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. . Appr~x~~tely 53~cres of vegetation WJ.ll be 1<;'3'1 through con- , structJ.on actJ.V1t1es. Imp~s would occur along road margJi!ls where vege- tation is established on the road shoulders and along the Ormiston Road. Vegetation would be removed along all roadways to a maximium of 5 feet horizontally beyond the cut slopes and 6 feet horizontally beyond the fill shoulders. D. Wildlife Wildlife resources in the area are as varied as the habitat types present in the project area. Numerous species of small mammals, including Colorado chipmunk, cottontail rabbits, and snowshoes nares, are found in the project area. The species of major concern are the big game, mule deer and elk. These. species use the area as winter range. For a detailed description of the wildlife resources 1n the pro- ject area, see the publications FES 77-12, and the Colorado Vivision of wildlife Report (1974) Analysis Fish and Wildlife Kesources Dolores Kiver Project Area. These reports are available for reV1ew 1n the Uurango Pro- jects Office of the Bureau of Reclamation. No significant impacts to the wildife species in the area would occur. The road upgrading alternative dictates that the upgrading earth- work follow the existing road alignments. Approximately, 53 acres of hab- itat would be lost in the form of roadside shoulders, cleared ditches and that portion of the Ormiston Point Road converted into a permanent traffic road. The small amount of lost habitat woula displace a few individuals. Revegetation of the disturbed areas along the road shoulders would return Some of the lost roadside habitat. Increased traffic as a result of improving the road surfaces may result in slightly higher road kills, however, the designed road speed for the improvement would oe 11m- ited to 40 mph and 30 mph on county and forest service roads, respectively. These restrictions would help reduce the frequency of human-wildlife interactions during the winter months. E. Threatened and Endangered Species The bald eagle, which has been observed flying over portions of the project area is the only Federally listed endangered species known to occur in the project area. Preferred habitat for this spec1es 15 tyP"- cally found at lower elevations. The Biologic Opinion required under ~ec- tion 7 of the Threatened and Endangered Species Act for the Dolores Pro- ject provides information for the project area. A finding of no jeopardy to the species was rendered by the Fish and Wildlife Service. F. Cultural Resources Cultural resources are extensive in the Dolores Project area. Nearly 1,000 prehistoric and historic cultural resources ranging from small lithic scatters to Anasazi habitatation sites nave been recorded within the 15,274 acres of the Mcphee Reservior right-of-ways. These sites are also within the Anasazi Archeological uistrict and most are "significant" under the National Register of Historic Places criteria. 6