WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT ON NATIONAL FORESTS

        Wildlife direction on National Forest lands falls into two categories: congressional and administrative direction. Congressional direction is federal law. Administrative direction is not law; it is in-house direction established by the agency.

1. CONGRESSIONAL DIRECTION

           The National Forest Management Act (NFMA) (section 36 CFR 219.19) requires that the Forest Service manage fish and wildlife habitat to maintain viable populations of existing native and desired non-native vertebrate species in the planning area. For planning purposes, a viable population is regarded as one which has the estimated numbers and distribution of reproductive individuals to ensure its continued existence is well distributed in the planning area. In order to insure that viable populations will be maintained, habitat must be provided to support at least a minimum number of reproductive individuals, and that habitat must be well distributed so those individuals can interact with others in the planning area.

           Forests are also required to select and identify Management Indicator Species (MIS). These species are selected because their populations changes are believed to indicate the effects of management activities. In the selection of MIS, the following categories are to be represented where appropriate:

   1. Endangered and threatened plant and animal species identified for the planning area.
   2. Species with special habitat needs that may be influenced significantly by planned management programs.
   3. Species commonly hunted, fished or trapped.
   4. Non-game species of special interest.
   5. Additional plant or animal species selected because their population changes are believed to indicate the effects of management activities on other species of selection, major biological communities, or on water quality.

           On the basis of available information, the ID Team will estimate the effects of changes in vegetation type, timber age classes, community composition, rotation age, and year-long suitability of habitat related to mobility of management indicator species. Where appropriate, measures to mitigate adverse effects will be prescribed.

           Section 36 CFR 219.12 of NFMA requires the Forest Plan to contain monitoring and evaluation requirements that will provide a basis for a periodic determination and evaluation of the effects of management practices. Population trends of the management indicator species will be monitored and relationships to habitat changes determined. In addition, monitoring of management indicator species will be required to evaluate whether Forest goals and objectives are being realized. For wildlife, such monitoring must address:

   1. Whether Forest Plan standards and guidelines are being properly implemented (i.e. are snag and old growth standards being followed).
   2. Are these standards meeting their stated objectives (maintaining viable populations of wildlife).

           EXAMPLE: How has the Forest validated through monitoring that 5% old growth habitat is maintaining viable populations of old growth species, or how 2-3 snags per acre is maintaining viable populations of cavity nesting species.

           Some Forests may try to avoid monitoring responsibilities by stating monitoring can only be dealt with during the formulation of a revised Forest Plan. However, it is well established that Forest Plans are ‘programmatic’ in nature, and that site-specific project analysis must ‘prove up’ or validate whether or not the Forest Plan’s programmatic assumptions are correct.

2. ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTION

           Forest Service administrative direction (outlined in the Forest Service Manual) for wildlife management includes the following:

   1.   2670.44 Regional Foresters
              Ensure that specific management objectives and legal and biological requirements for the conservation of endangered, threatened, proposed, and sensitive plants and animals are included in Regional and Forest planning (#5).

              Develop Forest Service recovery strategies to implement approved recovery plans (#7).

              Identify and approve management strategies to achieve conservation (#8).

   2.   2670.45 Forest Supervisors
              Develop quantifiable recovery objectives and develop strategies to effect recovery of threatened and endangered species. Develop quantifiable objectives for managing populations and/or habitats for sensitive species (#2).

              Determine distribution, status, and trend of threatened, endangered, proposed, and sensitive species and their habitats on Forest Lands (#4).

              Approve biological evaluations and informally consult with USFWS to determine whether any programs or activity funded, authorized, or carried out on the Forest, may have a potential effect on any endangered, threatened, or proposed species or its habitat (#6).

   3.   2670.46 District Rangers
      

              Identify, manage, and protect essential and critical habitats to meet legal requirements and recovery objectives for federally listed species; identify, protect, and manage habitat necessary to meet sensitive species objectives (#2).

              Conduct necessary biological evaluations (see below for definition), and notify the Forest Supervisor of those projects requiring formal consultation or conference with the USFWS.

