Protection, Restoration, and Management of Terrestrial Habitats and Species of the Willamette Sub-Basin Technical Appendix 1 Contents 1. Introduction 1 1.1 Purpose and Objectives 1 1.2 Scope and Scale of the Report 2 1.3 Principal Sources of Data 5 1.4 Analytical Approaches 7 1.5 Building Upon Previous Efforts 11 1.6 How to Apply this Report and Databases to Decision-making 14 2. Focal Habitats and Associated Focal Species 31 2.1 Introduction 31 2.2 Focal Habitat: Oak Woodlands 37 2.2.1 Definition 37 2.2.2 Recognition of Importance 37 2.2.3 Status and Distribution 37 2.2.4 Past Impacts, Limiting Factors, and Future Threats 38 2.2.5 Protection, Restoration, and Management 39 2.2.6 Compatibility of Oak Woodland Management and Stream Habitat Management. 40 2.2.7 Contribution of Oak Woodlands to Regional Biodiversity 40 2.2.8 Selected Focal Species 40 2.2.9 Synthesis: Indicators of Oak Woodland Ecological Condition and Sustainability 53 2.3 Focal Habitat: Upland Prairie, Savanna, and Rock Outcrops 55 2.3.1 Description 55 2.3.2 Recognition of Importance 55 2.3.3 Status and Distribution 56 2.3.4 Past Impacts, Limiting Factors, and Future Threats 57 2.3.5 Protection, Restoration, and Management 58 2.3.6 Compatibility of Upland Prairie-Savanna Management and Stream Management 58 2.3.7 Contribution of Upland Prairie-Savanna to Regional Biodiversity 59 2.3.8 Selected Focal Species 59 2.3.9 Synthesis: Indicators of Ecological Condition and Sustainability for Upland Prairie- Savanna 77 2.4 Focal Habitat: Wetland Prairie and Seasonal Marsh 81 2.4.1 Description 81 2.4.2 Recognition of Importance 81 2.4.3 Status and Distribution 82 2.4.4 Past Impacts, Limiting Factors, and Future Threats 82 2.4.5 Protection, Restoration, Management 83 2.4.6 Compatibility of Wetland Management and Stream Management 84 2.4.7 Contribution of Wetland Prairies to Regional Biodiversity 84 2.4.8 Selected Focal Species 84 2.4.9 Synthesis: Indicators of Wetland Ecological Condition and Sustainability 98 2.5 Focal Habitat: Perennial Ponds and Their Riparian Areas 101 2.5.1 Description 101 2.5.2 Recognition of Importance 101 2.5.3 Status and Distribution 101 2 2.5.4 Past Impacts, Limiting Factors, and Future Threats 102 2.5.5 Protection, Restoration, Management 103 2.5.6 Compatibility of Pond Management and Stream Management 103 2.5.7 Contribution of Ponds and Their Riparian Areas to Regional Biodiversity 103 2.5.8 Selected Focal Species 104 2.5.9 Synthesis: Indicators of Pond Riparian Ecological Condition and Sustainability 114 2.6 Focal Habitat: Riparian Areas of Rivers and Streams 116 2.6.1 Description 116 2.6.2 Recognition of Importance 116 2.6.3 Status and Distribution 116 2.6.4 Past Impacts, Limiting Factors, and Future Threats 116 2.6.5 Protection, Restoration, Management 117 2.6.6 Compatibility of Wildlife Management and Stream Management 118 2.6.7 Contribution of Stream Riparian Areas to Regional Biodiversity 119 2.6.8 Selected Focal Species 120 2.6.9 Synthesis: Indicators of Ecological Condition and Sustainability of Stream Riparian Habitat 133 2.7 Focal Habitat: Old Growth Conifer Forest 135 2.7.1 Description 135 2.7.2 Recognition of Importance 135 2.7.3 Status and Distribution 135 2.7.4 Past Impacts, Limiting Factors, and Future Threats 136 2.7.5 Protection, Restoration, Management 137 2.7.6 Compatibility of Old Growth Management and Stream Management 138 2.7.7 Contribution of Old Growth Forest to Regional Biodiversity 138 2.7.8 Selected Focal Species 138 2.7.9 Synthesis: Indicators of Old Growth Ecological Condition and Sustainability 154 2.8 Non-focal Natural Habitats of Note 155 2.9 Non-focal Developed Habitats of Note 157 2.10 Interspecies Relationships: Wildlife and Fish 158 3. Conservation Efficiency 164 3.1 Efficiency of the Selected Priority Conservation Areas 164 3.2 Efficiency of Focal Species 175 3.2.1 Application Example 1 177 3.2.2 Application Example 2 177 3.2.3 Application Example 3 178 3.2.4 Application Example 4 180 3.2.5 Application Example 5 183 4. Environmental Correlates and Limiting Factors 185 4.1 Major Types of Environmental Correlates and Limiting Factors 185 4.2 Limiting Factor: Habitat Loss (Land Conversion) 192 4.2.1 Habitat Availability: Current Conditions 192 4.2.2 Habitat Availability: Looking Back 195 4.2.3 Habitat Availability: Looking Ahead 226 4.2.4 Consequences of Habitat Loss (Land Conversion) for Wildlife 226 4.2.5 How Much Habitat is Enough? 