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De:cembcr 1.2008 Page 3-16 in the West Flatiron LBA tract and surrounding areas. Bald eagles occur in the North Fork Valley in winter, using tall riparian trees (such as cottonwoods) for nocturnal roosts and foraging widely over the surrounding landscape during the day. Bald eagles may occur in the LBA tract during daily foraging. Bald eagles winter in the area, and the northern edge of the LBA tract on BLM (approximately 10 acres) and private land (approximately 52 acres) is classified as a winter concentration area by the Colorado Division of W ildlife. The remainder of the LBA tract may be used for incidental foraging, but there are no other essential habitats, such as nests or communal roosts located on or near the proposed LBA tract (BLM 1989, CDOW 2003). Canada Lynx. The Fish and Wildlife Service listed Canada lynx in the continuous U.S. as threatened in 2000 (Fish and Wildlife Service, 2000), in response to apparent population declines and range contractions. No critical habitat has been designated. Lynx were apparently extirpated from Colorado by the 1970s, and beginning in 1999 Colorado Division of Wildlife has released 135 lynx in the San Juan Mountains to re-establish the species in Colorado. Suitable lynx habitat includes primary habitat of coniferous forests of spruce and fir or lodgepole pine, and secondary habitat of aspen or Douglas-fir mixed with primary coniferous habitat, between 8,000 and 11,500 feet elevation (Ruediger et al., 2000). Lynx also periodically utilize or cross most other habitats. Lynx denning habitat (primarily Douglas-fir forest) and "other" habitat (primarily riparian or aspen forests) are mapped by the Forest Service and Fish and Wildlife Service in about 40 percent of the LBA area. No substantial areas of winter habitat are mapped in the LBA area. The LBA area is within the Mount Gunnison Lynx Analysis Unit (LAU) which constitutes enough habitat to provide a home range for one pair of lynx. About 60 percent of the Mount Gunnison LAU is considered unsuitable habitat for lynx. It is not well known how lynx in the Southern Rockies historically utilized such areas, but the Lynx Conservation Assessment and Strategy (Ruediger et al., 2000) notes that shrub- steppe habitats may provide connectivity between large habitat blocks, particularly along riparian corridors and ridges. Lynx occupancy levels in the West Elk Mountains are not well known. The Colorado Division of Wildlife has documented two radio-collared lynx passing through the vicinity (Madariaga, 2003; Broderdorp, 2003). Lynx are not known to occupy the mostly marginal quality habitat in the LBA tract, but lynx could occasionally use drainages as movement corridors. American Peregrine Falcon. American peregrine falcons nest on cliffs and forage over adjacent forests and riparian areas. Migrants and winter residents occur mostly around lower elevation reservoirs, rivers, marshes and agricultural areas. In Colorado, peregrine falcons are rare summer residents in foothills and lower mountains. The Colorado Division of Wildlife has reintroduced peregrines to many former nesting sites and about 100 nesting sites are known in the state. Peregrines are occasionally seen in the North Fork Valley, mostly in spring through fall, and a nest site is known near the Town of Crawford. In 2002, biologists sighted a peregrine in the cliffs on the east side of West Flatiron, and the Forest Service plans to search the site for a peregrine nest in 2004. Northern Goshawk. In Colorado, northern goshawks nest in dense coniferous forests, often on slopes and up to 10,000 feet elevation (Kingery, 1998). In the Paonia Ranger District, goshawk nests have been found in aspen trees in late-successional stands of spruce-fir mixed with aspen and in pure aspen stands (Wang, 2002). No goshawk nests are known in or near the LBA area, and nesting habitat is limited by the En~~~ronrnr:,~E«~~ Assessment 'Pl.si I='.au~on LB?. Tract Gunrlscn Cou;ity+, Colorado