Biological Assessment for Coronado National Forest Livestock Grazing Program February 2019 Table of Contents Frequently Used Acronyms .......................................................................................................................... iii Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 1 Consultation History ..................................................................................................................................... 1 Proposed Action ............................................................................................................................................ 1 Forest Plan Standards and Guidelines for Range Program ....................................................................... 1 Allotments and Permits ........................................................................................................................ 4 Project and Action Areas........................................................................................................................... 9 Conservation Measures .......................................................................................................................... 10 General Conservation Measures ......................................................................................................... 10 Species-specific Conservation Measures ............................................................................................ 10 Species Evaluations ..................................................................................................................................... 12 Plants ....................................................................................................................................................... 13 Huachuca water-umbel (Lilaeopsis schaffneriana var. recurva) ......................................................... 13 Fish .......................................................................................................................................................... 16 Gila topminnow (Poeciliopsis occidentalis occidentalis) ..................................................................... 16 Sonora Chub (Gila ditaenia) ................................................................................................................ 19 Yaqui Chub (Gila purpurea) ................................................................................................................. 22 Amphibians and Reptiles ........................................................................................................................ 24 Sonoran tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum stebbinsi) .............................................................. 24 Chiricahua leopard frog (Rana chiricahuensis) ................................................................................... 26 Northern Mexican Gartersnake (Thamnophis eques megalops) ........................................................ 32 New Mexico ridge-nosed rattlesnake (Crotalus willardi obscurus) .................................................... 36 Birds ........................................................................................................................................................ 39 Western yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) ....................................................................... 39 Tables and Figures ...................................................................................................................................... 44 Tables ...................................................................................................................................................... 44 Figures ..................................................................................................................................................... 47 Literature Cited ........................................................................................................................................... 68 i Appendix A: Allotment Existing Condition Tables Appendix B: Region 3 Soil Condition Assessment Framework Appendix C: Stockpond Management Plan Appendix D: Informal Consultation Requests ii Frequently Used Acronyms AGFD Arizona Game and Fish Department IDT Inter-Disciplinary Team BA biological assessment HWU Huachuca Water Umbel BAER Burned Area Emergency Response MSO Mexican spotted owl BMP Best Management Practice PAC Protected Activity Center BO biological opinion PCE Primary Constituent Element CH Critical Habitat PPC Pima pineapple cactus CHLT Canelo Hills ladies' tresses STS Sonoran tiger salamander CLF Chiricahua leopard frog TE Threatened and Endangered CM Conservation Measure THEQ northern Mexican gartersnake CNF Coronado National Forest USFWS Fish and Wildlife Service EA Environmental Assessment WUI Wildland-Urban Interface EMA Ecosystem Management Area YBCU western yellow-billed cuckoo EU Ecological Units iii Introduction Federally listed species are those that are listed under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA) (P. L. 93‐205, as amended) by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) as threatened and endangered and include those proposed for listing, and land or waters that are designated by USFWS as critical habitat in the proposed area of effect (action area of effects). Section 7 of the ESA requires Federal agencies to ensure that any activities they authorize, fund, or carry out do not jeopardize the continued existence of any species federally listed or proposed for listing, or result in the adverse modification to such species’ designated critical habitat. Forest Service Manual (FSM) 2670.31 directs each Forest to evaluate its programs and site-specific actions to determine their potential effect on federally listed species. The purpose of this programmatic Biological Assessment (BA) is to evaluate the effects of the on-going livestock grazing program for the Coronado National Forest (CNF) on federally proposed and listed threated and endangered species and their critical habitats. This BA describes conditions where effects may occur and attempts to establish governing criteria to which future actions will adhere. This BA analyzes the interaction of listed species and permitted actions related to grazing management and is structured to account for species movement into new areas, and the intent is that the effects of the grazing program on those species are covered in our analysis and in the resulting BO. The CNF requests initiation of Section 7 consultation of the CNF’s Livestock Grazing Program as defined by the Standards and Guidelines in the Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP; Forest Plan) (U.S. Forest Service [USFS] 2018) and the permitted allotment program and associated improvements, guided by monitoring and adaptive management, as described in the proposed action below. The proposed action does not include illegal or unauthorized activities not included in the description of the proposed action below; therefore, CNF’s request for consultation does not include these activities. Consultation History In October 2002, the USFWS issued a biological opinion (BO) to the CNF for the continuation of livestock grazing on the forest. Since that time, new species have become federally listed under the ESA, baseline conditions for several listed species and some grazing allotment alignments have changed, and ecological conditions have greatly improved since the conditions that were referenced (mid-1990s) in the previous consultation. A draft biological assessment (BA) was submitted to the USFWS in August 2018, and edits have been made to this BA to reflect comments from USFWS, as appropriate. Proposed Action Forest Plan Standards and Guidelines for Range Program The Forest Plan (USFS 2018) identifies the Desired Conditions and the Guidelines for the Range Program. Desired conditions set forth the desired social, economic, and ecological attributes of the CNF. They attempt to paint a picture of what the Forest Service desires the forests to look like and/or the goods and services we desire them to provide. Desired conditions are normally expressed in broad, general terms and may only be achievable over a long timeframe. In some cases, a desired condition matches the current condition, and the goal is to maintain it. Desired conditions are aspirations and are not commitments or final decisions to approve projects. 1 To be consistent with the desired conditions of the plan, a project or activity, when assessed at the appropriate spatial scale described in the plan (e.g., landscape scale), must be designed to meet one or more of the following conditions: 1. Maintain or make progress toward one or more of the desired conditions of a plan without adversely affecting progress toward, or maintenance of, other desired conditions; or 2. Be neutral with regard to progress toward plan desired conditions; or 3. Maintain or make progress toward one or more of the desired conditions over the long term, even if the project or activity would adversely affect progress toward or maintenance of one or more desired conditions in the short term; or 4. Maintain or make progress toward one or more of the desired conditions over the long term, even if the project or activity would adversely affect progress toward other desired conditions in a negligible way over the long term. Desired Conditions for the Range