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53232 Federal Register/Vol. 69, No. 168/Tuesday, August 31, 2004/Rules and Regulations tree species may also be present. Adjacent uplands are usually vegetated by a variety of plant associations including pinyon - juniper woodland, desert scrub vegetation, ponderosa pine - Gamble oak, ponderosa pine, or mixed - conifer. Owl habitat may also exhibit a combination of attributes between the forested and canyon types. (iv) The primary constituent elements for the Mexican spotted owl are: (A) Primary constituent elements related to forest structure: (1) A range of tree species, including mixed conifer, pine -oak, and riparian forest types, composed of different tree sizes reflecting different ages of trees, 30 percent to 45 percent of which are large trees with a trunk diameter of 12 inches (0.3 meters) or more when measured at 4.5 feet (1.4 meters) from the ground; (2) A shade canopy created by the tree branches covering 40 percent or more of the round; and (3 Large dead trees (snags) with a trunk diameter of at least 12 inches (0.3 meters) when measured at 4.5 feet (1.4 meters) from the.ground. (B) Primary constituent elements related to maintenance of adequate prey species: (1) High volumes of fallen trees and other woody debris; (2) A wide range of tree and plant species, including hardwoods; and (3) Adequate levels of residual plant cover to maintain fruits, seeds, and allow plant regeneration. (C) Primary constituent elements related to canyon habitat include one or more of the following: (1) Presence of water (often providing cooler and often higher humidity than the surrounding areas); (2) Clumps or stringers of mixed - conifer, pine -oak, pinyon - juniper, and/ or riparian vegetation; (3) Canyon wall containing crevices, ledges, or caves; and (4) High percent of ground litter and woody debris. (4) Lands located within the mapped boundaries of the critical habitat designation that are not included in this designation, and are therefore excluded by definition, include: State and private lands, 157 wildland urban interface projects and the Penasco WUI project area that contain owls or habitat on Forest Service lands that are identified in the Wildland Urban Interface database located at http: / /www.fs.fed.usl r3/wui/ and addressed in the April 10, 2001, final biological opinion on the Forest Service's proposed wildland urban interface fuel treatments in New Mexico and Arizona and the September 27, 2002, final biological opinion on the Rio Penasco II Non - Programmatic Vegetation Management Project and Forest Plan Amendment. The final biological opinions are available from the New Mexico Ecological Services Field Office, 2105 Osuna Road NE, Albuquerque, NM 87113. (5) Critical habitat is defined as those areas within the mapped boundaries. Federal actions within the mapped boundaries would not trigger a section 7 consultation unless they may affect the owl or affect protected or restricted habitat, which includes canyon habitat, and one or more of the primary constituent elements. (6) The minimum mapping unit for this designation does not exclude all developed areas, such as buildings, roads, bridges, parking lots, railroad tracks, other paved areas, the lands that support these features, and other lands unlikely to contain the primary constituent elements. Federal actions limited to these areas would not trigger a section 7 consultation, unless they affect protected or restricted habitat and one or more of the primary constituent elements in adjacent critical habitat. (7) Overview map of general locations of critical habitat for the Mexican spotted owl follows: BILLING CODE 4310 -55-P