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from the north-central and southeast edge of the area; elk were very sparse in the southwest <br />and extreme northwest corners of the area (Exhibit 1). The predominant habitat types in those <br />portions of the survey area, except in the southwest, are agricultural fields and flat grasslands. <br />Three herds were observed on the Seneca II permit area, two herds were seen on Yoast, and no <br />elk were recorded on the Seneca II-W permit area. <br />Ninety-eight percent of the elk seen (668) were in mountain brush habitat. A few elk <br />were also seen in sagebrush-grassland (7) and reclaimed grassland (4). <br />PRES has surveyed the expanded area seven times: in December 1994, each January <br />from 1995 through 1998, and in February 1999 and 2000. The very low density recorded <br />during the December 1994 survey (Figure 1) was probably due to poor ground conditions <br />(patchy snow cover) and the use of a fixed-wing aircraft for the survey. Both of those factors <br />affected the observers' ability to detect animals and resulted in under counting. Considerably <br />more elk were seen a month later, January 1995, when the area was surveyed from a <br />helicopter. Observed elk density in January 1996 was substantially greater than the densities <br />recorded during previous surveys. Snowfall from the onset of winter through January 1996 <br />• was considerably greater than in other years. Excessive snow probably pushed more animals <br />out of the higher elevations of the Williams Fork Mountains and north into the survey area in <br />January 1996. Both snowpack and elk density were relatively low during surveys in 1997, <br />1999, and 2000. Although snow fall was also minimal during winter 1997-1998, the density of <br />elk in the area during January 1998 was the second highest ever observed. <br />Herds were widely distributed over the expanded area during each of the seven surveys. <br />However, herds were always conspicuously absent from the agricultural fields and grasslands <br />in the northwest, north-central, and southeast parts of the area. Because there are no tall <br />grasses or shrubs in those habitats, the vegetation is typically covered by snow in winter. <br />Consequently, there is little readily available winter forage for big game in those portions of <br />the survey area. In most years, more herds were observed on the Yoast permit area than on <br />either the Seneca II or Seneca II-W permit areas. <br />n <br />U <br />2000 Seneca II-W Mine Wildlife Monitoring Page 4 <br />