USFWS listed the Atlantic pigtoe, (Fusconaia masoni), a freshwater mussel species from Virginia and North Carolina, as a threatened species with a rule issued under section 4(d) of the ESA. They also designate critical habitat for the species under the Act. In total, approximately 563 river miles (906 river kilometers) fall within 17 units of critical habitat in Bath, Botetourt, Brunswick, Craig, Dinwiddie, Greensville, Halifax, Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Nottoway, Pittsylvania, and Sussex Counties, Virginia, and in Durham, Edgecombe, Franklin, Granville, Halifax, Johnston, Montgomery, Nash, Orange, Person, Pitt, Randolph, Rockingham, Vance, Wake, Warren, and Wilson Counties, North Carolina. This rule extends the Act's protections to the species and its designated critical habitat. This rule is effective 16 December 2021. Pete Benjamin, Field Supervisor, USFWS, Raleigh Ecological Services Field Office, 551F Pylon Drive, Raleigh, NC 27606; tel: 919-816-6408.

(Federal Register 16 November 2021 [Rule] Pages 64000-64053.)