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Special-Status Species Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle The project proponent has agreed to fully protect elderberry shrubs at the three .. locations on the project site (Figure 3). No additional mitigation is required. Bald Eagle Most wintering bald eagles depend on food resources in or near created habitat such as reservoirs. Eagle use of these feeding areas may be threatened by shoreline development and intensive recreation. Measures agreed to by the project proponent to maintain suitable buffers around riparian and open water habitats at the project site will protect bald eagle habitat and minimize human disturbance. No additional mitigation is required. Peregrine Falcon, Osprey, Yellow-Breasted Chat, Yellow Warbler, and Ringtail These species and their habitat will be protected by the measures for riparian habitat protection agreed to by the project proponent and described under wetlands impacts. Swainson's Hawk The loss of an estimated 12 acres of suitable Swainson's hawk foraging habitat is considered a less-than-significant impact. Measures agreed to by the project proponent to avoid construction in irrigated pasture in the 100-year floodplain and riparian woodland and to minimize the loss of oak woodland habitat will preserve potential Swainson's hawk nesting and foraging habitat. However, because Swainson's hawks have been observed nesting about 0.5 mile from the project site, future more intensive land use changes that might occur at the site could significantly affect this species. Project implementation increases the possibility that further lot splitting or changes in agricultural practices could occur in the future. These changes could eliminate additional acreages of annual grasslands and irrigated pasture, which would decrease the foraging quality of the site for Swainson's hawks and contribute to the cumulative losses of foraging habitat for Swainson's hawks. The cumulative effect of potential future land use changes could contribute to a .. regionally significant impact. Many ongoing large and small development projects throughout the Central Valley have accelerated the conversion of farmlands and rangelands to urban uses. These losses affect a large segment of the statewide Swainson's hawk population, and the DFG is currently requesting mitigation for cumulative regional losses of Swainson's hawk nesting and foraging habitat to development in the Central Valley (Theresa pers. comm.). 28