Draft Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince Wildlife Assessment and Inventory Submitted by Paul Ashley and Stacey H. Stovall Table of Contents Table of Contents........................................................................................................................... i List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. iii List of Tables................................................................................................................................. v 1.0 Wildlife Assessment Framework .......................................................................................1 1.1 Assessment Tools.......................................................................................................3 2.0 Physical Features..............................................................................................................3 2.1 Land Area....................................................................................................................3 2.2 Physiography...............................................................................................................4 3.0 Socio-Political Features ....................................................................................................5 3.1 Land Ownership ..........................................................................................................5 3.2 Land Use.....................................................................................................................7 3.3 Protection Status.......................................................................................................10 3.4 Ecoregion Conservation Assessment Priorities and Public Land Ownership ...........13 4.0 Ecological Features.........................................................................................................13 4.1 Vegetation .................................................................................................................13 4.1.1 Rare Plants....................................................................................................13 4.1.2 Wildlife Habitats.............................................................................................15 4.1.2.1 Changes in Wildlife Habitats....................................................................16 4.1.2.2 Focal Wildlife Habitats .............................................................................16 4.1.2.2.1 Focal Wildlife Habitat Selection .........................................................16 4.1.2.2.2 Focal Habitat Selection Justification..................................................17 4.1.2.2.2.1 Ponderosa Pine ........................................................................17 4.1.2.2.2.2 Shrubsteppe .............................................................................22 4.1.2.2.2.3 Eastside (Interior) Riparian Wetlands.......................................22 4.1.2.2.2.4 Habitats of Concern..................................................................22 4.1.2.2.2.4.1 Agriculture........................................................................22 4.1.2.2.2.4.2 Cliffs, Caves, and Talus Slopes.......................................24 4.1.2.2.3 Protection Status of Focal Wildlife Habitats.......................................24 4.1.2.2.4 Changes in Focal Wildlife Habitat Quantity and Distribution .............25 4.1.2.2.5 Focal Wildlife Habitat Descriptions ....................................................25 4.1.2.2.5.1 Ponderosa pine ........................................................................26 4.1.2.2.5.1.1 Historic.............................................................................26 4.1.2.2.5.1.2 Current.............................................................................26 4.1.2.2.5.1.3 Desired Future Condition.................................................34 4.1.2.2.5.2 Shrubsteppe .............................................................................35 4.1.2.2.5.2.1 Historic.............................................................................35 4.1.2.2.5.2.2 Current.............................................................................37 4.1.2.2.5.2.3 Desired Future Condition.................................................50 4.1.2.2.5.3 Eastside (Interior) Riparian Wetlands.......................................52 4.1.2.2.5.3.1 Historic.............................................................................52 4.1.2.2.5.3.2 Current.............................................................................53 4.1.2.2.5.3.3 Desired Future Condition.................................................58 4.1.2.2.5.4 Agriculture ................................................................................58 4.1.2.2.5.5 Caves, Cliffs and Talus Slopes.................................................59 4.2 Conservation Assessment by Vegetation Zone ........................................................60 4.3 Factors Impacting Focal Habitats and Wildlife Species ............................................60 4.3.1 Livestock Grazing ..........................................................................................64 4.3.2 Agriculture .....................................................................................................66 4.3.3 Exotic Vegetation...........................................................................................67 Draft i 5/29/2004 4.3.4 Fire ................................................................................................................69 4.3.5 Road Development........................................................................................70 4.3.6 Hydropower Development .............................................................................70 4.3.7 Development/Urbanization ............................................................................71 4.3.8 Mining ............................................................................................................71 4.3.9 Timber Harvest ..............................................................................................72 4.3.10 Limiting Factors by Wildlife Habitat Type ......................................................72 4.3.10.1 Ponderosa Pine .......................................................................................72 4.3.10.2 Shrubsteppe ............................................................................................72 4.3.10.3 Eastside (Interior) Riparian Wetlands......................................................73 5.0 Biological Features..........................................................................................................74 5.1 Focal Wildlife Species Selection and Rationale ........................................................74 5.2 Wildlife Species.........................................................................................................76 6.0 References......................................................................................................................82 Appendix A: Assessment Tools ..................................................................................................94 Appendix B: IBIS Wildlife Habitat Types ...................................................................................110 Appendix C: Percent Change in Wildlife Habitat Types............................................................185 Appendix D: Rare Plants...........................................................................................................203 Appendix E: Wildlife Species of the Columbia Cascades Ecoprovince, Washington ...............212 Appendix F: Focal Species Information ....................................................................................270 Appendix G: Changes in Key Ecological Functions..................................................................391 Draft ii 5/29/2004 List of Figures Figure 1. The Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince, Washington (WDFW 2003)................................1 Figure 2. Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince and subbasin wildlife planning organization. .............2 Figure 3. Land ownership of the Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince, Washington (IBIS 2003). ......6 Figure 4. GAP management-protection status of lands within the Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince, Washington (IBIS 2003).................................................................................12 Figure 5. ECA and publicly owned lands in the Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince, Washington (ECA 2003). .........................................................................................................................14 Figure 6. Rare plant/community occurrence in the Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince, Washington (WNHP 2003). .....................................................................................................................15 Figure 7. Historic wildlife habitat types of the Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince, Washington (IBIS 2003)....................................................................................................................................18 Figure 8. Current wildlife habitat types of the Columbia Cascade Ecoprovince, Washington (IBIS 2003)....................................................................................................................................18 Figure 9. Focal habitat and species selection process summary. ..............................................21