CONSOLIDATION

List of Wildlife Species at Risk (Decision Not To Add or Referral Back to COSEWIC) Order

SI/2009-20

Current to June 20, 2022



OFFICIAL STATUS OF CONSOLIDATIONS Subsections 31(1) and (3) of the Legislation Revision and Consolidation Act, in force on June 1, 2009, provide as follows: Published consolidation is evidence

31 (1) Every copy of a consolidated statute or consolidated regulation published by the Minister under this Act in either print or electronic form is evidence of that statute or regulation and of its contents and every copy purporting to be published by the Minister is deemed to be so published, unless the contrary is shown. ... Inconsistencies in regulations

(3) In the event of an inconsistency between a consolidated regulation published by the Minister under this Act and the original regulation or a subsequent amendment as registered by the Clerk of the Privy Council under the Statutory Instruments Act, the original regulation or amendment prevails to the extent of the inconsistency.

LAYOUT The notes that appeared in the left or right margins are now in boldface text directly above the provisions to which they relate. They form no part of the enactment, but are inserted for convenience of reference only.

NOTE This consolidation is current to June 20, 2022. Any amendments that were not in force as of June 20, 2022 are set out at the end of this document under the heading “Amendments Not in Force”.

Current to June 20, 2022

TABLE OF PROVISIONS List of Wildlife Species at Risk (Decision Not To Add or Referral Back to COSEWIC) Order

ANNEX

Statement Setting Out the Reasons for Referring the Assessment of the Northern Fur Seal (Callorhinus ursinus) Back to COSEWIC

Current to June 20, 2022

ii

Registration SI/2009-20 March 18, 2009

SPECIES AT RISK ACT List of Wildlife Species at Risk (Decision Not To Add or Referral Back to COSEWIC) Order P.C. 2009-384

March 5, 2009

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, pursuant to subsections 27(1.1) and (1.2) of the Species at Risk Acta (“the Act”), hereby (a) refers the assessment of the Northern Fur Seal (Callorhinus ursinus) back to the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) for further information or consideration; and (b) approves that the Minister of the Environment include in the public registry established under section 120 of the Act the statement that is attached as the Annex to this Order and that sets out the reasons for referring back to COSEWIC.

a

S.C. 2002, c. 29

Current to June 20, 2022

List of Wildlife Species at Risk (Decision Not To Add or Referral Back to COSEWIC) Order ANNEX Statement Setting Out the Reasons for Referring the Assessment of the Northern Fur Seal (Callorhinus ursinus) Back to COSEWIC

ANNEX

Statement Setting Out the Reasons for Referring the Assessment of the Northern Fur Seal (Callorhinus ursinus) Back to COSEWIC Northern Fur Seal (Callorhinus ursinus) The Minister of the Environment has recommended that the assessment of the Northern Fur Seal be referred back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration. The Northern Fur Seal is the smallest pinniped found off the coast of western Canada. The offshore waters of British Columbia represent important habitat for the species for migration, wintering, and feeding. They breed in three locations in both Russia and the United States (Pribilof Islands, Bogoslof Island and San Miguel Island); however, they do not breed in Canada. Little is known about the possible limiting factors in British Columbia. COSEWIC considered the Northern Fur Seal as “not at risk” in April 1996. Subsequently, the species was reassessed and designated “threatened” by COSEWIC in April 2006 on the basis of an updated status report. COSEWIC has identified threats to Northern Fur Seal as entanglement in marine debris, disturbance, environmental pollution and reduced availability of prey caused by commercial fisheries or environmental changes. The Minister of the Environment, on the advice of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, has recommended that the assessment of the Northern Fur Seal be referred back to COSEWIC to allow for consideration of new information. This recommendation is based on new available information on the species’ total abundance and the number of mature individuals in the population. The new scientific information notes that there are indications of significant movement of Northern Fur Seals between rookeries (breeding grounds) and that there is no evidence of genetic difference between them; and recognizes that Northern Fur Seals breeding at different rookeries represent a single population. While the recent declines are localized to a single stock, COSEWIC has not considered the information that Northern Fur Seals migrating to Canada come from the Pribilof and Bogoslof Islands, as well as from other rookeries in Russia. In addition, COSEWIC inferred the population abundance from pup counts using decline in pup production, which exaggerates the decline in the total or adult population. Also, the results of scientific analysis support the finding that the rate of population decline is less than indicated in the COSEWIC status report. The Minister has recommended that the Governor in Council refer this species back to COSEWIC to allow for this information to be considered in the assessment of the species.

Current to June 20, 2022

List of Wildlife Species at Risk (Decision Not To Add or Referral Back to COSEWIC) Order ANNEX Statement Setting Out the Reasons for Referring the Assessment of the Northern Fur Seal (Callorhinus ursinus) Back to COSEWIC

Current to June 20, 2022

