for the greatest good

Pacific Northwest Regional Office 

2015 Wildlife Program Accomplishments 

Contacts: Josh Chapman, 503‐808‐2901 

Regional Wildlife Program Manager 

Kim Mellen McLean, 503‐808‐2677 

Regional Wildlife Ecologist 

Pacific Northwest Regional Office 

1220 SW Third Avenue 

Portland, OR 97201 

Highlights of the 2015 Regional Office accomplishments 

include: 

• Helping to coordinate the 25thAnniversary of the Blue 

Mountain Elk Initiative Celebration in Pendleton. Former FS 

Chief Dr. Jack Ward Thomas gave the keynote address. 

• Updating the DecAID website and recording four webinars 

for biologists to utilize on their own. 

• Coordinate Challenge Cost Share grant program which 

funded 42 projects and distributed $1,379,000 in R6 

funding. 

• Participate in 2 integrated vegetation reviews on the 

Umpqua and Umatilla NF’s. 

• Coordinated surveys on 30 transects for the fourth year of 

a 6 year white‐headed woodpecker monitoring program 

in cooperation with the Rocky Mountain Research Station 

(RMRS). 

• Coordinated and participated in 5 Rapid Assessment Teams 

for helping assess and prioritize post fire restoration needs 

and potential salvage options. 

• Participated in 4 Forest Plan Revision workgroups as well as 

the pre assessment work. 

• Reviewed projects for the BMEI and Oregon and 

Washington Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation PAC’s. 

• Held interagency coordination meetings with ODFW, 

WDFW and the USFWS. 

• Advised ongoing Forest Plan Revisions on the Colville and 

Blue Mountains. 

• Participated as co‐lead in development of questions to be 

addressed in the NWFP Science Synthesis. 

Figure 1. From left to right, Mike Wisdom, Tom Tidwell, Jack Ward Thomas and Dale 

Bosworth at the 25thanniversary celebration of the Blue Mountain Elk Initiative in 

Pendleton Oregon in July of 2015. 

• Gave presentations to ODFW, WDFW, GNLCC and the 

WildLinks Conference on the Terrestrial Restoration and 

Conservation Strategy. 

• Helped coordinate and fund the largest multi species 

carnivore survey effort in the history of Oregon in 

partnership with Katie Moriarty of PNW, Bruce Hollen of 

BLM and the USFWS. Over 700 cameras were deployed. 

• Assisted Eastside Restoration Team in developing habitat 

model for goshawk. The model will be used in conjunction 

with the existing white‐headed woodpecker model to help 

develop landscape and stand level treatments. 
for the greatest good

Regional Office 

2015 Threatened and Endangered Species Program 

Accomplishments 

T&E program goals are to: (1) recover threatened, endangered, proposed, and candidate (TEPC) species; (2) coordinate and 

collaborate with states, federal agencies and non‐governmental organizations to conserve and restore TEPC species habitat 

and populations; and (3) provide technical assistance concerning the Endangered Species Act and its implementation and 

Forest Service T&E policy and procedures. 

Accomplishments include: 

• Made focused investments on monitoring and small scale 

restoration projects for listed and de‐listed wildlife species. 

Projects were completed on 10 National Forest and the 

Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area for Peregrine 

Falcon, Bald Eagle, Gray Wolf, Silverspot and Taylor 

Checkerspot Butterfly, Oregon Spotted Frog, and Western 

Snowy Plover. 

•Assisted Forests on issues associated with OR‐7 wolf pack 

in the Cascades by summarizing literature, providing 

examples analyses, and facilitating a conference call with 

other Forests. 

• Prepared multiple letters to the field on FWS findings and 

proposed listings 

• Refined and adopted National Forest Service interim 

Greater Sage Grouse guidance to protect the species and 

habitat. 

• Working with the FWS, ODF, ODFW, BLM to develop 

a memorandum of understanding for fisher in western 

Oregon to provide a framework for cooperation and 

conservation. 

• Reviewed and commented on draft NEPA documents 

through the Environmental Review Committee process. 

• Allocated funding for forests to participate in anadromous 

recovery planning. 

Contacts: John Chatel, 503‐808‐2972 Scott 

Woltering, 503‐808‐2669 

Anne Poopatanapong, 503‐808‐2663 

• Reviewed and provided comments on draft Colville NF land 

management plan revision. 

• Worked on revisions of the regional Aquatic Riparian 

Conservation Strategy (ARCS). 

•Participated on NEPA and ESA reviews on the Rogue River 

Siskiyou and Willamette NFs. 

•Assisted with the WO evaluation of the adequacy existing 

Forest Service aquatic conservation strategies as a result of 

the Cottonwood Environmental Law Center NOI regarding 

the bull trout CH designation. 

• Completed evaluation of Land and Water Conservation 

acquisition projects for TES species. 

• Strengthened relationships with Washington and Oregon 

FWS state offices through annual coordination meetings. 

• Developed Barred Owl removal financial agreement, annual 

operating plan, and memorandum of understanding with 

the FWS and USGS. 

•Facilitate the Interior Deputy Team annual field review for 

assessing progress with implementation of the PACFISH/

INFISH LRMP biological opinions. 

• Completed an interagency training on specialists analysis 

and biological evaluations/assessment on the Malheur NF. 

R6 Regional Office 

1220 SW Third Avenue

Portland, OR 97204 
for the greatest good

Regional Office 

2015 Interagency Special Status/Sensitive Species Program and 

Survey & Manage 

Highlights of 2015 Regional Office accomplishments: 

•78% ($448K) of ISSSSP budget provided to 17 Forests to 

fund priority inventory and conservation planning projects 

and for participation in species conservation work groups. 

• Guided and improved species management and 

strengthened NEPA analysis through Regional direction, 

oversight and editing of many valuable conservation tools 

and inventory efforts: 

o 10 conservation assessments 

o 23 species fact sheets 

o 49 inventory and monitoring projects 

o 12 restoration and educational projects 

• Improved Mardon skipper butterfly conservation by guiding 

the development of management plans covering 15 sites, 

and providing funding for implementation of plan actions 

associated with 5 sites. 

• Provided for improved conservation of sensitive and 

strategic species. 

oUpdated Regional Forester Sensitive Species list oQueried 

field botanists and biologists for sensitive species priorities 

in order to identify inventory and conservation information 

gaps, key personnel with skills to potentially assist in filling 

gaps, and tools and other applicable inventory and conser‐

vation products that may assist others in managing sensi‐

tive species. oImproved coordination with state and federal 

agencies and organizations concerned with plant and 

animal conservation. 

• Fungi Work Group: Strengthened botanists’ NEPA skills 

through development and implementation of fungi NEPA 

and effects analysis training session for Sensitive and 

Survey and Manage fungi species. 

• In partnership with The Xerces Society, improved 62 

botanists’ and wildlife biologists’ survey and identification 

skills for native bumblebees through sponsoring 3 Bumble 

Bee workshops in Oregon. 

• Resolved complex issues with Survey and Manage species 

while meeting species persistence objectives and other 

land management objectives. 

• Specimen identification services provided for the field units 

for more than 900 vouchers of lichens, bryophytes, fungi, 

and invertebrate species. 

Rich Hatfield (far left) from The Xerces Society training USFS personnel on 

how to identify bumble bee and conduct surveys Cottage Grove Ranger 

District, June 2015. 

• Facilitated and funded the publication of three manuscripts 

in peer‐reviewed journals: 

• Roth, Barry. “Range of Pristiloma crateris Pilsbry, 1946 

(Gastropoda: Pulmonata: Pristilomatidae) in the United 

States Pacific Northwest.” Check List 11.2 (2015): 1571. 

• Liu H‐P, Hershler R, Rossel CS (2015) Taxonomic status of 

the Columbia duskysnail (Truncatelloidea, Amnicolidae, 

Colligyrus). ZooKeys 514: 1‐13 

• Gordon, Matthew; VanNorman, Kelli. 2015. Bridgeoporus 

nobilissimusis much more abundant than indicated by the 

presence of basidiocarps in forest stands. North American 

Fungi, v. 10. 

Contacts: 

John Chatel, 503‐808‐2972 

Rob Huff, 503‐808‐6479 

Carol Hughes, 503‐808‐2661 

Darci Rivers‐Pankratz, 503‐808‐2688 

Mark Skinner, 503‐808‐2150 

Kelli Van Norman, 503‐808‐6606 

R6 Regional Office 

1220 SW 3rdAvenue

Portland, OR 97204 
for the greatest good

R6 National Forests & BLM Districts 

Avian Conservation Program Accomplishments 

The FS/BLM Avian Conservation Program was

initiated as part of the “Service First” Initiative to

develop a consistent, integrated migratory bird

program between the agencies. 

Co‐wrote and received funding for the Regional Pollinator 

Seed Collection Challenge Cost Share proposal. Secured 

funding from outside organizations totaling 30k in 

contributions. 

Continue to work with the Klamath Bird Observatory to 

produce DST’s to aid in habitat management for priority 

avifauna on Forest Service and BLM lands. Projects 

include prioritizing watersheds for oak habitat restoration, 

determining forest habitat types using avifauna as 

surrogates, building full life cycle international projects for 

hummingbirds. 

Chair of the Forest Service, Western 

Hummingbird Partnership (WHP) 

Committee where I established a 

national cadre of individuals interested in 

hummingbirds. I schedule and facilitate 

quarterly conference calls to discuss 

ongoing issues. 

Work with partners to develop and incorporate Avian 

Knowledge Network (AKN) priority avian species and 

assessment tools into our forest planning efforts. 

Assisted our National Wildlife Program Managers in 

developing responses to the FWS Notice of Intent for 

Incidental Take provisions, participated in discussions 

regarding the revision of the Forest Service MOU with the 

Fish and Wildlife Service, and provided input to the WO 

Director briefings regarding the development of a national 

node of the Avian Knowledge Network. 

Initiated the development of an National Avian 

Conservation Team (ACT) to provide consistent briefings/

information regarding avian issues to the Nat. W/L 

Program Leads. 

Coordinated and facilitated a half day workshop at the 

recent Wildlife Society Meeting on the “Tools” Available 

for avian conservation. 

Figure 1. Building the Western Hummingbird Partnership Program with our MX 

cooperators. 

Active participant on the Partners in Flight (PIF), National 

Steering Committee. We make recommendations to the 

Council for the Conservation of Migrating Birds regarding 

priorities for avian conservation nationally. 

Chair of the Western Working Group (WWG) of PIF. 