3. DEFINITIONS PROVIDED IN FOREST SERVICE MANUAL:

           Biological Evaluation: a documented Forest Service review of Forest Service programs or acts in sufficient detail to determine how an action or proposed action may affect any threatened, endangered, proposed, or sensitive species. Biological evaluations need to be signed by journeyman level botanists and biologists, which is a GS-11 position or greater.

           Recovery Strategy: a written strategy to implement the Forest Service portion of recovery objectives identified in an approved USFWS Recovery Plan, or to implement interim Forest Service objectives in the absence of an approved Recovery Plan.

           Sensitive Species: those plant and animal species identified by a Regional Forester for which population viability is a concern evidenced by:

   1. Significant current or predicted downward trends in population numbers of density.
   2. Significant current or predicted trends in habitat capability that would reduce a species’ existing distribution.

              Sensitive species should include candidate species listed by the USFWS. Candidate species are those plant and animal species that in the opinion of the USFWS, may become endangered or threatened. There are three categories of candidate species:

      1. Category 1: are taxa for which the USFWS has substantial information on hand to support the biological appropriateness of proposing to list the species as endangered or threatened. Currently, data are being gathered concerning essential habitat needs, and for some taxa, the precise boundaries of critical habitat designations. Development and publication of proposed rules on such species is anticipated.
      2. Category 2: are taxa for which information now in possession of the USFWS indicates that proposing to list the species as endangered or threatened is possibly appropriate, but for which conclusive data on biological vulnerability and threat(s) are not currently available to support proposed rules. A status review for Category 2 species is done on alternate years for plant and animal species.
      3. Category 3: are taxa that are no longer considered for listing and are not regarded as candidate species. There are three sub-categories:

         3a: are taxa for which the USFWS has persuasive evidence of extinction;

         3b: are taxa that while reported in published revisions and monographs, do not meet the ESA definition of species on the basis of current taxonomic understanding;

         3c: are taxa that have proven more abundant or widespread than was previously believed and/or that are not subject to any identified threat.

              Although management of sensitive species is limited to administrative rather than congressional direction, there still may be a case for seeking legal enforcement of sensitive species programs. Some have argued that failure to implement sensitive species programs represents a violation of the ESA, since the agency is not taking actions that will avoid potential future listing of said species. NFMA violations may also result from the agencies failure to develop sensitive species programs. Although there is not a time-table for adapting sensitive species management programs, the public may be able to show that ongoing impacts to sensitive species are so serious to the viability, that it is simply arbitrary and an abuse of discretion for the Forest Service to continue approving these actions without fulfilling the manual mandate.

      EXAMPLES ON FISHLAKE NATIONAL FOREST

      Ecological Management Species
      Indicator Species (MIS): Cavity Nesters* Riparian Dependent Guild** Sage Nesters Macroinvertebrates Resident Trout***	Habitat Type Snags (standing dead trees) Riparian communities Mature sagebrush Streams (water quality) Streams, lakes, reservoirs	Estimated Population Unknown Unknown Unknown N/A Unknown

      * Include primary & secondary species (to be monitored on a case by case basis).

      ** This guild includes the species dependent upon the various niches of vegetation communities found in riparian zones, i.e.., tall deciduous trees, willows, riparian shrubs, riparian grasses.

      *** Includes brown, brook, cutthroat, rainbow and lake trout (to be monitored on a case by case basis).

      “High Interest” MIS:

      Species Elk Mule Deer Bonneville cutthroat trout Rydberg’s milkvetch

      Habitat Need General/Winter Range General/Winter Range Cool, clear, high oxygen H2O Harsh sites - upper elevation

      Status Economic Importance Economic Importance Sensitive Threatened

      Other Species Considered for MIS:
      Species Bald Eagle Peregrine Falcon Utah Prairie Dog Sage Grouse Northern Flying Squirrel Mountain Bluebird White-tailed Jack-rabbit Merlin Osprey	Status Endangered Endangered Endangered Economic Importance Sensitive Sensitive Declining Sensitive Locally Rare	Estimated Population Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown