Lost Bear Timber Sale EA - Attachment D 



ranges averaging 500 mi" in area. The project area is not located within a designated 

 grizzly bear recovery zone. However, grizzly bears are a federally threatened species 

 and are afforded protection from "take" under the Endangered Species Act. There are 

 currently 7.8 miles of road withm the project area, for a total of 3.9 miles of total road 

 per square mile (simple linear calculation). There are no open roads within the project 

 area due to locked gates on Bureau of Land Management and private lands. 



Analysis Area 



The analysis area provides habitat for grizzly bears that have recently moved into the 

 area. Repeated activity has been reported throughout the analysis area, with bear 

 foraging activities focused in riparian areas, shrub and berry fields in old harvest units, 

 and digging along mountain ridge tops (J. Jonkel, MT FWP, pers. comm., October 

 2002). The analysis area provides several habitats that are particularly attractive to 

 grizzly bears, including: big game winter range areas, riparian zones, and abundant 

 shrub fields. There are 65 miles of total road within the analysis area, for a total of 1 .8 

 miles of total road per square mile (simple linear calculation). There are 27 miles of 

 open road within the analysis area, for a total of 0.72 miles of open road per square mile 

 (simple linear calculation). Therefore, both the analysis and project areas are relatively 

 secure for grizzly bears due to the low open road densities. 



C. EXISTING ENVIRONMENT Lynx 



Project Area 



Lynx are currently classified as threatened in Montana under the Endangered Species 

 Act. In North America, lynx distribution and abundance is strongly correlated with 

 snowshoe hares, their primary prey. Consequently, lynx foraging habitat follows the 

 predommant snowshoe hare habitat, early- to mid-successional lodgepole pine, 

 subalpine fir, and Engelmann spruce forest. For denning sites, the primary component 

 appears to be large woody debris, in the forni of either down logs or root wads (Koehler 

 1990, Mowat et al. 2000, Squires and Laurion 2000). These den sites may be located in 

 regenerating stands that are >20 years post-disturbance, or in mature conifer stands 

 (Koehler 1990, Ruediger et al. 2000). 



Elevations in the project area range from 4,500 to 5,800 feet, and suitable habitat types 

 (Pfister et al. 1977) for potential denning and foraging occur in the area. Within section 

 36, the lodgepole pine stand proposed for clearcut with reserves (stand 36-3) contains 

 downed materials suitable for lynx denning, as well as stands proposed for commercial 

 thinning (stands 36 - 2d and 36-2c). Snowshoe hares are important lynx prey and are 

 associated with dense young lodgepole pine stands. There is a 36 acre densely 

 regenerating seed tree cut, located between stands 36 -2d and 36-3, composed of 

 approximately 40% western larch, and 20% each of lodgepole pine, Douglas-fir, and 

 subalpine fir. The stand was recently pre-commercially thinned, however, the widely 

 scattered, overstory seed trees are still present. Additional lynx habitat exists adjacent 

 to the regenerating seed tree cut. DNRC stand level inventory (SLI) indicates that SLI 

 stand 15 (Fig. 2; adjacent to west of regenerating seed tree cut) has potential denning 

 attributes, is located adjacent to a riparian zone, and is connected to a larger patch of 



