The federal government is proposing to expand protections for the Gulf of Maine population of Atlantic salmon to include fish found in additional rivers.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said today they want to expand the endangered designation to Atlantic salmon populations from the Androscoggin River to the Dennys River, including the Kennebec and Penobscot rivers, as well as and hatchery fish used in the recovery effort.

Atlantic salmon currently covered under the endangered listing include the Dennys, East Machias, Machias, Pleasant, Narraguagus, Ducktrap, and Sheepscot rivers and Cove Brook.

The action was recommended during a 2006 review of the status of Atlantic salmon in Maine. When the agencies initially defined the Gulf of Maine population as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act in 2000, they said further study was needed on the fish found in portions of the Penobscot and Kennebec rivers and their tributaries.

So far this year, more than 2,000 adults from the proposed expanded endangered population have returned to spawn. While this is an increase over recent years, it is just 10 percent of the number required before spawning stocks are thought to be in good condition, the agencies said.

Once a species is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, it becomes illegal to kill, capture or harm.

Public comments on the proposal will be accepted by the agencies through December 2, 2008, and public hearings are expected to be scheduled soon.

For more information, go to NOAA's announcement.

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