Status Review of American Pika
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State of California Department of Fish and Wildlife Memorandum Mcuect.. s Date: February 2§, 2013 To: Sonke Mastrup Executive Director Fish and Game Commission From: Charlton H. Bonham· Director Subject: American Pika Status Evaluation The Department of Fish and Wildlife (Department) has prepared the attached status review for the Fish and Game Commission (Commission) regarding the proposal to list the American pika (Ochotona princeps) pursuant to the California Endangered Species Act (CESA; specifically Fish and Game Code section 2074.6). The Commission received the petition on August 27, 2007 (which was subsequently amended May 15, 2009, and March 31, 2011). The attached status review represents the Department's final written review of the status of the American pika and is based upon the best scientific information available to the Department. The status review contains the Department's recommendation to not list the American pika as threatened or endangered. On November 11, 2011, the Commission published notice of its decision to accept the petition to list the American pika under CESA for further consideration. Following the Commission's determination, the Department notified affected and interested parties and solicited data and comments on the petitioned action per Fish & G. Code §2074.4 (see also Cal. Code Regs, Title 14 § 670.1 (f)(2)). In addition, the Department commenced its review of the status of the species as required by Fish & G. Code §2074.4 and circulated a draft of the status review for outside peer review as required by Cal. Code Regs, Title 14 § 670.1 (f)(2). The Department finds that projected human-caused climate change as currently predicted based on climatic models and models of the future extent of habitat indicate there may be a reduction in the amount of suitable habitat for the American pika in California by the end of this century (21 00). However, the best scientific information currently available indicates it is not in serious danger in the next few decades of becoming extinct throu.ghout all or a significant portion of the species' range in the state, nor by the end of the century should the existing climate change models and predicted trajectory o,f suitable pika habitat come to fruition. Sonke Mastrup, Executive Director Fish and Game Commission Page 2 Yet, the Department also believes it will be imperative for our agency and the scientific community to study and monitor the distribution and abundance of American pika over the next few decades, and as climate change models become more data driven as to species specifics, to be able to better assess the foreseeable future and the need for protections under CESA. If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact Dan Yparraguirre, Deputy Director, Wildlife and Fisheries Division at 916-653-4673 or Dr. Eric Loft, Chief, Wildlife Branch at 916-445-3555. Attachment STATE OF CALIFORNIA NATURAL RESOURCES AGENCY DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE REPORT TO THE FISH AND GAME COMMISSION STATUS REVIEW OF THE AMERICAN PIKA (Ochotona princeps) IN CALIFORNIA CHARLTON H. BONHAM, DIRECTOR CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE February 25, 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures .................................................................................................................................. iii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................... iii Preparers ......................................................................................................................................... iii Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 4 Petition History ........................................................................................................................... 5 Department Status Review ......................................................................................................... 7 SPECIES DESCRIPTION ..................................................................................................................... 7 GEOGRAPHIC RANGE AND DISTRIBUTION ...................................................................................... 7 TAXONOMY ..................................................................................................................................... 8 LIFE HISTORY ................................................................................................................................... 9 HABITAT ESSENTIAL FOR THE CONTINUED EXISTENCE OF THE SPECIES ...................................... 13 CURRENT DISTRIBUTION ............................................................................................................... 13 SPECIES STATUS AND POPULATION TRENDS IN CALIFORNIA ....................................................... 15 FACTORS AFFECTING ABILITY TO SURVIVE AND REPRODUCE ...................................................... 19 CLIMATE CHANGE ......................................................................................................................... 20 Observed Climate Change to Date ............................................................................................ 21 Evidence of Climate Change Impact on Pika ............................................................................ 23 DEGREE AND IMMEDIACY OF CLIMATE CHANGE THREATS ......................................................... 33 Pika Habitat and Distribution Projections ................................................................................ 33 Other Climate Change Impacts ................................................................................................. 38 Pika Resilience to Climate Change Effects ................................................................................ 39 Time Scales and Uncertainty for Climate Change Effects ......................................................... 42 FACTORS OTHER THAN CLIMATE CHANGE ................................................................................... 43 Mining ....................................................................................................................................... 43 Grazing ...................................................................................................................................... 44 Predation and Competition ...................................................................................................... 46 Disease ...................................................................................................................................... 46 Habitat Degradation and Fragmentation ................................................................................. 47 Population Size and Isolation .................................................................................................... 47 i TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) Summary of Risk Factors other than Climate Change .............................................................. 48 REGULATORY STATUS ................................................................................................................... 48 EXISTING MANAGEMENT EFFORTS ............................................................................................... 50 California Pika Consortium ....................................................................................................... 51 National Park Service ................................................................................................................ 51 National Forest System Lands ................................................................................................... 52 MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS.......................................................................................... 52 SCIENTIFIC DETERMINATIONS REGARDING THE STATUS OF AMERICAN PIKA IN CALIFORNIA ... 53 Present or Threatened Modification or Destruction of Habitat .............................................. 54 Overexploitation ....................................................................................................................... 54 Predation .................................................................................................................................. 54 Competition .............................................................................................................................. 55 Disease ...................................................................................................................................... 55 Other Natural Occurrences or Human‐related Activities ......................................................... 55 Summary of Key Findings ......................................................................................................... 55 LISTING RECOMMENDATION ........................................................................................................ 56 PROTECTION AFFORDED BY LISTING ............................................................................................ 56 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................. 58 Appendix 1 Revisits of Historical Pika Locations in California