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6.4.8 Exhibit H -Wildlife Information Wildlife Assessment Site Description Savage and Savage conducted a wildlife assessment for the Hall-Irwin Bernhardt resource site on July 14, 2002. The Bernhardt resource site is comprised of approximately 250 acres in the S'h of Section 1 in Township 4 North, Range 67 West of the 6m Prime Meridian in Milliken, Weld County, Colorado. The property is bounded on the north by the Big Thompson River and an agricultural field and field lot, the east by Weld County Road 25, south by Weld County Road 48, and west by Weld County Road 23 (see wildlife habitat map). The property was accessed from Weld County Roads 23, 25, and 48. Weather during our site investigation was hot, dry, and clear with a high temperature in the mid-90's (°F). The topography of the site is dominated by the primary and secondary alluvial terraces of the Big Thompson River. Discontinuous sandstone outcrops form bluffs (up to 25 feet) along the north bank of the Big Thompson River adjacent to the property. The elevation of the study area averages 4730 feet and slopes gently to the north towazd the Big Thompson Rivet The soils that dominate the site aze formed from alluvium and consist of foams and clays underlain by sandy clay. The significant hydrologic feature on the site is the Big Thompson River. An unnamed irrigation ditch enters the site along the west edge of the property, traverses the center of the property, and flows into the Big Thompson River north of the Milliken Water Treatment Plan_ Another Swale/ditch complex originates northeast of the feedlot along Weld County Road 48 and flows northeast across Weld County Road 23 terminating at the Big Thompson River. An open canopy of plains cottonwoods (Populus de[toides) dominates the riparian corridor adjacent to the Big Thompson River. This open ripazian corridor is donnated by mature cottonwoods with an open graminoid and forb understory. Other scattered trees along the ripazian corridor include Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia) and peach-leaf willow (Salix amygdaloides). Dominant understory graminoid species consist of western wheatgrass (Agropyron smithit), inland saltgrass (Distichlis spicata), smooth brome (Bromus inermis), fescue (Festuca sp.), and cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum). Several weedy species also dominated the understory including musk thistle (Carduus nutans), diffuse knapweed (Centaurea d~usa), and tansy mustard (Descurainia pinrtata). The remainder of the site is planted to corn. Signifrcant Wi[dlije Resources Tables 1, 2, and 3 Gst wildlife species that potentially occur on-site according to the Colorado Distribution Latilong Studies (CDOW, 1981, 1990, 1998). The latilong studies address mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians.