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1 Bluestone and Section 16 Wildlife Issues Report Weslem P.ggregates, Inc <br />' Listed S ep ties Candidate Species <br />' Bald ea€;le, Haliaeetos leucocep!]alus Texas horned lizard, Pl:ryttosoma comutum <br />Peregrine falcon, Falco peregrirlus Harlequin duck, Histrio~ticus liistriolticus <br />Whooping crane, Crus americarta Ferruginous hawk, Buteo regalis <br />Piping plover, Charadrius melodius White-faced ibis, Plegadis chihi <br />Least tern, Stenla antillarum Mountain plover, C!]aradrius montanus <br />' Black-footed ferret, Mustela iligripes Western snowy plover, Charadrius alexandri~tus <br />Long-billed curlew, Nume~lius america~tus <br />Black tern, Chilodo~lias ]]iger <br />' Loggerhead shrike, Lnnius ludoviciartus <br />Fringe-tailed myotis, Myotis thysal:oides <br />' Preble's meadow jumping mouse, Zapus!]udsonius <br />preblei <br />Swift fox, vulpes velox <br />1 <br />USDOE's (1994a) assessment considered the potential presence of these species at 2 <br />' alternative landfill sites based on environmental data collected throughout the entire RFP <br />buffer zone. The 2 landfill sites support habitats adjacent to, and virtually identical to, those <br />' on the Bluestone and Section 16 mining areas. Indeed, the Bluestone expansion area is <br />within the buffer zone and the Section 16 mining area is contiguous to the southwest. <br />Potential T&E species habitat use of the landfill sites versus mining areas are virtually <br />identical, with one exception. Rocky Flats Lake on Section 16 represents a large water body <br />not press:nt within the RFP buffer zone. USDOE (1994b) concluded "that no threatened <br />or endangered or candidate species would be affected by the proposed action". <br />There have been no specific surveys of either proposed mining area for any threatened, <br />' endangered, or candidate species. The assessments, below, of "T&E" species use of the <br />Bluestone and Section 16 mining areas, and potential mining effects on those species, are <br />based on local habitats present, distributional and specific studies conducted on and adjacent <br />' to the RFP buffer zone (of which both mining areas are essentially a part), and known <br />habitat a:Ffinities of subject species. <br />1 <br />4.2.1 THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES <br />1 Bald Eaele <br />' Bald eagles are winter residents in the general area overlapping the 2 proposed mining <br />areas. They generally arrive around November 1 and depart around April 1. Local bald <br />eagle use consists of individual or low numbers of eagles occasionally hunting the area <br />' (USDOE 1994a). There are no nests or roost trees with unique thermal characteristics <br />1 <br />Western Ecos'yslems, Inc 14 December, 1994 <br />