period for 30 days to conduct a public hearing on the petition to list these four species of sturgeon. Comments previously submitted need not be resubmitted and will be fully considered in preparation of the final rule.