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address wildlife recources of both the Dow West permit area on <br />upper Parachute Creek and the two permit areas near Grand Valley. <br />MAMMALS <br />Appendix A of this Exhibit presents an annotated species list <br />of mammals occurring or likely to occur within the permit areas. <br />Status,. relative abundance, and habitat are included in the tables. <br />A description of the more common or important species inhabiting. <br />the permit areas follows: <br />DEER AND ELR <br />The Colony permit areas lie within Colorado Division of. Wildlife <br />(DOW) Game Management Unit (GMU) #32 (Fi.gure H-1.). Deer and <br />elk are particularly important for economic (recr.eational) and <br />aesthetic reasons, although they are not as important .ecologically <br />as the more abundant but less conspicuous. small herbivores. <br />Essentially,. the. entire unit is deer summer range, with about <br />one-quarter of the area, principally that below about 7,500 feet, <br />providing deer winter range as well (Cringan 1973a).. The winteE <br />concentration of deer in lower elevations, particularly valley <br />bottoms is attributable to more snow-free conditions (affecting <br />both the availability of browse and water and the ease of movement) <br />and milder temperatures. The restricted amount of suitable winter <br />range on the permit areas (Figure H-2) apparently is the dominant <br />factor limiting deer populations. Death by starvation and~or <br />exhaustion is especially prevalent during severe winters when <br />lower areas are subject to extended periods of deep snow cover.. <br />Neil (1972a) estimated that more than 1,400 deer died in the <br />Parachute Creek Valley during the severe winter of 1972=1973.. <br />Concentration of deer in narrow valley bottoms also increases <br />the potential for roadkill frequencies.. <br />~~ <br />H-2 <br />