within the stipulations in the SVGBCA and 

 are expected to result in no to minor direct 

 effects to grizzly bears. 



in the proposed harvest units, trampling of 

 vegetation and construction of skid trails 

 could slightly alter small pockets or strips of 

 hiding cover, visual screening, and/or forage. 

 These areas would not likely affect the area's 

 ability to provide habitat for grizzly bears 

 appreciably. Since hiding cover, visual 

 screening, and forage resources are not 

 expected to be altered substantially; no 

 change in bear use of the area is expected. 

 Therefore, these effects are expected to be 

 negligible. 



• Cumulative tiffecUtiftlte miction ^lltemative 

 to Grisstly Bears 



Under this alternative, no cumulative effects 

 are expected. 



• Cumulative Effects t^the .Iction .lltemative 

 to firizzly Hearts 



During the implementation of this project, 

 several other DNRC projects could be active 

 in the subunits. The Goat Squeezer Timber 

 Sale Project may be active concurrently with 

 this project during the winter period. Also, 

 activities on Plum Creek Timber Company 

 lands are possible throughout the activity 

 period. This sale could add to the overall 

 disturbance to grizzly bears in the South Fork 

 Lost Subunit if the activities occur outside the 

 winter period. However, the increase is 

 expected to be minor and within the 

 stipulations in the SVGBCA. 



SENSITIVE SPECIES 



When conducting forest-management activities, 

 the SFLMP directs DNRC to give special 

 consideration to the several "sensitive" species. 

 These species are sensitive to human activities, 

 have special habitat requirements that may be 

 altered by timber management, or may become 

 listed under the Federal Endangered Species Act 

 if management activities result in continued 

 adverse impacts. Because sensitive species 

 usually have specific habitat requirements, 

 consideration of their needs serves as a useful 

 "fine filter" for ensuring that the primary goal of 

 maintaining healthy and diverse forests is met. 

 The following sensitive species were considered 

 for analysis. As shown in TABLE A-3 - LISTED 



SENSITIVE SPECIES FOR THE NWLO 

 SHOWING THE STA TUS OF THESE SPECIES 

 IN RELATION TO THIS PROJECT, each 

 sensitive species was either included in the 

 following analysis or dropped from further ,» 



analysis for the stated reasons. 



> Fisher 



Due to their use of mature and late- 

 successional forested habitats, fishers are 

 listed by DNRC as a sensitive species 

 {DNRC 1996). DNRC's strategy to conserve 

 fishers in a managed landscape is aimed at 

 protecting valuable denning and resting 

 habitat near riparian areas and maintaining 

 travel corridors. 



Fishers are generalist predators that use a 

 variety of habitats and structural stages, but 

 are disproportionately found in stands with 

 dense canopy (Powell 1982, Johnson 1984). 

 Fishers appear to be highly selective of 

 resting and denning sites. In the Rocky 

 Mountains, fishers appear to prefer late- 

 successional coniferous forests for resting 

 sites and use riparian areas 

 disproportionately to their availability. 

 Fishers tend to use areas within 155 feet of 

 water. Such areas contain large live trees, 

 snags, and downed trees, which are used 

 for resting and denning sites and dense 

 canopy cover, which is important for snow ; 

 intercept (Jones 1991). 



On State trust lands in the project area, field 

 reconnaissance determined these stands 

 could provide fisher habitat. 



To assess cumulative effects, the project 

 area would be considered in the context of 

 the surrounding lands. 



Effects to Fishers 



• Direct and Indirect F^ffectn qfthe jyio^ictUm 

 tlUemative to PiMhers 



No additional human disturbance would 

 occur; therefore, no direct effects to fishers ^i., 

 are expected. Under the No-Action 

 Alternative, fisher habitat quality could 

 increase due to the deadwood component 

 and increase in shade-tolerant trees. Due to 

 the small amount of habitat affected, these 

 changes to fisher habitat are expected to 

 result in negligible effects. 



Cilly Bug Salvage Timber Sale Project 



Page C-7 



