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RESULTS <br />BIG GAME <br />The sky was mostly clear during the aerial survey on 3 February 2005. Snow cover was <br />patchy, with bare ground on southern and western slopes and approximately 1 to 2 feet of snow <br />cover in other areas. In general, snowfall was lower than average for the area during winter <br />2004-2005. Visibility during the survey was rated as good. <br />Expanded Survev Area <br />All wildlife observations from the aerial survey aze listed in Appendix I. Big game <br />observations are also illustrated on Exhibit 1. A total of 967 elk (10.8/mil) in 84 herds were seen <br />during the survey (Figure 1). Twenty mule deer herds (138 animals) were also observed. <br />Elk herd size vazied from 1 to 80 animals, and averaged 11.5 individuals. Elk were <br />widely distributed throughout the area, but were notably absent from the north central, southeast, <br />and extreme northwest portions of the expanded area (Exhibit 1). The predominant habitat types <br /> <br />in those portions of the survey area were agricultural fields, reclamation, and level grasslands. • <br />Sixty-two percent (598) of the elk observed were associated with mountain brush habitat. <br />Sagebrush-grassland habitat contained 24% (236) of the elk observed. The remaining elk were <br />observed in reclaimed grassland (62), natural grassland (37), aspen (29), and fir (5) habitats. <br />TWC has surveyed the expanded area 12 times: December 1994, each January from 1995 <br />through 1998, each February from 1999 through 2002 and in 2005, and March of 2003 and 2004. <br />Elk densities in the expanded area ranged from 1.9 to 16.5 elk/mi2 during 1994-2005. With the <br />exception of five yeazs (1994, 1996, 1998, 2003, and 2005), elk densities in the expanded area <br />have remained relatively constant, ranging from 7.3 to 9.2 elk/mi2 (Figure 1). The low density <br />recorded during the December 1994 survey was likely due to poor ground conditions (patchy <br />snow cover) and the use of a fixed-wing aircraft for the survey. These factors likely affected the <br />observers' ability to detect animals and resulted in under counting. Considerably more elk were <br />observed one month later, January 1995, when the area was surveyed from a helicopter. The <br />high elk densities observed in 1996 (16.5 elk/mi2) and 2003 (13.0 elk/mi2) were likely influenced <br />by excessive snowpack during those yeazs in the higher elevations of the Williams Fork <br />Mountains. The deep snow likely pushed the ungulates out of the higher elevations and north • <br />2005 Yoast Mine Wildlife Monitoring Page 4 <br />