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Section 2.04.11 Page 4 January 2025 (MR-39) <br />type (9 species) was found to possess an avian population of 36.0 individuals/km. The Upland <br />Sagebrush vegetation type was found to possess eight species and a population density of 22.7 <br />individuals/km. The Grassland pasture vegetation type was found to be the homogeneous <br />vegetation type evaluated and possessed four species with a density of 26.0 individuals/km. The <br />most commonly observed passerine species in decreasing order of abundance were: Red-winged <br />Blackbird, Violet-Green Swallow, Common Crow, and Western Meadowlark. Winter passerine <br />bird surveys resulted in only six avian species being encountered, with the White-crowned <br />Sparrow, Oregon Junco, Western Meadowlark and Raven being the only species observed. <br /> <br />A total of five raptorial bird species were reported, consisting of the Red-tailed Hawk, American <br />Kestrel, Cooper’s Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk, and Marsh Hawk. The locations of the raptorial <br />sittings are found on Map 2.04.11-1, New Horizon North Mine - Wildlife Map. Only two species <br />of upland game birds; Ring-necked Pheasant and Mourning Dove were encountered. <br /> <br />With respect to Big Game species, it was reported that Elk were sighted two miles north and east <br />of the site in the Pinyon-Juniper habitat type and Mule Deer were reported to be year round <br />residents of the area. This report states that this area is considered to be marginal winter habitat <br />for Elk and that the area was not considered to represent good Mule Deer habitat. <br /> <br />Mammalian predators were determined using the scent-station technique and the species <br />encountered in the immediate study area were: Coyote, Skunk, Raccoon and Fox. Adjacent <br />scent-station inventories performed by the USFWS were reported to include: Coyote, Gray Fox, <br />Bobcat, Skunk, Raccoon and Red Fox. Mountain Lions are known to occur in the area as well. <br /> <br />Reptiles and amphibians were represented by: Western Garter snake, Chorus Frog, Great Basin <br />Spadefoot, Sagebrush lizard, Eastern Fence lizard, Bull snake, Racer, and Western Rattlesnake. <br />Insect inventories reveals that the Grassland Pasture vegetation type possessed the highest <br />number of insects (17.2 insects/m2), followed by the Revegetation vegetation type (2.5 <br />insects/m2), and Upland Sagebrush (1.9 insects/m2). <br /> <br />Threatened and Endangered Species surveys performed in connection with the 1979/80 wildlife <br />studies reveals that five potential species could occur in the project area (American Peregrine <br />Falcon, Northern Bald Eagle, Whooping Crane, Black-footed Ferret and Gray Wolf). However, <br />intensive site investigations revealed that none of these species were present in this area and that <br />suitable habitat for these species was lacking in the immediate area. <br /> <br />With respect to “important wildlife habitat” occurring in this area, Mariah and Associates, <br />concluded that the Mule Deer and Ring-necked Pheasant were the only important wildlife <br />species that occur in or near the study area and they reported that these species “are only