Our mission is to develop science based tools for bird 

conservation throughout the west. Our recent meeting 

focused on implementing the new farm bill provisions 

and how we can obtain farm bill grant monies for bird 

conservation. 

Participant on the Forest Pre‐Plan Revision, Species of 

Conservation Concern workgroup. Creating regional 

guidance for the development of the required SCC list. 

Barb Bresson, FS‐BLM

Avian Conservation Program

bbresson@fs.fed.us

503.668.1414
for the greatest good

for the greatest good

2015 Wildlife/TES

Forest Accomplishments 
for the greatest good

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

618 BDBD Prescribed Fire 

31 CFLN

Prescribed Fire, Road Closure, Unauth Trail Closure, Wildlife 

Hab Improved, Wildlife Hab Improved‐NonGame

493 CMFC Wildlife Hab Improved‐NonGame

730 CMLG Decommissioning 

160 CWKV Wildlife Hab Improved‐NonGame

96 NFRG Wildlife Hab Improved‐NonGame 

1 NFVW

Non‐native Plant Treatment, Wildlife Hab Improved‐

NonGame 

4,081 NFWF

Decommissioning, Meadow Restoration, Road Closure, 

Unauth Trail Closure, Wildfire Natural, Wildlife Hab Improved, 

Wildlife Hab Improved‐NonGame 

264 PTNR Meadow Restoration, Wildlife Hab Improved‐NonGame 

377 SSCC

Decommissioning, Prescribed Fire, Road Closure, Structure

Maintenance ‐Wildlife

345 WFHF Prescribed Fire 

20,032 WFSU Prescribed Fire, Road Closure, Wildfire Natural 

27,230 Total

Partners/Cooperators 

Defenders of Wildlife, Conservation Northwest, and Washington State University, 

Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, Idaho Fish and Game, US Fish and Wildlife 

Service, British Columbia Ministry of the Environment, Biodiversity Research 

Institute, Slow Foods Upper Columbia Chapter, Boy Scouts of America Chewelah, 

Seattle City Lights, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Selkirk Conservation Alliance, 

Student Conservation Association, various individuals.

Colville National Forest 

765 South Main Street

Colville, WA 99114 

Colville National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015, the Colville National Forest had a variety of projects 

and natural events that contributed to wildlife and TES 

habitat enhancement. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

•Through partnerships with Defenders of Wildlife, 

Conservation Northwest, and Selkirk Conservation 

Alliance, placed food storage lockers in the Sullivan Lake 

Campgrounds to reduce the likelihood of grizzly bear / 

forest users conflicts. 

•Increased seclusion habitat on 1,219 acres with road closure 

improvements, unauthorized OHV trail closure, and 

decommissioning. 

•Improved habitat for migratory birds through harvest 

activities. 

•Wildfires improved big game winter and summer range and 

woodpecker habitat for a total of 19,765 acres. 

•Used prescribed fires to improve 1377 acres of big game 

habitat. 

•Installed vent caps on outhouses and water escape ramps 

to reduce wildlife mortality. 

•Presented numerous environmental education programs. 

•Snag Creation, a bat rocket, aspen exclosures, meadow 

maintenance, noxious weed treatments, OHV unauthorized 

use closures rounded out our wildlife program. 

Figure 1. Aspen Regeneration after the Stickpin Fire. 

Monitoring Habitats and Populations: 

1. Continued projects to determine effects of harvest 

activities on:

• Forage for white‐tailed and mule deer with WSU and WDFW. 

• Goshawk territories and post‐fledging areas. 

• Moths, which provide food for several sensitive species. 

2. Conducted surveys for:

• Mammals: wolverines (with WDFW and Selkirk Conservation 

Alliance), woodland caribou/winter recreation. 

• Insects: tawny‐edged and Peck’s Skipper, Eastern tailed blue, 

Western bumblebees. 

• Birds: goshawks, harlequin ducks, North American breeding 

birds, loon nesting, white‐headed woodpeckers. 

3. Monitored for:

• Grizzly bear core habitat/open and total road densities. 

• Closed road effectiveness. 

4. Supported efforts to monitor for:

• Wolf/livestock interactions (WSU, WDFW). 

• Caribou mortality (WDFW, IDFG, FWS, BC Min. of Envir., IPNF). 

• Grizzly bear populations and habitat use (WDFW, IDFG, FWS, BC 

• Ministry of Environment, IPNF). 

• Grizzly bears using hair snares (IPNF, USFWS). 

• Common loon wintering areas (Biodiversity Research Inst.). 

• Mollusks (IDFG ‘s Multispecies Baseline Initiative). 

Contact: Karen Honeycutt 509‐684‐7224 
for the greatest good

2015 Accomplishments 

1,116 acres Terrestrial Habitat Enhancement

(core/integrated/partner) 

$383,345 Partner Contributions 

151 I&E Presentations 

Partners/Cooperators 

OR Dept. Fish and Wildlife, WA Dept. Fish and Wildlife, WA 

Conservation Corps, Skamania and Klickitat Co. Noxious Weed 

Control Boards, Youth Education and Sports Services, WA Dept. 

Natural Resources, Ash Creek Restoration, Lower Columbia 

Estuary Partnership, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon 

Hunter’s Association, Sandy River Watershed Council, Klickitat 

Rails to Trails, Cape Horn Conservancy, Columbia Gorge Ecology 

Institute, Cape Horn Conservancy, Friends of Sandy River Delta, 

Skamania Co. Youth Corps, Portland Water Bureau, OR Dept. 

of State Lands, Friends of Columbia Gorge, Oregon Watershed 

Enhancement Board, Penstemon Fund, National Wild Turkey 

Federation, East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation 

District, National Forest Foundation, World Salmon Council, 

commercial river outfitters, local schools. 

Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015, the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area 

participated in several projects. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• Prescribed burned (NWTF support) and sprayed and native 

seeded (OHA support), to improve oak savannah habitat in 

the Wagon Road unit, 7 Mile Area (Figure 2). 

• Sprayed and planted native riparian vegetation for the 

Thousand Acres Restoration Project to improve riparian 

habitat with Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership. 

• Continued building split‐rail fence at Sandy River Delta 

(SRD), keeping the east‐side wetland more pristine for 

wildlife, and planted vegetation on many acres in SRD 

(Figure 1). 

• Maintained nesting habitat for western pond turtles in the 

Collins Creek area through mowing. 

• Thinned encroaching fir amongst oak habitat (benefitting 

Western Gray Squirrel), created wildlife brush piles and 

snags at Catherine Creek and Collins areas, and topped and 

slit snags for bats at Catherine. 

• Created, purchased and installed resource protection signs 

at Eagle and Wahkeena Creeks, and at Sandy River Delta 

split‐rail fence with CCS funds. 

• Sprayed and planted pollinator attracting plants (e.g. 

milkweed) at Moorhead Fisher, OR with CCS funds. 

• Conducted peregrine falcon and bald eagle nest site 

monitoring. 

• Interpretation/Education (I&E) ‐ Outreach to children, 

students, and adults through: CRGNSA campground 

programs; Skamania Co. Fair; environmental/riparian 

events (Water Jam); and environmental programs like 

CGEI’s SECRETS, the Oregon Zoo’s Urban Nature Overnight, 

Salmon Watch and CRGNSA’s Eagle View. 

Figure 1. Volunteers, like Youth Education and Sports Services (YESS), make 

continued building of a resource (wildlife/fisheries/ cultural) protection fence 

possible at Sandy River Delta, OR. 

Contact: Brett Carré 541‐308‐1718 

Columbia River Gorge NSA 

902 Wasco, Suite 200, 

Hood River, OR 97031 

Figure 2. Prescribed burning at Wagon Road, Rowena, OR. Burn/spray/

seed projects enhance oak savannah habitat. 
for the greatest good

2015 Accomplishments 

FUND CODE ACRES 

NFWF 2,278 

CMLG 148 

WFHF 4,453 

CWKV 3,809 

NFRW 290 

NFVW 5,325 

SSCC 6,062 

CFLN 4,400 

SPFH 239 

NFTM 5,649 

RTRT 1,262 

BDBD 78 

SSCC 2,954 

PTNR 5,968 

Total Acres 37,353 acres 

Partners/Cooperators 

ODFW, OHA, NWTF, Mule Deer Foundation, High Desert 

Museum, Gilchrist Schools, Oregon High Desert Grotto, Friends 

of the Cascades Wilderness, Wanderlust Tours, Discover Your 

Forest, Deschutes Children’s Forest, Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Pacific Power, Klamath and Deschutes Co. School Districts, 

Klamath County Search and Rescue, UC Davis, and volunteers. 

Deschutes National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015, the Deschutes National Forest accomplishment 

highlights include: 

• Continued removal of lodgepole pine from stringer 

meadows and riparian areas to enhance elk habitat 

•Continued WNS screening at Lava River Cave and repaired 

cave gates, addressed road breaches and removed garbage 

from several caves. 

•Began implementation on road closures and aspen in the 

Indian Ford project area. 

•Installed gates in deer winter range, repaired fence in 

several locations, and worked with partners to mitigate a 

power pole issue. 

•Installed 65 toilet vent caps to reduce wildlife mortality. 

•Worked with partners to run 2 MAPS stations. 

•With partners, monitored/inventoried for western 

bumblebees, Oregon spotted frog, bald and golden 

eagles, peregrine falcon, bats, spotted and great gray 

owls, goshawk, yellow rail, carnivores, white‐headed 

woodpecker, and the Sierra Nevada red fox. 

•Presented numerous environmental education programs to 

local schools and organizations. 

Figure 1. Bobcat feeding at carnivore station. 

Contacts: Lauri Turner, Forest Wildlife Biologist 541‐383‐5640 

Figure 2. Processing birds at the Indian Ford MAPS Station. 

Deschutes National Forest 

63095 Deschutes Market Road

Bend, OR 97701 
for the greatest good

Fremont-Winema National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

Figure 1. Western pond turtle on the Lakeview Ranger District 

Figure 2. Fisher detection on the Klamath Ranger District 

2015 Accomplishments 

Acres 

7,484 

8,043 

12,637 

17 

67 

1,364 

545 

 Fund Code 

 CFLN 

 NFTM 

 WFHF 

 NFWF 

 NFVW 

 KV 

 Partner 

 Activity 

 CFLR 

 Timber 

 Fuels 

 Wildlife 

 Watershed 

 KV 

 Partner 

30,157 Acres Total 

Partners/Cooperators 

Institute for Bird Populations, Klamath Bird Observatory, 

Klamath Tribes, BLM, ODFW, USFWS, Oregon Hunter 

Association, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Oregon 

State University, The Mule Deer Foundation, Lakeview 

Stewardship Group, Lake County Resource Initiative, 

Chewaucan Biophysical Monitoring Group, Ruby Pipeline 

Mitigation Funds, Warner Creek Correctional Facility, Lakeview 

Elementary School. 

