Biological E ectiveness Monitoring for the Natomas Basin Habitat Conservation Plan Area ff 2013 ANNUAL SURVEY RESULTS April 2014 BI O LO G I CAL E F F E CTI V E NE SS MO NI TO R I NG F O R THE NATO MAS BASI N HABI TAT CO NSE R V AT O N PLAN AR E A 2013 ANNU AL SU R V E Y R E SU LTS P R E PAR E D O R : The Natomas Basin Conservancy 2150 River Plaza Drive, Suite 460 Sacramento, CA 95833 Contact ohn Roberts, Executive Director 916 649 3331 P R E PAR E D BY : I CF I nternational 630 K Street, Suite 400 Sacramento, CA 95814 Contact Douglas Leslie 916 737 3000 A p r i l 2014 ICF International. 2014. Biological Effectiveness Monitoring for the Natomas Basin Habitat Conservation Plan Area 2013 Annual Survey Results. Final. April. (ICF 00890.10.) Sacramento, CA. Prepared for The Natomas Basin Conservancy, Sacramento, CA. Contents Chapter 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1-1 1.1 Background ...................................................................................................................... 1-1 1.1.1 Location............................................................................................................................ 1-2 1.1.2 Setting .............................................................................................................................. 1-2 1.2 The Biological Effectiveness Monitoring Program ........................................................... 1-3 1.2.1 Goals and Objectives........................................................................................................ 1-3 1.2.2 Covered Species ............................................................................................................... 1-3 1.2.3 Types of Monitoring ......................................................................................................... 1-3 1.3 Summary of the 2013 Biological Effectiveness Monitoring Program Results ................. 1-5 1.4 References ....................................................................................................................... 1-6 Chapter 2 Land Cover Mapping, Floristic Inventory, and Noxious Weed Monitoring ................ 2-1 2.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.1 Background ...................................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.2 Goals and Objectives........................................................................................................ 2-1 2.2 Methods ........................................................................................................................... 2-2 2.2.1 Land Cover Mapping ........................................................................................................ 2-2 2.2.2 Floristic Surveys ............................................................................................................... 2-2 2.2.3 Noxious Weed Mapping .................................................................................................. 2-3 2.3 Results .............................................................................................................................. 2-3 2.3.1 Land Cover Types Basin-Wide .......................................................................................... 2-3 2.3.2 Land Cover Types on Reserves ......................................................................................... 2-4 2.3.3 Noxious Weeds Surveys ................................................................................................... 2-5 2.3.4 Floristic Surveys ............................................................................................................... 2-6 2.3.5 Managed Marsh Vegetation Management ..................................................................... 2-6 2.4 Discussion ........................................................................................................................ 2-7 2.4.1 Land Cover Types Basin-Wide .......................................................................................... 2-7 2.4.2 Land Cover Types on Reserves ......................................................................................... 2-7 2.4.3 Floristic Surveys ............................................................................................................... 2-7 2.4.4 Noxious Weeds ................................................................................................................ 2-8 2.5 Effectiveness .................................................................................................................... 2-9 2.6 Recommendations ........................................................................................................... 2-9 2.7 References ..................................................................................................................... 2-10 Biological Effectiveness Monitoring for the April 2014 Natomas Basin Habitat Conservation Plan Area i ICF 00890.10 2013 Annual Survey Results Chapter 3 Giant Gartersnake ................................................................................................... 3-1 3.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 3-1 3.1.1 Background ...................................................................................................................... 3-1 3.1.2 Goals and Objectives........................................................................................................ 3-1 3.1.3 Life History ....................................................................................................................... 3-2 3.1.4 History of the Natomas Basin .......................................................................................... 3-3 3.2 Methods ........................................................................................................................... 3-4 3.2.1 Trapping Giant Gartersnakes ........................................................................................... 3-4 3.2.2 Demography .................................................................................................................... 3-5 3.2.3 Distribution of Giant Gartersnake on Reserve Lands ...................................................... 3-7 3.2.4 Habitat Assessment ......................................................................................................... 3-8 3.3 Results .............................................................................................................................. 3-9 3.3.1 Demography .................................................................................................................... 3-9 3.3.2 Distribution of Giant Gartersnake on Reserve Lands .................................................... 3-11 3.3.3 Habitat Assessment ....................................................................................................... 3-12 3.4 Discussion ...................................................................................................................... 3-15 3.4.1 Demography .................................................................................................................. 3-15 3.4.2 Distribution of Giant Gartersnake on Reserve Lands .................................................... 3-18 3.5 Effectiveness .................................................................................................................. 3-18 3.6 Recommendations ......................................................................................................... 3-20 3.7 References ..................................................................................................................... 3-21 Chapter 4 Swainson’s Hawk .................................................................................................... 4-1 4.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 4-1 4.1.1 Background ...................................................................................................................... 4-1 4.1.2 Goals and Objectives........................................................................................................ 4-1 4.1.3 Life History ....................................................................................................................... 4-1 4.2 Methods ........................................................................................................................... 4-3 4.2.1 Population Assessment .................................................................................................... 4-3 4.2.2 Habitat Assessment ......................................................................................................... 4-4 4.3 Results .............................................................................................................................. 4-4 4.3.1 Population Assessment .................................................................................................... 4-4 4.3.2 Habitat Assessment ......................................................................................................... 4-5 4.4 Discussion .......................................................................................................................