nesting and roosting structures, once mature or late successional forest 

 structure had developed in the project area. Long-term foraging 

 structures would be adversely impacted through reduction in the 

 number of available snags that would eventually be recruited into 

 coarse woody debris and serve as habitat for carpenter ants, a pnmary 

 food item for pileated woodpeckers. 



Effects of the reductions in the snag population on pileated 

 woodpeckers may be partially mitigated by the proposed deferment of 

 approximately 126 acres of mixed severity bum. These acres have 

 largely retained their forest structure and snags. However, the mixed 

 severity burned areas are also most susceptible to infestation by bark 

 and woodboring beetles, which may make them candidates for future 

 salvage efforts. In which case, snags would be retained as descnbed 

 above (ARM 36. 11. 4 11). Thus, there would be low to moderate risk 

 of direct and indirect effects to pileated woodpeckers as a result of the 

 proposed action. 



4.3.3.2.1.4 Cumulative Effects of Alternative B: Harvest 



Cumulative effects of the proposed action relate primarily to long-term 

 impacts from the removal of fire-killed trees and the absence of 

 suitable pileated woodpecker habitat on adjacent private industrial 

 land. The presence and abundance of seed tree/shelterwood harvests 

 on private industrial lands within 1 mile of the project area 

 demonstrate that the only potential pileated woodpecker habitat within 

 the analysis area exists on School Trust land. With 330 acres of the 

 School Trust's 3,132 acres within the analysis area burned to some 

 degree (203 acres of stand replacement), the amount of potential 

 pileated habitat was reduced by 9%. As previously alluded to, the 

 potential for future salvage of insect-killed timber, as part of this 

 proposed action, poses some of the greatest risk to pileated 

 woodpecker habitat because it could reduce the presence of suitable 

 snags or snag recruits within forested stands that possess structure 

 suitable for nesting or roosting by pileated woodpeckers. Short-term 

 pileated woodpecker nesting and roosting habitat within the analysis 

 area could be reduced. However, under the proposed action, salvage 

 of current fire-killed and future insect-killed timber under this 

 proposed action, snags would be retained as described above (ARM 

 36.1 1.41 1) to provide for future pileated woodpecker habitat. Thus, 

 there would be low risk of cumulative effects to pileated woodpeckers 

 as a result of this proposed action. 



4.3.3.2.2 Black-backed woodpeckers 



Dirty Ike Salvage Environmental Assessment 4-18 



