123STA T . 3 584PROCL A M AT I O N 833 6—J AN. 6 , 2 0 0 9andWil dli feS e rv i c ea s a w ildlife ref ug e .I n 20 0 1,th e Secretar yo f the Interior esta b lished N ational Wildlife R efuges at P al m yra A toll and K ingman Reef. Palmyra Atoll and Kingman Reef are k nown to be among the most p ris - tine coral reefs in the world, with a fully structured inverted food web. Kingman Reef is the most pristine of any reef under U .S. j urisdiction. T hey are ideal laboratories for assessing effects of climate change with- out the difficulty of filtering anthropogenic impacts. B oth Palmyra Atoll and Kingman Reef support higher levels of coral and other cnidarian species diversity ( 1 8 0 – 1 9 0 species ) than any other atoll or reef island in the central Pacific, twice as many as are found in H awaii or F lorida. Palmyra atoll has one of the best remaining e x amples of Pisonia grandis forest found in the Pacific region. This forest type has been lost or severely degraded over much of its range due to increased human population and development. Fish species diversity at Palmyra ( 4 18 species) is higher than, while that of Kingman (29 7 species) is comparable to, that of the other remote Pacific refuges. M any threat- ened, endangered, and depleted species thrive there, including the green and hawksbill turtle, pearl oyster, giant clams (the highest con- centration in the Pacific Remote Island Area), reef sharks, C oconut crabs, groupers, humphead and Napoleon wrasse, bumphead parrotfish, and dolphins. Significant numbers of threatened green tur- tles forage at both atolls, especially at Palmyra
endangered Hawksbill sea turtles forage at both atolls. L arge schools of rare Melon-headed whales reside off both atolls. A possibly new species of beaked whale was recently described from 2 specimens stranded at Palmyra and 1 at Christmas Island. Palmyra supports 11 nesting seabird species includ- ing the third-largest Red-footed Booby colony in the world. Large num- bers of Bristle-thighed Curlews, a migratory shorebird of conservation significance, winter at Palmyra. WH E REAS Wake, Baker, Howland, and J arvis Islands, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, and Palmyra Atoll and their surrounding waters contain objects of historic or scientific interest that are situated upon lands owned or controlled by the G overnment of the United States; WHEREAS the D epartment of Defense has historically maintained fa- cilities, defensive areas, and airspace reservations at Wake Island and Johnston Atoll; WHEREAS the United States continues to act in accordance with the balance of interests relating to traditional uses of the oceans recog- ni z ing freedom of navigation and overflight and other internationally recognized lawful uses of the sea; WHEREAS section 2 of the Act of June 8, 190 6 ( 3 4 Stat. 22 5 , 16 U.S.C. 431) (the ‘ ‘Anti q uities Act ’ ’) authorizes the President, in his discretion, to declare by public proclamation historic landmarks, historic and pre- historic structures, and other objects of historic or scientific interest that are situated upon lands owned or controlled by the Government of the United States to be national monuments, and to reserve as a part thereof parcels of land, the limits of which in all cases shall be con- fined to the smallest area compatible with the proper care and manage- ment of the objects to be protected; WHEREAS it is in the public interest to preserve the marine environ- ment around the islands of Wake, Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands,