237 3 4.2.6 Ability of Restoration and Management to Reverse Habitat Losses 237 4.3 Limiting Factors: Habitat Degradation and Fragmentation 243 4.3.1 Roads and Other Barriers 246 4.3.2 Vegetation Change 247 4.3.3 Diminished Supply of Dead Wood 248 4.3.4 Water Regime Change 248 4.3.5 Pollution 249 4.3.6 Temperature Change 250 4.3.7 Soil Degradation 250 4.3.8 Harassment 250 4.3.9 Invasive Species, Pathogens, and Parasites 251 4.4 Geography of Disturbance Within the Subbasin 252 4.5 Limiting Factors Outside the Subbasin 252 5. Synthesis 256 5.1 Working Hypotheses: Limiting Factors and Conditions 256 5.2 Desired Future Conditions 256 5.3 Opportunities for Protection and Restoration 257 6. Management Plan 258 6.1 Vision for the Willamette Subbasin 258 6.2 Biological Objectives for the Willamette Subbasin 258 6.3. Prioritized Strategies for the Willamette Subbasin 258 6.4 Consistency with ESA/CWA Requirements 264 6.5 Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation to Support the Objectives 264 7. Literature Cited 266 4 Detail Files and Map Files (ftp from: http://oregonstate.edu/~adamusp/ ) (if difficulties encountered, email: [email protected]) HABTYPE HABSTRUC SPHABHUC6 SPHABCOR UNSWEPT ERC_PCAoverlap_by_PCA HistoricalVegTNC_by_PCA PresentVegEC90_by_Wshed PresentVegNHI_by_Wshed+Owner HistoricalVegNHI_by_Wshed+Owner VegChangeNHI_by_Wshed+Owner FocSpNHIchange_by_Wshed HUC6map PCAmap 5 List of Tables Table 1. Species not included in the analysis and which use the Willamette Basin only during winter or migration or as non-breeders in summer ................................................................. 4 Table 2. Background considerations important to correctly applying and interpreting the species models and geographic distribution data used as a basis for Detail Files HABTYPE, HABSTRUC, and SPHABWRB. ........................................................................................... 9 Table 3. Summary: percent of ERC-identified Conservation and Restoration Opportunity Areas (CROAs) included within TNC-identified Priority Conservation Areas (PCAs) ................. 15 Table 4. Area of each CROA type included in each PCA ............................................................ 16 Table 5. Acreage of Priority Conservation Area (PCA) in each watershed (HUC6) of the Willamette subbasin .............................................................................................................. 20 Table 6. Extent of undeveloped land and buildable land within boundaries of the Priority Conservation Areas (PCAs), and their overlap with Conservation and Restoration Opportunity Areas (CROAs) ................................................................................................ 25 Table 7. Focal habitat types and threats associated with Willamette subbasin Priority Conservation Areas (PCAs) identified by TNC’s Ecoregional Assessment ........................ 28 Table 8. Comparison of focal habitats in this report with habitats identified by selected previous plans and assessments that address wildlife in the Willamette subbasin .............................. 33 Table 9. Comparison of focal species with species identified as “indicators” or “focal species” by previous wildlife plans and assessments in the Willamette subbasin, grouped by the most similar focal habitat type ....................................................................................................... 34 Table 10. Acreage estimates of land cover types that include oak woodland .............................. 38 Table 11. Acreage estimates of land cover types that include upland prairie-savanna ................ 56 Table 12. Remaining upland prairies of the Willamette Valley ................................................... 56 Table 13. Native plant species characteristic of prairie, savanna, and rocky outcrops of the Willamette subbasin .............................................................................................................. 79 Table 14. Acreage estimates of land cover types that include wetland prairie and seasonal marsh ............................................................................................................................................... 82 Table 15. Native plant species that often characterize wetland prairies and/or seasonal marshes in the Willamette Valley. ........................................................................................................ 100 Table 16. Acreage estimates of land cover types that include lentic habitat .............................. 101 Table 17. Acreage estimates of land cover types that include stream riparian habitat ............... 116 Table 18. Changes in acres of channel habitat of the Willamette River, Eugene to Portland. ... 117 Table 19. Area of the Willamette Valley inundated by major floods since 1860 ....................... 117 Table 20. Mean and maximum (among-year) counts of bald eagles from USFWS mid-winter survey routes in the Willamette subbasin, 1988-2000 ........................................................ 125 Table 21. Watersheds with the most old-growth conifer forest in the early 1990s, based