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Burrowing Owl Habitat Assessment and Burrow Survey ly ` ESA wildlife biologists Lourraine Tigas Corcoran,Cynthia Soszka, and Sara Lee conducted the burrowing owl habitat assessment and winter burrow survey. The habitat assessment was conducted on January 27 and 28, 2005,and the winter burrow survey was conducted from January 27 to February 1, 2005. On January 26,2005,Dan Gifford of the California Department of Fish and Game(CDFG)was asked to approve a one-day extension of the protocol survey window because of inclement weather the last week of January.Mr. Gifford granted the extension for the winter burrow survey. Subsequently,ESA wildlife biologist Thomas Leeman conducted a breeding season survey on �. June 5, 2005. This survey was conducted from first light to two hours after sunrise and from two hours before sunset to darkness. The winds ranged from calm to gusty and were generally from the southwest. Cloud cover ranged from clear to overcast. Visibility at the site was unimpeded during the surveys. Rain prevented any surveys from being conducted during the morning of January 28,2005. Table 1.0 lists the specific times, surveyors,and weather conditions for the individual survey periods. TABLE 1.0 BURROW SURVEY SPECIFIC INFORMATION r. Temperature (degrees Date Time Surveyors' Fahrenheit) Wind Cloud Cover January 27 15:05-17:50 LTC&CAS 56-58 Gusty(up to 20 miles per hour) Clear to overcast from the southeast January 28 15:08-17:45 LTC&CAS 54-58 Windy(up to 10 miles per Partly cloudy hour)from the southwest ` January 31 06:45-09:15 LTC&CAS 40-48 Calm Clear January 31 14:20-17:45 LTC&CAS 56-58 Breezy(steady 2 to 5 mph) Clear from the southwest February 1 06:45-09:15 LTC&SML 44-54 Gusty(up to 20 mph)from the Clear southwest February 1 15:15-16:36 LTC&SML 68-71 Calm Clear r June 5 06:10-09:00 TSL not available Calm Clear 'LTC-Lourrain Tigas Corcoran;SML-Sara Lee;TSL-Thomas Leaman;CAS-Cynthia Somka Results Habitat Assessment The 688-acre project site is composed mainly of orchards,agricultural fields,and a few small developed areas (e.g.,farmhouses,outbuildings, and roads). During the winter site visits, there °i were no crops in the agricultural fields,but some fields bad been tilled a few months before. During the June visit,hay was being harvested from non-orchard agricultural land at the Project r site. To the north of the Project site are orchards and agricultural fields. A small strip of grassland lies along a transmission line right-of--way to the north of the Project site. Orchards and vineyards Vernalis Duan,Mining and Reclamation Project 3 ESA 1203015 Bunowing OVA Habitat Assessment and Bunow Survey February 2006 r