Laserfiche WebLink
• trend in attendance follows that of the total number of grouse. Male attendance at all leks within <br />the Seneca II-W area has always been low, with no more than eight identified males at a lek in <br />any year since grouse were first documented in the area in 1998. Although annual counts at leks <br />can be biased by factors such as weather conditions during surveys, the number of site visits, and <br />vegetative features (which can obscure observation), previous years weather events and <br />conditions are an important factor driving observed fluctuations in sharp-tailed grouse <br />populations and consequently the number of grouse at leks. In years following drought, lower <br />numbers of males per lek are generally observed, where as increased numbers of males per lek <br />generally occurs following years of average to above average precipitation or when spring and <br />summer moisture falls at the optimum time to maximize reproduction and brood survival. <br />Blue grouse (Dendragapus obscurus) were documented at two sites on the Seneca II-W <br />permit area during the 2007 site visit. Early on the morning of 24 April, one male blue grouse <br />was observed displaying along a berm just east of the powder magazines in SE NW Section 22 <br />TSN, R88W. Later that same morning, another displaying male was reported on a berm at the <br />• edge of reclamation in NW NW Section 26. Blue grouse are typically documented in the Seneca <br />II-W area each spring, with most of the sightings being concentrated in Sections 22 and 23. <br />GOLDEN EAGLE NESTING <br />A cluster of five golden eagle nests are present on the cliff face above Hubberson Gulch <br />in Sections 16 and 21, TSN, R88W (Exhibit 1). On 24 April, a pair of eagles was observed <br />feeding at least one young chick, seven to ten days of age. That territory has been monitored <br />annually since 1996, and was known to be active during at least 11 of those 13 years. No activity <br />was documented in 1998 or 1999. <br />SANDHILL CRANE ACTIVITY <br />No sandhill cranes were documented in the Seneca II-W area during 2007. However, <br />biologists heard cranes calling from west of the permit area in the vicinity of Hubberson Gulch in <br />SE NE Section 21 TSN, R88W on the morning of 24 April. <br />U <br />2007 Seneca II-W Mine Wildlife Monitoring Page 1 1 <br />