In 2015, the Fremont‐Winema National Forest Wildlife 

Program completed several projects. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• Thinned conifers within 1,515 acres of aspen and meadow 

habitat to improve riparian habitat. 

•Surveyed for fisher on the Klamath and Chiloquin Ranger 

Districts using baited cameras. 

• Completed scat surveys for Sierra Nevada red fox on the 

Klamath Ranger District. 

• Monitored for white‐headed woodpeckers within the 

Crooked Mud Honey Project in partnership with the Rocky 

Mountain Research Station. 

•Surveyed for western bumble bee at 12 historic observation 

sites. 

•Surveyed known western pond turtle populations located 

on the Bly and Lakeview Ranger Districts. 

• Installed a post and pole fence to protect 35 acres of 

Oregon spotted frog habitat. 

• Partnered with Klamath Bird Observatory to conduct 

landbird monitoring on the Forest. 

• Monitored several bald eagle nests and two peregrine 

falcon nests. 

• Completed project level surveys for spotted owl, goshawk, 

and aspen. 

Contacts: Amy Markus 541‐947‐6256 

Fremont‐Winema National Forest 

1301 S. G Street 

Lakeview, OR 97630 
for the greatest good

2015 Accomplishments 

Acres Job Code Funding

CWKV 116,730 

4,972 NFWF 94,100

200 RMEF 35,400

10 NFVW 3,000

Surveys NFIM 3,000 

Partners/Cooperators 

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Cowlitz Tribe, Puyallup 

Tribe, Mount St Helens Institute, Washington Department of 

Wildlife, Conservation Northwest, Cascade Carnivore Project. 

Xerces, Gifford Pinchot Task Force. 

In 2015 the Gifford Pinchot National Forest provided wildlife 

and T&E guidance, analysis , Level one consultation and 

recommendations for 2 vegetation management projects 

and misc. small projects from recreation, salvage, fisheries 

and special uses. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• Implemented RMEF partnership invasive treatments in elk 

habitat on Mount St Helens and meadows on the south 

zone; $35,400 for 200 acres. 

• Invasive work was completed by Aquatics group n Muddy 

River drainage. Figure 1 shows School for the Deaf 

students removing scotch broom. 

• Administered KV snag and down wood creation, utilized 

local fire crew for 901 down wood creation as well as 

contract to complete project. 

• Maintained seasonal wildlife closures on the forest for 

winter range protection. 

• Maintained 41 wood duck boxes on Cowlitz Valley RD. 

• Sixth bi‐annual winter hibernacula Townsend’s big‐eared 

bat survey at 6 caves with partner in‐kind contribution from 

Cowlitz Indian Tribe. Total count was 184, down from 403 

in 2013. 

• Partnered with Conservation Northwest, Puyallup Tribe 

and Cascade Carnivore Project on detection cameras for 

Cascade Red Fox, Wolverine and Wolves. 

• Participated in Environmental Education in White Pass 

School Field Day, Get Outdoors Day, Cave etiquette 

education, Boy Scout endangered species presentation, 

Portland Sportsman Show, Earth Day Celebration, Ape Cave 

white‐nosed syndrome training, MSHI volcano naturalist 

training on wildlife habitat and animals and MTA, MSH and 

CV Fishing Day. 

• Completed analysis and draft restoration strategy for 2 

south zone mardon skipper meadows. Completed draft 

decision memo and CE for 7a Meadows Mardon Skipper 

restoration. 

• Permanent mardon skipper transects in Peterson Prairie 

read with Xerces. 

• Monitored the known peregrine falcon eyrie on the south 

zone, (no activity observed for the second year in a row). 

• Completed surveys for Cowlitz Valley mardon skipper. 

• Counted Oregon spotted frog egg masses in Trout Creek‐ 

30 were found. 

• Completed Bald eagle winter surveys in Randal and 

Packwood. 

• Mountain goat survey on Mount St Helens with WDFW and 

MSHI, (125 counted). 

•South zone biologist is part of the Bat Center for Excellence 

team. 

•Forest Biologist is the Regional WA RMEF Liaison. 

Gifford Pinchot National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

Figure 1. Muddy River CCS project –scotch broom removal from Muddy River 

drainage. 

Carol Chandler‐ Forest Wildlife Biologist 360‐891‐5106 

Mitch Wainwright –South Zone Biologist 360‐449‐7857 

John Jakubowski North Zone Biologist 360‐497‐1131 

Gifford Pinchot National Forest 

10600 NE 51stCircle

Vancouver, WA 98682 
for the greatest good

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

4,725 NFWF Road closures, aspen 

enhancement, 

18,251 Non‐NFWF Fuels and Veg Mgt. riparian 

restoration

498 Partnership Road Closures, aspen 

enhancement, guzzler repair 

Partners/Cooperators 

Oregon Hunters Association, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, 

Oregon Youth Conservation Consortium 

Malheur National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015 the Malheur National Forest successfully completed 

and implemented its Invasive Plant Treatment EIS, with no 

appeals or litigation. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• Hosted the annual RMEF regional rendezvous and planned 

work projects for 51 RMEF volunteers on the Prairie City 

RD. 

• Coordinated annual OHA volunteer work week. 

• Surveyed 28,075 ac. and 1785 trap/nights for American 

Marten with 8 detections using camera traps. 

• Conducted tours for birders in attendance at the Harney 

County Migratory Bird Festival. 

• Completed 5 wildlife specialist reports for Magone, Starr‐

Aspen, Big Mosquito, Central Malheur and Wolf projects. 

• Did maintenance work on 10 guzzlers on the Emigrant 

Creek RD. 

• Collaborated with the Blue Mtn. Forest Partners group to 

do a technical review of status and ecology of goshawks. 

• Constructed 1 mile of buck and pole fencing along Summit 

creek. 

Figure 1. Buck and Pole fence construction with RMEF volunteers. 

Contacts: Clark Reames 541‐575‐3474 

Figure 2. Marten detection – Ragged Ruby Project, Blue Mtn. RD 

Malheur National Forest 

431 Patterson Bridge. Rd.

Box 909 

John Day, OR 97845 
for the greatest good

Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015 the Mt. Baker‐Snoqualmie National Forest 

successfully improved wildlife habitat and provided wildlife 

information to the public. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• 5,189 acres of wildlife habitat improvement through 

conifer thinning to accelerate development of late‐seral 

habitat, conifer thinning to promote huckleberry growth, 

capping vault toilets for bird protection, installing a bat 

friendly mine closure, and Wild & Scenic River habitat 

enhancements. 

• Wildlife information shared with approximately 221,000 

individuals at public events: Trip Travel and Adventure 

Expo, Skagit River Salmon Festival, Stillaguamish Festival of 

the River, and Issaquah Salmon Days. 

Figure 2. Road 7013 Winter Range Gate. 

Figure 1. Huckleberry habitat improvement. 

Contact: Jesse J Plumage 425‐873‐6031 

Mt Baker‐Snoqualmie National Forest 

2930 Wetmore Ave, Suite 3A 

Everett, WA 98201 

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

1,490 NFWF Capping Vault Toilets for Birds

505 NFTM Thinning to Accelerate Late‐Seral Habitat 

Development 

2,000 NFMG Bat Friendly Mine Closure

50 NFWF Wild & Scrnic River Habitat Enhancement

50 NFVW/

NFWF/SSCC

Huckleberry Habitat Improvement

494 WFSU Habitat Improvement From Natural Wildfire

600

NFVW/

NFXN

Winter Range Habitat Improvement 

5,189 Total

Partners/Cooperators 

Defenders of Wildlife, Conservation Northwest, and Washington 

State University, Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, Idaho Fish 

and Game, US Fish and Wildlife Service, British Columbia Ministry of 

the Environment, Biodiversity Research Institute, Slow Foods Upper 

Columbia Chapter, Boy Scouts of America Chewelah, Seattle City 

Lights, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Selkirk Conservation Alliance, 

Student Conservation Association, various individuals.
for the greatest good

Mt Hood National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015 the Mt Hood National Forest successfully completed 

and implemented its stewardship and integrated habitat 

improvements. There were several wildlife species 

monitoring surveys that provided new information on the 

species: 

• Surveyed spotted owls on 3,400 acres for the Pollalie 

Cooper fuels restoration project. 

• We continued surveys for Sierra Nevada Red Fox. 

• We surveyed 28 locations for Western Bumblebee and 

found 4 new locations. 

• We surveyed Oregon spotted frogs and found 51 egg 

masses. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• 2,501 acres of forage enhancement and accelerating 

spotted owl habitat development through commercial and 

pre‐commercial thinning. 

• 1728 acres of invasive plant control to improve early seral 

habitat for wildlife. 

• Roads decommissioned to improve big game habitat 

utilization resulting in an improvement on 3,474 acres. 

• OHV trails closed to improve big game habitat utilization 

resulting in 400 acres of habitat improvement. 

• Topped or Girdled 1,340 acres of snags and down wood 

creation for dead wood dependant species. 

• 9 Mineral block supplements to improve 252 acres of 

habitat. 

• 6,815 acres of wildfire that improved wildlife habitat. The 

acres burned were not salvaged in order to improve snag 

and down wood conditions. 

• Partnership with Hawkwatch to record hawk migration 

movements and band hawks at Bonnie Butte. 

• Partnership with Cascadia Wild to do snow track surveys for 

rare carnivores and operating remote cameras. 

Contacts: Alan Dyck 503‐668‐1676 

Figure 1. Western Bumblebee Photo by Alan Dyck 

Mt Hood National Forest 

16400 Champion Way 

Sandy, OR 97055 

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

1,340 NFWF & 

SSCC

Snag & Down wood creation

3,474 SSCC Road Decommission 

1,728 NFWF Invasive Plant Control

2,501 SSCC Forage and spotted owl habitat from 

thinning

252 NFWF Huckleberry Habitat Improvement

400 SSCC OHV Trail Closure

6,815 WFSU/

NFWF

Snag and down wood retenetion following 

wildfire

16,510 Total

Partners/Cooperators 

Hawkwatch, Cascadia Wild, Oregon hunters Assoc., PGE, 

Northwest Ecological Research Institute
for the greatest good

Project Acres

Aspen Restoration 254

Exclosure Fence 18

Fence Removal 376

Invasive Plant Treatment 3,264

Juniper Removal 52

Nest Boxes 148

Non‐commercial thinning 498

Commercial Thinning 769

Low Intensity Wildfire 5,736

Prescribed Fire 4,511

Riparian Planting 14

Riparian Restoration 147

Road Closure/Decommission 1,807

Wildlife Escape Ramps 129

Wildlife Guzzlers 2,575

TOTAL 20,303

Ochoco National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In fiscal year 2015, the Ochoco National Forest accomplished 

20,303 acres of terrestrial wildlife habitat enhancement. 

Partnerships and integration with other resource programs 

were key to this accomplishment. 

Wildlife Program Priorities – The Wildlife Program priorities 

were developed by the Regional Terrestrial Restoration and 

Conservation Strategy (TRACS), the 

Maury Mule Deer Initiative, and the Interagency 

Special Status and Sensitive Species Program. 

Interpretive and Educational Events – Biologists continue 

to participate and engage youth in educational events 

including the Ochoco Fur, Fin, Fire and Feather event that 

reaches more than 700 elementary students; River Keepers, 

a elementary outdoor storyline; Crook County Summer 

Reading Program; Eagle Watch with the Oregon State 

Parks; and participation in a variety of Youth Conservation 

Corps projects for the accomplishment of wildlife habitat 

restoration and increasing youth knowledge and appreciation 

of nature. 

Figure 1. Silver‐bordered Fritillary (Boloria selene) 

Ochoco National Forest 

3160 NE 3rdSt. Prineville, OR 97754 

Crooked River National Grassland 

813 SW Highway 97

Madras, OR 97741 

Figure 2. Acres HBT‐ENH_TERR by project type 

Pollinator Conservation – The Forest participated in the 

Regional CCS Proposal; The Birds and the Bees, Pollinators, if 

you please! Seeds of six native forbs were collected to benefit 

the western bumblebee and rufous hummingbird. The 

Forest also received Interagency Special Status and Sensitive 

Species funding to conduct surveys for the butterfly, the 

Silver‐ bordered Fritillary. Surveys yielded 22 new occupied 

locations. 

Centers of Excellence – Ochoco NF biologists provide 

regional support as Centers of Excellence for elk and liaison 

with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation in Oregon; the Blue 

Mountains Elk Initiative Coordinator; and sage‐grouse. 

Partners/Cooperators ‐ Oregon Department of Fish and 

Wildlife, Oregon Hunters Association, Rocky Mountain Elk 

Foundation, Blue Mountains Elk Initiative, National Wild 

Turkey Federation, Portland General Electric, Confederated 

Tribes of Warm Springs, Boy Scouts, Eagle Scouts, Oregon 

State Police, Youth Conservation Corps 

Contact: Kevin Keown, Forest Wildlife Biologist 

541‐416‐6605 kkeown@fs.fed.us 
for the greatest good

Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

2015 was the second big fire year in a row. Over 160,000 ac. 

of the forest burnt. Most wildlife biologists spent a month or 

more working in various capacities on fire teams. 

Wildlife Habitat Improvement on over 55,000 acres: 

Natural Wildfire, Non‐native wildlife removal (STVA), Road 

decommissioning or storage, Thinning, Weed treatment, 

Prescribed fire, Revegetation and plant restoration, Beaver 

reintroduction, Fencing, Bear‐resistant garbage containers, 

Nesting/cavity structures, and Other (see chart). 

Inventory and Monitoring: 

• Counted 1,383 individuals of 17 species of migrating 

raptors at Chelan Ridge and banded 360. 

• Monitored 9 falcon aeries, and 6 bald eagle nests. 

• Completed 2ndyear of baseline monitoring for Mardon 

skipper, largest known population at an estimated 6,135. 

• Counted 138 (50% increase) Townsend’s big‐eared bats in 

the largest and longest recorded active hibernacula in WA. 

• Continued supporting the Monitoring Avian Productivity 

and Survivorship program and a white‐ headed 

woodpecker survey. 

• Conducted initial surveys for sensitive lepidopterans. 

• Continued surveys for presence of wolverine and other rare 

carnivores on 4 districts. 

• Surveyed 17 miles of Wenatchee River and documented 20 

osprey nests. 

• Surveyed historic great gray owl and goshawk nest sites. 

•Documented over 1,300 little brown bats roosting in FS bldg. 

• Completed numerous project support surveys for numerous 

species including owls and Chelan Mtn snails. 

Environmental Education: 

•Leavenworth Spring Bird Festival, 1,500 people. 

• Bonaparte Lake National Fishing Day, 215 kids. 

•Numerous school, community and university presentations. 

Research Support: 

• Collaborated in I‐90 road ecology research with WSDOT, 

CWU, and I‐90 Wildlife Bridges Coalition. 

• North Cascades Wolverine Study year 10, PNW Olympia. 

• Univ. of Wash. Wolf/Deer interaction study. 

• WSU Wolf/livestock interaction study. 

• Northern spotted owl prey base study, expanded to include 

breeding bird occupancy, PNW Lab Wenatchee. 

• White‐headed woodpecker study, Univ. of Idaho. 

• Chelan Ridge Raptor Migration, Hawkwatch International. 

Contact: Monte Kuk 509‐664‐9320 

Figure 1 I‐90 Snoqualmie pass terrestrial and 

aquatic underpass on the Cle Elum RD. Insets: 

great gray owl on nest and artificial loon nesting platform on the Tonasket RD. 

Okanogan‐Wenatchee National Forest 

215 Melody Lane 

Wenatchee, WA 98801 

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

3,373 CFLN, 

CWFS

Prescribed fire, road decomm, native 

plant restoration 

7,199 BDBD, 

WFHF 

Prescribed fire, thinning 

7,326 NFIM, 

NFTM 

 Nonnative removal, nest struct 

3,790 NFVW Weed treat, revegetation, fence 

3,671 NFWF Beaver reintro, meadow restor., nest 

struct, revegetation.

3,111 NFXN, 

PTNR

All the above

1,895 RBRB, 

RTRT, 

SRS2,SPFH

Fencing, revegetation, weed treatment

25,176 WFSU Natural wildlife, road decomm.

55,624 Total

Partners/Cooperators 

Access Fund, Cascades Carnivore Project, Conservation NW, CWU, 

EcoTrust, GEAR UP, Hawkwatch, Icicle Arts, Lake Chelan Sportsmen, Loon 

Lake Loon Assoc., Methow Salmon Recovery Foundation, National Audobon 

Society, National Forest Foundation, Oroville Sportsmen, TMDF, NWTF, 

Nature Conservancy, RMEF, Ruffed Grouse Society, Seattle City Light, Team 

Naturaleza, Upper Basin Birders, UW, UI, WSU, WA Conservation Science 

Institute, WA Women’s Foundation, WA Climbers Coalition, Wenatchee River 

Institute, Wolverine Foundation, Yakama Nation, and many local government 

agencies. 
for the greatest good

Olympic National Forest 

1835 Black Lake Blvd. SW 

Olympia, WA 98512 

Figure 2. Taylor’s checkerspot habitat enhancement completed by Washington 

Conservation Corps crew. 

Olympic National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015, the Olympic National Forest completed several habitat 

restoration projects, and continued to engage with our partners 

and the public. Accomplishment highlights include: 

• First documented marten sighting on the Forest in seven 

years; obtained ISSSSP funds to begin surveys on the Forest 

and Olympic NP. 

• Participated in multi‐partner Peninsula‐wide fisher 

monitoring. 

• Partnered with WDFW and recreation program in annual 

mountain goat public outreach using student interns to 

contact 2,675 visitors. 

• Continued recovery actions for Taylor’s checkerspot and its 

critical habitat through habitat enhancement. 

• Collaborated with local construction trades program to 

create 30 flying squirrel nest boxes. 

• Installed nest and roost boxes for small owls and forest 

bats. 

• Collected native plant seeds for pollinators under multi‐ 

forest R6 Challenge Cost Share. 

• Presented to Peninsula Wilderness Club and The Wildlife 

Society WA chapter annual meeting. 

• Created “Nature Notebook” on Forest website to share 

seasonal natural history moments. 

• Collaborated with Regional Wildlife Program and Forest 

webmaster to produce video for website on the work of a 

wildlife biologist. 

• Continued elk forage habitat enhancement work using 

volunteers, WCC, and contractors. 

• Monitored Olympic marmot population with the Olympic 

NF and volunteers. 

Figure 1. Installation of bat box by ONF certified tree climber. 

Contacts: 

Susan Piper, Forest Wildlife Biologist, 360‐956‐2435 

Kurt Aluzas, Wildlife Biologist, 360‐765‐2230 

Karen Holtrop, Wildlife Biologist, 360‐765‐2206 

Betsy Howell, Wildlife Biologist, 360‐956‐2292 

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

371 CMLG, Road decommission

450 CWKV Snag creation; native planting and 

seeding

22 NFIM, Prescribed fire for meadow restoration

1,555 NFWF Bat and owl nest box installation; habitat 

piles; native seeding 

50 NFXF Thinning and habitat piles

438 NFVW PCT; invasive weed treatment

69 NFXN Thinning and habitat piles

545 NFTM Commercial thin

3,500 Total

Partners/Cooperators 

USFWS, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, 

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Eyes in the Woods, 

Olympic National Park, U.S. Geological Survey, Washington 

Conservation Corps, West Sound Tech. 
for the greatest good

2014 Accomplishments 

Accomplishment type Fund Code Acres 

Cavity Creation KV 710 

Fence exclosure and removals NFRG 125 

Invasive Species Mgmt‐Plant NFVW 1736 

Lake‐Pond Development NFVW 1097 

Aspen/Meadow Restoration NFVW 192 

Bat Cave Protection NFMG 12054 

Native Plant Restoration NFWF 94 

Nest‐Roosting Structure KV 62 

Pollinator Habitat Improvement NFWF/

NFIM 

 1 

Prescribed Fire WFHF 1162 

pre‐comm/comm. thinning NFTM 3338 

Wildfire Natural P code 12263 

Wildlife Hab Improved NFWF 150 

Grand Total 32983 

Partners/Cooperators

USFWS, OR Hunter’s Association, Klamath Bird Observatory, OR Dept. 

of Fish and Wildlife, Rocky Mtn. Elk Foundation, Mule Deer Founda‐

tion, JH Stone Nursery, Xerces Society, Southern Oregon University, 

Oregon State University, Pacific SW Research Station, Fresno, The 

Nature Conservancy, City of Ashland. Pacific Northwest Research Sta‐

tion, Corvallis. 

Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015, the Rogue River Siskiyou National Forest 

accomplished T,E, and S, and MIS species inventories, as 

well as habitat improvement work across the Forest with 

our many internal and external partners. Our focus in the 

terrestrial wildlife program continues to be maintenance and 

restoration of both early and late seral habitats, as well as 

the conservation and recovery of listed and sensitive species 

that occur on the Forest. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

Over 32,000 acres of wildlife habitat enhanced using both 

appropriated monies as well as successfully integrating 

with other resources, in particular fire and fuels resources. 

A large portion of the Forest’s target also came from the 

installation of bat gates across the Forest which has proven 

to be an effective mitigation measure for loss of natural 

roosting habitat. 

A multi‐Forest seed collection effort was initiated for early 

seral pollinators including bumblebees and butterflies 

such as the Monarch butterfly and Mardon Skipper. Seed 

stock will be grown at the local USFS nursery and used for 

outplanting for various pollinator species. The Wild River RD 

also received a 50,000 Grant to propagate both milkweed 

and Monarch butterflies for outplanting and release. 

The Forest continues a fisher and small mammal monitoring 

effort with PSW/PNW, the Nature Conservancy, and the 

City of Ashland to study the response of fisher and their 

prey species to fuels reduction activities in the Ashland 

Watershed. To date, 32 fisher have been captured, 14 dens 

have been located, 10 in hardwoods. We will continue 

to monitor how these animals respond to the treatments 

in FY 2016 and 2017. The small mammal trapping effort 

has had 2 years of pre‐treatment sampling and 2 years of 

post‐ treatment sampling completed now at this time. Initial 

results seem to show a positive response by some species to 

the fuels work. 

Figure 1. Ashland Forest Resiliency Fisher 

Monitoring Project. 

Figure 2. Monarch Butterfly Caterpillar on Ascelpias cordifolia 

Contact: David Clayton Forest Wildlife Biologist 

Rogue River Siskiyou National Forest 

3040 Biddle Road

Medford Oregon, 97504 
for the greatest good

Siuslaw National Forest 

3200 SW Jefferson Way

Corvallis, OR 9733 

Siuslaw National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015 the Siuslaw used multiple sources including 

stewardship retained receipts, KV, secure rural communities, 

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and appropriated funds 

to continue or initiate new projects. Additional work was 

accomplished through multiple partners and volunteer 

efforts. 

Highlights include: 

• Another record high number of western snowy plover nests 

and confirmed fledging plover chicks from Siuslaw National 

Forest nesting areas! One of the most successful recovery 

units for the snowy plover. 

• Developed an outreach team with local watershed councils 

and local high school students. The community outreach 

is being led by the high school students to help build 

collaboration and support for converting old homestead 

meadows from non‐native pastures into Oregon silverspot 

habitat. 

• Through cooperation with PNW Research Station, collared 

8 Humboldt Marten. First boreal marten documented on 

the beach in the dunes system! 

• Small mammal and NSO prey studies have led to changes in 

how we treat plantations and which stands are chosen for 

treatment. 

• Pollinator specific plants were identified and collected from 

the forest to help create a pollinator friendly seed mix 

available for large scale forest restoration efforts. 

Figure 1. Collaboration with stakeholders, stewardship groups, OSU and PNW 

research. 

Figure 2. Humboldt Marten in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. Photo 

by Mark Linnell. 

Contact: Deanna Williams 541 750‐7013 

2014 Accomplishments

Core Acres Activities 

593 

NFWF

Silverspot habitat maintenance, 

Snowy plover maintenance, monitoring, predator control, meadow maintenance, predator proof trash containers, conservation canines, marten 

research, small mammal research, 

riparian enhancement 

Integrated Acres Activities 

7556 

CWKV, NFTM, NFVW, 

CMLG, SRS2, SPST, 

PTNR, SSCC, NFXN

Terrestrial habitat restoration, deadwood creation, control of invasives, 

road decommissioning, beaver 

deceivers, 

Partners/Cooperators 

Watershed Councils‐Mid‐Coast, Alsea, Salmon Drift Creek, 

Siuslaw, Mary’s River; Stewardship Groups; RMEF, ORBIC, 

APHIS, FWS, OPRD, TNC, ODF&W, Cascade Pacific RC&D, Or‐

egon Zoo, Institute for Applied Ecology, PNW Research Station.
for the greatest good

Umatilla National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

Umatilla National Forest Wildlife Program 

accomplishment highlights: 

• Assisted ODFW with wolf monitoring. 

•Bald and golden eagle monitoring. 

•Mid‐winter bald eagle surveys. 

• Collected plant seed for pollinator species. 

• Enhanced habitat for big game forage and other wildlife on 

7,128 acres through prescribed fire and fuels reduction 

projects. 

•Improved wildlife habitat by treating 6,382 acres of noxious 

weeds. 

• Decommissioned 23 miles of roads with full bench re‐ 

contour affecting 4,200 acres of security habitat for 

wildlife. 

• Installed several road closures on 10 roads, enhancing 

3,300 acres of big game security habitat. 

•Created snag habitat by girdling trees on 21 acres 

•Repaired fence around 9 acres of aspen stands. 

•Served on Blue Mountains Elk Initiative (BMEI) and assisted 

with the BMEI 25thAnniversary Celebration. 

•Served on the Hells Canyon Bighorn Sheep Initiative and 

assisted with bighorn capture. 

• Coordinated with state agencies and USFWS on wolves 

•Focused on effective integrated approach to vegetation 

management. 

Figure 1. Trail camera photo of wolf on the North Fork John Day Ranger District, 

Desolation Unit. First estimated area of known wolf activity in the southern half of 

the Umatilla NF. 

Contact: Elizabeth Berkley 541‐278‐3814 

Figure 2. Recently discovered bald eagle nest on the Tucannon River, Pomeroy 

Ranger District. 

Umatilla National Forest 

72510 Coyote Rd.

Pendleton, OR 97801 

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

7,128 WFHF Prescribed Fire

6,382 NFWF, 

NFVW, 

SRS2, PTNR 

Noxious weed Treatment

7,526 CWKV, 

PTNR

Road decom & closure

21 CWKV Snag Creation

9 Partner

in-kind

Aspen fence

21,066 Total

Partners/Cooperators 

ODFW, WDFW, USFWS, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, 

Boy Scouts, BMEI, Hells Canyon Initiative, Blue Mtn. Habitat 

Restoration Council, CTUIR
for the greatest good

Umpqua National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

In 2015, the Umpqua National Forest successfully met & 

exceeded planned wildlife targets. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• Commercially thinned 1907 acres of second growth to 

improve future habitat for wildlife species and northern 

spotted owl Critical Habitat. 

• Completed 547 acres of snag creation for wildlife habitat. 

• Placed 384 acres of prescribed fire on the landscape to 

benefit wildlife species, early seral habitat & pine/oak 

habitat restoration areas. 

• Closed/repaired 5 mine adits with bat friendly gate 

closures. 

• With RMEF, OHA & ODFW completed over 70 acres of 

forage enhancement, opening creations, along with a pond 

creation for elk, deer, grouse, quail, amphibians and other 

wildlife species. 

• With the Audubon Society‐Umpqua Chapter, Phoenix 

School, OYCC , ODFW & Umpqua Watersheds monitored 

migratory bird routes, NW Pond turtle sites, conducted 

amphibian surveys and installed 11 vent covers at 

recreation sites. 

• Relocated 3 nuisance beaver to lovely homes on the 

Umpqua with BAC/SURCP (Beaver Advocacy Committee/

South 

Umpqua Rural Community Partnership. 

• Collaborated with adjacent Forests to inventory for bumble 

bees & other insects, along with Sierra Nevada red fox, 

fisher and other carnivores. 

• Surveyed for bats, bald eagles, peregrine falcons, red 

tree voles, mollusks, spotted owls and other rare wildlife 

species. 

• Hosted Western Bumble Bee Workshop for the Forest 

Service & BLM with Xerces Society. 

• Conducted numerous environmental education 

presentations, including Bat Week in local schools, OSU 

Forestry School, Job Shadowing with Wolf Creek Job Corp. 

Figure 1.: Specimen collected during the Western Bumble Bee Workshop. 

Umpqua National Forest 

2900 NW Stewart Parkway 

Roseburg, OR 97471 

Contact: Tiffany Young, Forest Wildlife Biologist, 541‐957‐3260 

Figure 2.: Documented fisher on the Umpqua NF as a result of monitoring 

efforts. This is the 1st documentation on the Umpqua NF in 15 years. 

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

384 BDBD/

WFHF

Prescribed Fire

547 CWKV KV Wildlife Treatments

10,000 NFMG Bat Gates on Mines

550 NFWF Wildlife Improvements, Including Vent 

Covers

1,907 NFTM Beneficial Timber Harvests

72 PTNR Partnership (inc. NFXN)

13,469 Total

2015 Accomplishments Partners/Cooperators/

Big Thanks:

Audubon Society‐Umpqua Chapter, BAC/SURCP, NWTF, 

ODFW, OHA, Oregon Youth Conservation Corps (OYCC), 

RMEF, Umpqua Watersheds, Wolf Creek Job Corp, Xerces 

Society, along with numerous independent volunteers 

from the community, schools & local businesses.
for the greatest good

Wallowa-Whitman National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

The Wallowa‐Whitman National Forest accomplished several 

habitat restoration projects and wildlife surveys in 2015. Some 

highlights of the program include: 

• Plugged 28 open pipes on gates and hold back posts to 

prevent entrapment of wildlife (figure 2). 

• Partnered with ODFW on implementation and enforcement 

of cooperative travel management areas. 

• Applied prescribed fire to nearly 12,000 acres to benefit elk, 

deer, and mature pine associated wildlife species; 

• Beneficial results for wildlife were realized on nearly 25,000 

acres of wildfires. 

• Non‐commercially thinned 1,112 acres of young conifer 

stands to prolong their value as forage for big game and as 

early seral habitat. 

• Coordinated a terrestrial mollusk workshop for our 

biologists. 

• Surveyed 45 acres for western bumblebees. 

• Maintained and monitored 24 great gray owl nest 

platforms; 

• Invasive weed control was conducted on 1,045 acres. 

• Monitored numerous nest sites of golden eagle, peregrine 

falcon, and goshawk. 

• Surveyed for marten, wolverine, and montane fox at 15 

remote camera sites (figure 1). 

• Minor amounts of survey for bats, small mammals, and 

white‐headed woodpecker. 

• Protected 20 acres of mountain mahogany through brush 

piling over seedlings; and 

• Provided education and outreach to numerous schools and 

community groups. 

Figure 1. Camera traps were used to survey for marten, montane fox, 

and wolverine. This tree hugging bear visited one of our sets. He asked to 

spare this tree from blue paint. 

Contact: Mark Penninger, Forest Wildlife Biologist 

541 523‐1285 

Figure 2. Downy woodpecker is one species that could benefit from 

plugging open pipes on gates, mine markers, and vault toilets. 

Wallowa‐Whitman National Forest 

1550 Dewey Avenue, Suite A 

Baker City, OR 97814

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

1,360 NFWF/

NFXN WL

Habitat Improvement

1,112 NFTM Non-Commercial Thinning

12,000 NFHF Prescribed Fire

1,045 NFWF/

NFVW

Invasive Weeds

15,517 Total Terrestrial Habitat Enhancement

25,000 WFSU/

NFTM/

WFHF

Beneficial Wildfire

Partners/Cooperators/

Oregon Dept. Fish and Wildlife; Blue Mountain Elk Initia‐

tive; Oregon Hunters Association; Hells Canyon Preservation 

Council; Blue Mountain Conservancy; Rocky Mountain Elk 

Foundation; Wallowa Resources; Hells Canyon Bighorn Sheep 

Restoration Initiative; Friends of Ladd Marsh; Oregon Youth 

Authority. 
for the greatest good

Willamette National Forest 

3106 Pierce Parkway

Springfield, OR 97477 

In 2015 the Willamette National Forest exceeded planned 

wildlife targets. 

Accomplishment highlights include: 

• With RMEF, OHA, and other partners, completed over 8400 

acres of elk and deer enhancement by road closures, weed 

treatments, and forage improvement. 

• Completed 1250 acres of snag creation and 805 acres of 

downed wood creation. 

• Commercially thinned 2530 acres of second growth to 

improve future habitat for northern spotted owls. 

• Built slash piles for quail on 168 acres of open forest 

habitat. 

• With ODFW enhanced over 9800 acres of anadromous 

habitat benefitting bald eagles, bears, and other riparian‐

associated wildlife. 

• Monitored/inventoried for bats, bees, peregrine falcons, 

fisher, Oregon spotted frogs, red tree voles, Sierra Nevada 

red fox, mollusks, spotted owls and other rare wildlife 

species. 

• Conducted numerous environmental education 

presentations and hosted an International Visiting Biologist 

on the MRRD. 

Figure 1. In 2015, the Forest documented a significant population of western 

bumblebees by discovering 20 new sites in the higher elevations of the McKenzie 

River Ranger District. 

Figure 2. In FY15, the Willamette completed a long‐term monitoring project for 

peregrine falcons. The number of known nest sites on the Forest has increased 

from 0 in 1990 to 21 in 1999 to 32 in 2015, although not all are occupied each year. 

Monitoring results have provided data used by ODFW and USFWS for evaluating 

State and Regional population trends for peregrines through recover and post‐

delisting timeframes. 

Willamette National Forest 

2015 WL / TES Program Accomplishments 

Contact: Joe Doerr, Forest Wildlife Biologist, 541‐225‐6433 

2015 Accomplishments

Acres Fund Code Activity 

5121 CWKV KV Wildlife Treatments

2613 CMLG Road Closures

2000 NFLM Bat Gates on Mines

2076 NFWF Wildlife Improvements

2533 NFTM Beneficial Timber Harvests 

8969 PTNR Partnerships (inc. NFXN)

476 SSCC Stewardships

349 NFVW Weed Treatments

25,486 TOTAL 

Partners/Cooperators/

Boy/Girl Scouts of America, BPA, PGE, RMEF, NWTF, ODFW, 

OHA, Northwest Youth Corps, numerous watershed councils, 

schools & businesses 
for the greatest good

Centers of Excellence 
for the greatest good

Betsy Howell on the Olympic National Forest functions as the 

“Center of Excellence” for amphibian and reptile conservation 

in Oregon and Washington. The primary duties under this 

position include: 

•Serving as a liaison with the Northwest affiliate of Partners 

in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC). 

•Serving as the co‐chair for NW PARC (2‐year term begun in 

February 2015). 

• Disseminating current conservation information on 

amphibian and reptile species to Region 6 National Forests. 

• Participating in regular conference calls with the PARC Joint 

National Steering Committee. 

PRODUCTS/PROJECTS 

2015 NW PARC Conference 

Organized and attended the 8thAnnual Northwest PARC Conference in Portland, Oregon: “Citizen Science: Expanding 

Science and Ecological Literacy.” This one‐day event focused on various aspects of citizen science, including the design, 

implementation, and success of amphibian and reptile projects, as well as the roll of mobile apps, bioblitzes, and outreach 

programs in conservation and stewardship. Presenters included individuals from North Cascades Institute, Western Oregon 

University, Xerces Society, Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife, and U.S. Forest Service. One hundred people attended 

the workshop. 

Began a two‐year term as co‐chair for NW PARC. Each PARC region has two co‐chairs that work with a steering Committee on 

various efforts to promote the conservation of amphibians and reptiles. This year, our primary tasks have included redoing 

the NW PARC website (www.nwparc.org) and planning for the 2016 meeting, the theme of which will be “Conservation 

Across Borders.” This meeting will take place in February in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, in conjunction with the annual meetings of 

the Washington and Idaho Wildlife Societies and the Society for Northwestern Vertebrate Biology. 

Provided technical review of the Bsal (salamander fungus) 

Rapid Response Plan. 

Continued to forward current herp information to district 

and forest personnel. 

Keynote speaker, Sharman Apt Russell (second from left), and speaker Celeste 

Mazzacano of the Xerces Society (far right) talk with workshop attendees during a 

break. 

Olympic National Forest 

1835 Black Lake Blvd. SW, Suite A 

Olympia, WA 98512‐5623 

Ochoco National Forest 

2015 Amphibian & Reptile Center of Excellence Accomplishments

Contact: Betsy Howell – 360/956‐2292; blhowell@fs.fed.us 
for the greatest good

Forest

#RMEF/BMEI 

Projects RMEF Funding BMEI Funding

FREWIN 3 $54,000 NA

OCH 1 $20,000 $20,000

RRS 1 $15,000 NA

SIU 1 $10,000 NA

UMA 3 $12,500 $30,000

UMP 1 $8,700 NA

WAW 3 $40,000 $45,000

WIL 4 $74,883 NA

TOTAL 17 $235,083 $95,000* *

.*USFS projects only; **USFS BMEI funds 

Blue Mountains Elk Initiative Celebrates 25 Years 

The BMEI celebrated 25 years in 2015. The date was marked by 

a two day celebration, June 30 –July 1, in Pendleton Oregon. 

The two day event included a visit to the Starkey Experimental 

Forest and Range, where participants spoke about the 

four original elk studies; roads and traffic, intensive timber 

management, breeding bulls, and forage allocation. On day 

two, there was a Tribal Welcome and an Elder Prayer prior to 

the recognition and awards dinner hosted by the Confederated 

Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. The keynote speaker 

was Jack Ward Thomas, the 13th Chief of the Forest Service 

and a former Director of the Pacific Northwest Laboratory in La 

Grande, Oregon. 

The BMEI is a cooperative effort between Federal, State, private 

landowners, Tribal Nations, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, 

sportsman and conservation organizations, and other partners 

with the mutual goal to improve the management of elk 

and other wildlife across the Blue Mountains of Oregon and 

Washington. 

The BMEI is the longest running and most successful initiative of 

it’s kind, Over the past 25 years, the BMEI has leveraged nearly 

10 million dollars and completed more than 300,00 acres of 

habitat improvement across the Blue Mountains. 

2015 BMEI/RMEF Center of Excellence Duties and 

Accomplishments 

• Solicited RMEF project proposals from Forests in Oregon 

and BMEI proposals from the four Forests in the BMEI area 

– Ochoco, Malheur, Umatilla, and Wallowa‐Whitman –and 

State, Tribal, and private cooperators. 

• Assisted project proponents in the development of habitat 

restoration projects and project proposals, 

• Served as the Forest Service liaison and voting member 

of the both the OR and WA RMEF project advisory 

committees (PAC); represented the BMEI at the both the 

Oregon and Washington PAC meetings. 

• Reviewed, evaluated, and ranked 51 proposals, 

• Assisted the OR RMEF PAC in the prioritization and selection 

of the projects to be funded; 20 projects selected for 

funding in OR. 

• Facilitated the distribution of BMEI funds to successful 

applicants. 

• In FY’15 RMEF allocated a total of $279,733 in Oregon 

which was matched by $3,754,158 of USFS, $125,000 BMEI 

(combined $95K FS, $10K ODFW, and $20K Blue Mountains 

Habitat Restoration Council ), and other contributor funds.

BMEI Celebration Keynote speaker Dr. Jack Ward Thomas 

Table 1. 2015 RMEF/BMEI Projects and Funding by Forest 

Contact: Kevin Keown – Ochoco National Forest 541‐416‐6605 

Ochoco National Forest 

2015 Blue Mountains Elk Initiative & Rocky Mountain Elk

Foundation Center of Excellence Accomplishments 

Ochoco National Forest 

3160 NE 3rdSt.

Prineville, OR 97754 
for the greatest good

2015 Accomplishments 

RMEF Funding RMEF $102,470 

Partners/Cooperators 

Washington Department of Wildlife, Skamania, Klickitat and 

Cowlitz County Weed Board, Asotin County Weed Board, 

In 2015, the Washington forest submitted 14 USFS 

projects to the Washington PAC. The following 9 projects 

were recommended and funded by the committee to 

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. 

•MTA Invasive Meadow Treatment –Gifford Pinchot NF 

invasive weed treatment in south zone meadows ‐ 

$20,400. 

• Toutle River Invasive Weed Management – Gifford 

Pinchot NF – mouseear hawkweed treatments on 

the Mount St Helens National Volcanic Monument ‐ 

$15,000, 

• Judy Mills Project Prescribe Fire – Colville NF ‐ 

$6,900. 

•San Creek Summit Restoration – Colville NF ‐ 

$5,00. 

•Pend Oreille County Closed Road 

Improvements ‐ Colville NF ‐ $3,620. 

•Pend Oreille County Meadow Enhancements 

– Colville NF ‐ $4,800. 

•Blue Mtns Wildlife Area Complex Noxious Weed 

Control ‐ Umatilla NF ‐ $30,000. 

•Chase Mountain Elk Security – Umatilla NF ‐ 

$5,000. 

•Pinkham Prescribed Fire ‐ Umatilla NF ‐ 

$11,750. 

Figure 1 Rd 7013 Winter Gate relocation completed on Mount Baker Snoqualmie NF 

in 2015. 

Carol Chandler‐ R6 WA Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation 

Liaison 360‐891‐5106 

Gifford Pinchot National Forest 

10600 NE 51st Circle

Vancouver, WA 98682 

Gifford Pinchot National Forest 

2015 RMEF WA Center of Excellence Program Accomplishments 
for the greatest good

Figure 2. Example of sage‐grouse habitat 

In 2015 the Ochoco National Forest hosted the “Center of 

Excellence” (COE) for greater sage‐ grouse on National Forests 

in Region 6 within the state of Oregon. 

During 2015 duties included: 

•Serving as the Forest Service representative on the Oregon 

Sage‐grouse Conservation Planning Team. 

• Representing the Forest Service at the Oregon SageCon 

Partnership meetings. 

• Responding to data requests related to sage‐ grouse 

conservation actions and the annual status review by 

USFWS. 

• Assisting other National Forests in Oregon with sage‐grouse 

by distributing information regarding sage‐grouse and their 

habitat. 

Figure 1. Greater sage‐grouse at a lek (breeding site) 

Figure 3. Hen sage‐grouse in nesting habitat 

Ochoco National Forest 

3160 NE 3rdStreet 

Prineville, OR 97754 

Ochoco National Forest 

2015 R6 Greater Sage-grouse COE Accomplishments 

The USDA Forest Service working in partnership with a 

multitude of governmental and non‐governmental partners 

across eleven western states, working in an unprecedented 

collaborative conservation effort, contributed toward the 

determination by USFWS that the greater sage‐grouse 

does not require protection as a listed species under 

the Endangered Species Act. This finding was released in 

September 2015, just prior to the end of FY 15. 

During 2015, the SageCon Parnership, a collaborative group 

in Oregon, completed a State‐wide All Lands All Threats Plan 

intended to promote conservation of sage‐grouse, while 

addressing rural community sustainability in central and eastern 

Oregon. The COE attends SageCon meetings as the Region 6 

USFS representative and also serves on the Oregon Sage‐grouse 

Conservation Planning Team, which provides technical support 

to SageCon. 

Contact: Dede Steele 541‐416‐6500 
for the greatest good

The Full Curl Program continued to provide technical 

expertise to all western Forest Service regions through Mark 

Penninger, andMelanie Woolever prior to her retirement in 

early 2015. The program experienced a lull in activity from 

January through June 2015 due to Melanie 

Woolever’s retirement and an injury that sidelined 

Mark Penninger for six months. 

The following is a summary of services provided: 

• Continued updating occupied bighorn/domestic sheep 

allotment maps for western states. 

•Provided technical assistance and support to a 

variety of planning activities in all Regions using the risk of 

contact model. 

•Provided technical assistance to forest plan revision teams 

regarding pack goats in occupied bighorn habitat. 

• Staffed a booth at the Pope & Young Club’s convention in 

Phoenix, AZ. 

•Provided guidance and consistency in the application of 

national direction from Aug. 19, 2011 and June 2012 

national memos. 

• Assisted with bighorn disease sampling and a translocation. 

• Continued involvement with the WAFWA Bighorn Sheep 

Working Group, including attendance at the summer 

WAFWA meeting in Reno, NV. 

•Provided technical assistance to California Fish & Game on 

helicopter use in wilderness areas. 

•Served as the primary FS contact for state 

wildlife agency biologists, Tribes, NGOs, disease researchers, 

and others involved in bighorn conservation. 

• Represented the FS on the Hells Canyon Bighorn Sheep 

Restoration Initiative. 

• Represented the FS on various interagency teams including 

governor’s taskforce, disease review team, and Nez Perce 

Salmon River Recovery Program Team. 

•Organized and staffed state‐of‐the‐art booth at the Wild 

Sheep Foundation’s annual convention, providing exposure 

to >8,500 exhibit hall attendees. 

Figure 1. Mature Rocky Mountain bighorn rams in Hells Canyon. The Hells Canyon 

population continues to struggle decades after diseases from domestic sheep 

caused all‐age die offs. 

Mountain Goat, Center of Excellence, 

summary of services: 

• Technical contact for a National Park Service team 

conducting an EIS to address non‐native goats on the OLY 

peninsula; 

• Tracked reports of nuisance goats in Elkhorn Mountains, 

OR; 

• Responded to questions by hunters and hikers about mt 

goats; and 

• Provided technical guidance on goat issues to the RO and 

other FS units on request. 

Mark Penninger 

Full Curl Program 

1550 Dewey Ave. Suite A 

Baker City, OR 97814 

Full Curl Program/R-6 Mountain Goat COE 

2015 Accomplishments 
for the greatest good

The Sisters Ranger District Wildlife Biologist on the Deschutes National 

Forest functions as a “Center of Excellence” for upland game bird 

related partnerships within Oregon and Washington. The primary duties 

under this position include:

National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) 

Region 6 Making Tracks Steering Committee Representative: 

NWTF National Convention: 

• Participated in the finalization of the Steering Committee Charter. The 

charter outlines the mission, purpose of the Making 

Track Program and committee responsibilities. The charter was signed 

by Deputy Chief of the Forest Service Leslie Weldon and NWTF Chief 

Conservation Office Rebecca Humphries. 

• Participated in ongoing discussions between the FS and NWTF staff on 

the NWTF’s Big 6 Focal Landscapes and priority habitats associated 

with each landscape as it relates to NWTF “Save the Habitat Save the 

Hunt” initiative. 

•Report out on Region 6 accomplishments from existing stewardship 

agreements and super fund projects. 

• Annually submit meeting notes to Regional Program Manager 

from National Convention, notes include complete agenda items of all 

attended meetings. 

Annually a R6 Forest Supervisor accompanies me to the National 

Convention Representing the Regional Forester. Kevin Martin from the 

Umatilla National Forest was the Regional Forester representative for 

2015 

Making Tracks Steering Committee Member: 

Quarterly Meetings‐ Attend quarterly conference calls organized 

by Making Tracks National Coordinator Tracy Grazia. For FY 15 the 

committee focused on completing the steering committee Operational 

Plan and the Annual Strategic Plan. 

The Operational Plan outlines how the steering committee functions 

and the processes by which the steering committee will operate. The 

Operational Plan was finalized and signed by the steering committee co‐

chairs: Robert Trujillo, USFS Region 8 Director of Biological and Physical 

Resources and Tom Hughes, 

NWTF Assistant Vice‐President of Conservation. 

The Annual Strategic Plan identifies specific programmatic priorities 

and action items that will direct NWTF and USFS staff to enhance our 

combined cooperation and coordination efforts throughout 2015‐2016. 

Partnership Development –Participated in a Stewardship Agreement 

training hosted by the Okanogan/Wenatchee National 

Forest. Participated as a subject matter expert and as a panel member 

to discuss Stewardship Agreements in a Q&A style forum. The training 

was attended by FS staff and various non‐profit organizations. 

NWTF Cont. 

Provided a Stewardship Agreement process overview for the Malheur 

National Forest Biologists. 

WAFWA Turkey Technical Committee Meeting ‐ The annual meeting 

was hosted by ODFW in May. I attended the meeting and participated 

in discussions on habitat management as well as presented on 

partnership projects between NWTF and FS in the Region . 

Support to the NWTF Regional Wildlife Biologist with ongoing 

stewardship projects, and assist with the Stewardship Agreement 

process for new stewardship projects. 

Participated in the BMEI Partnership Celebration and Partnership 

meeting. Looking for opportunities to increase BMEI’s partnership 

capacity with the assistance of the Making Track program to expand 

habitat enhancement opportunities in the Blue Mountains. 

Assist with the “Call For Proposal” through NWTF’s Superfund habitat 

enhancement process. Projects are reviewed by the COE, NWTF 

Regional Biologist, State Fish and Wildlife Biologist and the NWTF State 

Board. In FY 2015 projects were funded on the Oka/Wen, CRGNSA, 

(2)Malheur, Willamette. 

Ruffed Grouse Society (RGS) and other Upland Game Bird 

Coordination: 

• Coordinate with Director of Conservation at the RGS National 

Headquarters to promote partnership projects in the Region. 

•When needed, work with local FS Wildlife Bios to provide RGS with 

potential volunteer projects that assist with habitat improvement work. 

• Coordinate with Dave Budeau the Oregon Department of Fish and 

Wildlife Game Bird Program Coordinator on upland game bird projects 

associated with National Forests in Oregon. 

• Assist with Grouse and Mt. Quail Wing Bee in Southwestern Oregon. 

Provide Forest Program Managers with harvest resultst from both the 

Northeast Oregon Wing Bee and Southwest Oregon Wing Bee. 

Figure 1. Dave Budeau ODFW Game Bird Program Coordinator providing directions 

at the Southwest Oregon Wing Bee. 

Upland Game Bird Center of Excellence 

2015 Accomplishments 

Contact: 

Monty Gregg,

Regional Upland Game Bird COE, 

541‐549‐7724 
for the greatest good

Colville National Forest 

2015 Woodland Caribou Center of Excellence Accomplishments 

SNOW PATROLS: As in past winters, Forest Protection 

Officers (FPOs) continued to complete weekend visitor 

contact patrols on snowmobile in the Forest’s portion of 

the Selkirk Mountains Woodland Caribou Recovery Area. 

We were only able to complete 2 patrols due to a break‐

down of a snowmobile (seized gearbox) that required costly 

repairs. Snow conditions were unusually shallow and hard‐

packed in the winter of 2014 ‐ 2015, which appeared to have 

limited overall snowmobile recreation in the recovery area, 

compared to past years. 

For the first time we detected snow‐bike (tracked 

motorcycle) use in the caribou recovery area. This vehicle 

was driven around a gate and onto a closed road. Physically 

prohibiting this type of machine from being driven around 

almost any gate may be problematic. 

As in recent years, we detected a small number of illegal 

entries by snowmobile riders onto Molybdenite Ridge, via 

closed roads. There were no other known incursions on high 

ridges in the forest’s portion of the recovery area. 

VISITOR CONTACT PATROLS: In Fiscal Year 2015, FPOs 

completed 20 weekend visitor contact patrols in the recovery 

areas for grizzly bears and caribou (which overlap). A 

primary objective of these patrols is to inform hunters about 

proper species identification, so a threatened or endangered 

species is not mistaken for a game animal. We also provide 

information (including brochures) on caribou ecology and 

recovery efforts. 

Figure 1: Forest Protection officer making a hunter contact. 

Figure 2. Wildfire that burned in the woodland caribou recovery area in 2015. 

KANIKSU COMPLEX WILDFIRES: Lightning storms in August 

sparked a number of wildfires in the caribou recovery area, 

ranging from a fraction of an acre on up to several hundred 

acres in size. Owing to a lack of access and other firefighting 

priorities on the Forest, these fires were mostly monitored 

until they were put out by season‐ending weather events. 

Fire severity tended to be mixed, which is thought to be 

the historic fire regime over most of the forest land in Pend 

Oreille County. The acres of “target” stands for caribou 

affected were small. The east zone biologist was assigned to 

a Burned Area Emergency Response Team for this complex of 

fires. 

CARIBOU MONITORING / PREDATOR MANAGEMENT:

Biologists in British Columbia (BC) continued to monitor 

6 GPS collared caribou. The Colville National Forest 

contributed $2,500 towards this effort. BC continued to 

remove wolf packs to reduce predation on the remnant 

caribou herd (estimated to be less than 20 animals). Cougar 

hunting regulations have been relaxed in BC. Methods to 

boost the population size of the herd are being discussed, 

including maternal penning, augmentation from elsewhere in 

BC, and additional predator control. 

Contacts: Mike Borysewicz – 509‐446‐7532 or 

 Karen Honeycutt – 509‐684‐7224 

Colville National Forest 

765 South Main Street 

Colville, WA 99114 
for the greatest good

R6 Carnivore Center of Excellence 

2015 Accomplishments 

John Rohrer, Okanogan‐Wenatchee National Forest, 

functions as the carnivore center of excellence for Region 6. 

Primary duties include: 

• Assist Forests with addressing carnivore life histories, 

distribution, status, and how Forest Service activities affect 

these species, 

• Represent the PNW Region on national teams to develop 

strategies for conservation of rare carnivore species. 

• Represent the PNW Region by attending national, 

international and interagency meetings of standing 

committees, such as the Interagency Grizzly Bear 

Committee, 

• Work with other FS Regions, agencies and partners, to 

conduct surveys, develop projects, implement habitat 

improvement programs and reintroductions, and develop 

tools to analyze the effects of FS projects on carnivores. 

2015 Accomplishments 

Provided partial funding for 4 projects: 

• Installation of bear‐resistant food lockers in campgrounds 

on the Colville NF. 

• Marten surveys on the Malheur NF. 

• Humboldt marten surveys on the RRS/Siuslaw NFs. 

• Sierra Nevada Red Fox DNA analysis on Deschutes and 

Willamette NFs. 

Figure 2. Male wolverine, Special K, being released from a live trap, 

Okanogan‐Wenatchee National Forest. 

• Participated on North Cascades Grizzly Bear Tech Team and 

Recovery EIS Science Team. 

• Assisted with grizzly bear detections surveys in Pasayten 

Wilderness. 

• Provided support for WSU wolf/livestock interaction 

research projects. 

• Provided assistance and support to WSU graduate student 

researching lynx and climate change. 

• Provided support for Cascades red fox current state‐ of‐

knowledge write‐up by Jocelyn Akins. 

• Coordinated field portion of year 10 for the North 

Cascades Wolverine Project. 

• Evaluated use of scat‐detecting dogs for collecting 

wolverine DNA. 

• Attended Wild Links annual meeting and Interagency 

Grizzly Bear Committee winter meeting. 

• Assisted National Carnivore Program with annual 

Yellowstone Carnivore Class for line officers. 

• Participated in numerous conference calls, meetings, 

and discussions regarding specific issues with wolves, 

wolverines, lynx, fisher, marten, montane, fox, and grizzly 

bear. 

Okanogan‐Wenatchee National Forest 

24 West Chewuch 

Figure 1. Marten detected on Blue Mountain RD, Malheur NF. Winthrop, WA 98862 

Contacts: John Rohrer 509‐996‐4001; jrohrer@fs.fed.us 
for the greatest good

Siuslaw National Forest 

2015 Western Snowy Plover Center of Excellence Accomplishments 

Nest Protection and Monitoring: 

• Nesting season monitoring confirmed the fledging of well 

over 300 snowy plover chicks on the Oregon Coast. At 

least 189 chicks fledged from Siuslaw National Forest 

nesting beaches. 

• Increased protection of nesting areas along 5 miles of 

beach from off road vehicles. 

• Assisted with range‐wide winter and early breeding season 

monitoring. 

• Installed, maintained and removed 17.5 miles of symbolic 

rope fence to protect nesting snowy plovers. Installed 60+ 

additional seasonal informational and regulatory signs. 

Habitat Improvement: 

• Nesting habitat was improved by hand pulling European 

beachgrass on 53 acres and mechanical removal of 

hummocks on 40 acres. 

• Commercial oyster shell was spread over 12 acres to 

provide structure in plover nesting areas. 

• Hosted 2 beach cleanup events with Surfriders and Emerald 

Empire Backcountry Horseman that removed over 2,000 

lbs. of trash. Predator Control: 

• Two APHIS‐Wildlife Services specialists provided predator 

control from February – August at five nesting areas. 

Figure 1. Scalping and burying beach grass hummocks on the Oregon Dunes 

National Recreation Area. 

Figure 2. Juvenile snowy plover using oyster shell for cover. 

Photo by Adam Kotaich. 

Outreach: 

• Five volunteer docents donated nearly 1500 hours 

monitoring recreational closures and contacting 

recreationists on the beach and in campgrounds. Over 

4,600 visitor contacts were made. 

• Provided training to Valuing People and Places Field 

Rangers who provided outreach to the public over 2,000 

times. 

• In cooperation with Oregon Parks and Recreation four new 

vehicle closure/recreational restriction signs were installed. 

Law Enforcement: 

FPOs and volunteers documented 309 violations to area 

closures. 

Partners/Cooperators: 

Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, BLM, Oregon 

Biodiversity Information Center, ODF&W, APHIS‐Wildlife 

Services, USFWS, ACOE. 

Contact: Cindy Burns 541‐271‐6021 

Siuslaw National Forest 

Central Coast Ranger District/ODNRA 

855 Hwy 101 

Reedsport, OR 97467 
for the greatest good

Region 6 

2015 NRIS Wildlife Database Accomplishments 

2015 saw no major changes in the NRIS Wildlife 

application. Legacy data migrations continued, and are 

almost complete for the region. 

The National User Group continued discussions on data 

sharing and confidentiality issues, bat caves and INFRA, 

coordination with NICE and WIT, and invasive wildlife 

species. 

Figure 1. Growth of NRIS Wildlife Data 2009‐2015 by forest 

2015 Accomplishments 

R6 Forests added more than 133,000 new 

observations and 52,000 sites since database use 

began in 2002. Almost 27,000 surveys are also in 

the database. 

Contacts: Ann Glidden 509‐996‐4047 

NRIS Wildlife Center of Excellence 

Okanogan‐Wenatchee NF Forest 

Methow Valley RD 

Winthrop, WA 
for the greatest good

Region 6 Pacific Northwest

2015 DecAID Center of Excellence Accomplishments 

Figure 2. American marten atop snag (photo courtesy of Gaybrielle Dunham, Bend‐

Ft Rock RD) 

Website maintenance 

• Update of Implementation Guide to include more recent 

examples and hyperlinks to training webinars. 

• Review of 30 scientific journals monthly/quarterly for 

recent science to incorporate into website. 

• Roll‐out of updated regional GNN data up to 2012 for 

general veg data and through 2014 update for fires (tools 

to rerun GNN data using RAVG maps). 

Training 

• Recorded a series of training webinars and uploaded to 

DecAID Implementation Guide website. Includes: general 

overviews, in depth look at tolerance levels, how to use 

the 2012 GNN data, how to interpret distribution analyses. 

• Provided individual assistance to assist with analysis on 

several projects. 

Implementation 

• Finalized templates showing how to create a Distribution 

Analysis and began individual trainings on using these 

templates. 

• Additional members added to cadre for 

implementation help (Cole Belongie – GIS; Steve Acker –Veg 

interpretation). 

• Further Development of the DecAID toolbox for ArcGIS 

using the RAVG maps to update for fires. 

Figure 1. Newly hatched black‐backed woodpecker nestlings photo courtesy 

Barbara Webb, Bend‐Ft Rock RD 

Deschutes National Forest 

Bend‐Fort Rock Ranger District 63095 

Deschutes Mrkt Rd 

Bend, OR 97701 

Contacts: Barbara Webb 541‐383‐4788 

Kim Mellen‐McLean 503‐808‐2677
for the greatest good

Umpqua National Forest

2015 Mollusk Center of Excellence Accomplishments 

Mollusk Training 

at the 

Gifford‐Pinchot 

National Forest 

2015Accomplishments: 

ID Challenge –submit answers to Tiff Photo by: KC Briggs 

Identification Services 

Tiffany Young (Umpqua National Forest) functions as the “Center of Excellence” for mollusk

conservation in Oregon and Washington for the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management. 

Primary services include: 

• Serves as a liaison with the Smithsonian Institute, Carnegie 

Museum of Natural History, Oregon State Arthropod 

Collection (OSAC), the Xerces Society and the Siskiyou Field 

Institute. 

• Field consultant on mollusk habitat and species 

• identification. 

• Provides training for mollusk identification and survey 

techniques. 

• Provides identification services for mollusk vouchers. 

• Curates mollusk specimens for permanent collections 

stored at OSAC, the Smithsonian and Carnegie Museum of 

Natural History. 

• Circulates current conservation information on mollusks to 

the field units. 

• Provides peer‐reviews for research papers and journal 

articles. 

Umpqua National Forest 

Supervisor’s Office 

2900 NW Stewart Parkway

Roseburg, OR 97471 

Contact:Tiffany Young – 541.957.3260 

tayoung@fs.fed.us 

• Provided one Mollusk Identification Workshop serving the Gifford‐ Pinchot, 

Mt. Hood & Willamette National Forests; Salem BLM Districts; and the 

Xerces Society. These workshops provided biologists with an overview of 

mollusk anatomy, identification techniques and field survey techniques. 

• 32 people total were reached. 

• Provided field consultation to the Rogue River‐Siskiyou, Umpqua & 

Willamette National Forests, along with Roseburg BLM. Services included 

assisting biologists in determining suitable mollusk habitat, survey 

techniques and species identification. 

• Provided species identification services for Forest Service and BLM field 

units. Services included 

identifying 86 snail and 

slug specimens collected 

in the field, processing 

233 vouchers & providing 

feedback on identification 

results. 

• Reviewed technical papers 

for ISSSSP funded projects 

and Northwest Science. 


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for the greatest good