Final Rule to Designate Critical Habitat for Main Hawaiian Islands Insular False Killer Whale Distinct Population Segment

On July 24 2018, NOAA Fisheries publishes a final rule to designate critical habitat for the main Hawaiian Islands insular false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) distinct population segment (DPS) by designating waters from the 45-meter depth contour to the 3,200-meter depth contour around the main Hawaiian Islands from Ni'ihau east to Hawai'i, pursuant to section 4 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). We have excluded 14 areas (one area, with two sites, for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and 13 areas requested by the Navy) from the critical habitat designation because we have determined that the benefits of exclusion outweigh the benefits of inclusion, and exclusion will not result in extinction of the species. Additionally, the Ewa Training Minefield and the Naval Defensive Sea Area are precluded from designation under section 4(a)(3) of the ESA because they are managed under the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Integrated Natural Resource Management Plan that we find provides a benefit to the main Hawaiian Islands insular false killer whale.