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• <br /> <br />Environmental Assessment -Mexican Spotted Owl Critical Habitat Designation <br />January, 2001 <br />(3) Cover or sheher; <br />(4) Sites for breeding, reproduction, or rearing of offspring; and <br />(5) Habitats that are protected from disturbances or are representative of the historic <br />geographical and ecological distribution of a species. <br />2.0 Description of Alternatives <br />The Service considered the No Action Alternative as required by NEPA. The Action Altemative <br />is to designate critical habitat as ordered by the court. <br />2.1 No Action Altemative <br />The No Action alternative is defined as a decision to forgo the designation of critical habitat for <br />[he Mexican spotted owl. This alternative serves to delineate the existing environment and <br />conditions that are anticipated to result from the listing of [he species, without designation of <br />critical habitat. Since the listing of the species as threatened, the Mexican spotted owl has been <br />protected under section 7 of the Act by prohibiting Federal agencies from implementing actions <br />that would jeopardize the continued existence of the species. This protection under the Act is <br />considered the baseline against which we evaluate the action alternatives described below. <br />2.2 Action Alternatives <br />The Action Alternatives each would include designation of critical habitat in areas believed to <br />contain the physical and biological features upon which the Mexican spotted owl depends. The <br />Act refers to these essential habitat features as "primary constituent elements." We determined <br />the primary constituent elements for Mexican spotted owl from studies of their habitat <br />requirements and the information provided in the Recovery Plan (USDI 1995 and references <br />therein). Since owl habitat can include both canyon and forested areas, we identified primary <br />constituent elements in both areas. Within restricted habitat (described in the Recovery Plan, <br />Volume I, part III, pages 84-95, including Table III.B.1), mixed conifer, pine-oak, and riparian <br />forest types that currently contain or may attain the habitat attributes believed capable of <br />supporting nesting and roosting owls include: <br />-high basal area of large diameter trees; <br />-moderate to high canopy closure; <br />-wide range of tree sizes suggestive of uneven-age stands; <br />- multi-layered canopy with large overstory trees of various species; <br />-high snag basal area; <br />- high volumes of fallen trees and other woody debris; <br />- high plant species richness, including hardwoods; and <br />- adequate levels of residual plant cover to maintain frnits, seeds, atd regeneration to <br />