Specific Comments on Platte River Draft EIS

• File Number: 8461.100
• Description: Adaptive Management Workgroup
• State: CO
• Basin: South Platte
• Water Division: 1
• Date: 9/17/2004
• Author: CWCB
• Title: Specific Comments on Platte River Draft EIS
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Board Memo

Significant problems were encountered by Allen
of identification of species, but also the locatiot
rejected 68 percent of the reported sightings by :
Brooking, early researchers on the Platte. Ho
questionable, at least. Therefore, the "old records
that would support critical habitat designation.
observational effort of whooping cranes on the Pl
to 1940.
The confirmed sighting data and the analysis of
for designating the Platte River in central Nebra
today for maintaining that designation. Furthe
confirms the lack of defensible credible scienl
uni ue life cycle or life-sustaining functions proi
whooping cranes flying over the Platte find mil
evidence to conclude that the conditions on the
of the whooping crane and do not limit recovery.
2.4 Habitat Suitability Guidelines for
The confirmed sighting data for the whooping cra
have no preference for the Platte River. Recent d
indicates that only 2.4 percent of the whooping (
near the Platte. This data shows that there is nc
"suitable habitaY" allegedly found on the Platte
whooping cranes flying over the Platte were not
more whooping cranes are known to have stopp
more were observed in the wetlands of the Raim
River. (EA, 1985). Yet these areas are not design
1952) in reviewing the records, not only in terms
where these species reportedly occurred. Allen
wenk and 92 percent of the sightings reported by
Never, many of the records Allen accepted are
' on the Platte do not qualify as scientific evidence
The records are also highly biased due to the
atte as opposed to other areas on the flyway, prior
:)rical data clearly show that there was no basis
as critical habitat in 1978 and there is no basis
re, the scant use of the Platte by the species
data indicating the presence of any essential
1 only by the Platte, given that 97 percent of the
:)n habitat elsewhere. The data provide ample
e River do not affect the likelihood of survival
Cranes
e on the Platte River shows that whooping cranes
ta supported by intense observation on the Platte
•anes flying over the Platte were observed on or
species "preference" for the Platte River, or the
Over the last 34 years, 97.6 percent of the
bserved on the Platte. Between 1950 and 1984,
3 on the Niobrara River than on the Platte, and
ater Basin south of the Platte than on the Platte
:ed as critical habitat.
The radio-tracking studies provide empirical p oof that the migrant whooping cranes are not
dependent on specific stopovers sights along the flyway. Rather, whooping cranes exhibit a non-
traditional (opportunistic) habitat selection stra egy along the flyway that has direct survival
advantage. This strategy enables the species to adjust its changing habitat conditions within the
migration corridor.
The only systematic survey of whooping crane h,
USFWS (described in EA, 1985). While the conj
preference for the Platte River, radio-tracking
variety of croplands and roosted in marshy wetl;
less than 4 ha (75 percent) and within one kilome
of the roosting wetlands were smaller than 0.5 ha
itat use is the radio-tracking surveys conducted by
rned sighting data show that there is no habitat
xrveys show that whooping cranes "fed from a
ids." The majority of the roosting wetlands were
;r of a suitable feeding site. More than 40 percent
Whooping Crane Recovery Plan).
A-116