Appendix C Appendix C SPECIAL-STATUS SPECIES INVENTORY Special-Status Species Inventory for the Santa Barbara Airport Master Plan Update Prepared for: Coffman Associates C/O James M. Harris 4835 East Cactus Road, Suite 235 Scottsdale, AZ 85254 602.993.6999 Prepared by: 621 Chapala Street Santa Barbara, CA 93101 Contact: John H. Davis IV, Senior Ecologist 805.963.0651 OCTOBER 2012 C-1 C-2 Santa Barbara Airport Special-Status Species Inventory TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page No. 1.0 INTRODUCTION..............................................................................................................1 1.1 Airport Location...................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Airport Master Plan................................................................................................. 1 1.3 Biological Setting.................................................................................................... 5 1.3.1 History of the Airport and Goleta Slough ................................................... 5 1.3.2 Airport Safety and Wildlife Management................................................... 6 1.3.3 Habitat Restoration in the Goleta Slough ................................................... 7 1.3.4 Existing Sensitive Biological Resources .................................................... 9 2.0 METHODS .......................................................................................................................11 2.1 Special-Status Species Defined............................................................................. 11 2.2 Database and Literature Review ........................................................................... 11 2.2.1 Plant Data .................................................................................................. 12 2.2.2 Wildlife Data ............................................................................................. 12 2.3 Field Surveys ........................................................................................................ 12 2.3.1 Biological Study Area ............................................................................... 13 2.3.2 Vegetation Community and Wildlife Habitat Suitability Mapping .......... 17 2.3.3 Plant Data .................................................................................................. 19 2.3.4 Wildlife Data ............................................................................................. 19 2.3.5 Limitations of Field Surveys ..................................................................... 19 3.0 RESULTS .........................................................................................................................21 3.1 Vegetation Community Mapping and Wildlife Habitats ...................................... 21 3.1.1 Grassland and Forb-Dominated Habitats (Upland) .................................. 21 3.1.2 Grassland and Forb-Dominated Habitats (Wetland)................................. 32 3.1.3 Scrub Communities ................................................................................... 43 3.1.4 Woodlands and Tree Clusters ................................................................... 50 3.1.5 Non-Vegetated Habitats ............................................................................ 53 3.2 Special-Status Species .......................................................................................... 55 3.2.1 Special-Status Plants ................................................................................. 56 3.2.2 Special-Status Wildlife ............................................................................. 73 3.3 Common Plants and Wildlife ................................................................................ 87 3.3.1 Common Plants ......................................................................................... 87 3.3.2 Common Wildlife Species ........................................................................ 88 3.4 Summary of Sensitive Wildlife Habitats .............................................................. 93 3.4.1 Southern Coastal Salt Marsh ..................................................................... 94 3.4.2 Riparian Scrub Communities .................................................................... 94 7198 i October 2012 C-3 Santa Barbara Airport Special-Status Species Inventory 3.4.3 Open Water ............................................................................................... 95 3.4.4 Other Vegetation Communities ................................................................ 95 3.5 Recommended Focused Biological Surveys ......................................................... 95 4.0 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................97 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Site Location .....................................................................................................................3 Figure 2. Biological Study Area ....................................................................................................15 Figure 3a. Vegetation Types – Northwest Section ........................................................................23 Figure 3b. Vegetation Types – Central Section .............................................................................25 Figure 3c. Vegetation Types – Southeast Section .........................................................................27 Figure 4. Special-Status Species Inventory ...................................................................................59 LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Summary of Surveys, Personnel, and Conditions............................................................18 Table 2. Summary of Existing Vegetation Communities and Wildlife Habitats in the Biological Study Area .........................................................................................................................22 Table 3. Special-Status Plant Species Potentially Occurring in the Study Area ...........................65 Table 4. Other Special-Status Wildlife Species Mentioned in Planning Documents ...................89 Table 5. Special-Status Wildlife Species Habitat Assessment ......................................................93 APPENDICES Appendix A - Exhibits Appendix B - Cumulative List of Plant Species Appendix C - Cumulative List of Wildlife Species Appendix D - Soil Descriptions Appendix E - Photo Plates 7198 ii October 2012 C-4 Santa Barbara Airport Special-Status Species Inventory ACRONYM LIST amsl above mean sea level AOU American Ornithologists’ Union CCC California Coastal Commission CDFG California Department of Fish and Game CEQA California Environmental Quality Act CESA California Endangered Species Act CNDDB California Natural Diversity Database CNPS California Native Plant Society CRPR California Rare Plant Rank CSC California Species of Concern CWA Clean Water Act DPS Distinct population segment ESA Federal Endangered Species Act ESHA Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area FAA Federal Aviation Administration FE Federally listed as endangered FT Federally listed as threatened GIS Geographic information system GPS Global positioning system GSEMP Goleta Slough Ecosystem Management Plan GSMC Goleta Slough Management Committee MCV2 Manual of California Vegetation, 2nd ed. NCL Natural Communities List (CDFG 2010) SA Included on CDFG Special Animals list SE State listed as endangered SR-217 State Route 217 ST State listed as threatened USFWS U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service WL CDFG Watch List 7198 iii October 2012 C-5 Santa Barbara Airport Special-Status Species Inventory INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK 7198 iv October 2012 C-6 Santa Barbara Airport Special-Status Species Inventory 1.0 INTRODUCTION Dudek has prepared this Special-Status Species Inventory (Inventory) for Coffman Associates in support of the City of Santa Barbara’s (City) Airport Master Plan (Plan). The purpose of this Inventory is to provide habitat suitability and specific locations of special-status species on the Santa Barbara Airport (Airport) property. The Inventory includes a comprehensive review of existing literature and recent survey data for special-status plant and wildlife species and occupied habitats on Airport property. The data presented herein will provide essential biological documentation for the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and Coastal Development Permit (CDP) environmental review process. This report is also intended to support environmental review by other applicable regulatory resource agencies that may have permit authority governing actions carried out under the Plan, specifically the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). 1.1 Airport Location The 948–acre Airport is located in the City of Santa Barbara. The northern portion of the Airport is surrounded by the City of Goleta, while the southern portion forms boundaries with University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) and County of Santa Barbara. The Pacific Ocean is approximately 275 feet the south and is 2.8 miles to the west (Figure 1). The Airport is bordered on the south by Mesa Road, UCSB, and the Goleta Beach County Park; on the west by S. Los Carneros Road; on the north by Hollister Avenue and the Union Pacific railroad tracks, and, on the east by State Route 217 (SR217), Moffett Place, Fowler Road, and Fairview