Coppola Property 65 Dennings Avenue City of Beacon Dutchess County, NY

Transcription

1 Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment Report Coppola Property 65 Dennings Avenue City of Beacon Dutchess County, NY August 25, 2014 Prepared by: Michael Nowicki Ecological Solutions, LLC 1248 Southford Road Southbury, CT (203)

2 Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment Report Page INTRODUCTION The Applicant is proposing a three lot residential subdivision on a 1 acre parcel located at 65 Dennings Avenue in the City of Beacon, New York (Figure 1). A Habitat Suitability Assessment was completed for five State listed species including the pied billed grebe (Podilymbus podiceps), short-nose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum), Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrhincus), bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), and Davis' sedge (Carex davisii) and two habitat types (Waterfowl Winter Concentration Area and Anadromous Fish Concentration Area) as part of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) assessment requirements for the project outlined in correspondence dated March 2, A field assessment was conducted on August 25, 2014 to determine whether suitable habitat for these species is present on the property. The habitat cover type observed is described below. TABLE 1 COVER TYPES IDENTIFIED ON THE PROPERTY NO. DESCRIPTION 1 Old Field/Young Woods Old Field/Young Woods - The property is currently a regenerating old field/meadow that is transitioning into young woods with patches of trees within the property mixed with field/scrub/shrub land. Trees include birch, walnut and elm with Japanese knotweed and other invasives located throughout the property.

3 Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment Report Page 3 Figure 1 Location Map

4 Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment Report Page 4 Figure 2 Soils Map Map Unit Symbol HvD Ud Map Unit Name Hudson and Vergennes soils, hilly Udorthents, smoothed

5 Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment Report Page HABITAT SUITABILITY ASSESSMENT/CONCLUSION 2.1 Pied billed grebe The pied-billed grebe is a small waterbird measuring approximately 11 to 15 inches in total length, with a 20 to 22.5 inch wingspan and average weight of just 0.75 to 1.0 pound. Grebes are built for water with legs situated far back on their bodies to facilitate diving for food. This type of anatomy makes walking on land awkward and difficult; therefore, you'll rarely see them out of the water. It breeds on freshwater to brackish seasonal and permanent ponds. It requires dense stands of deep water emergent vegetation (e.g., cattails) for nesting and cover that are situated close to open water for foraging. In New York, pied-billed grebe breeding records are scattered across the state but are most abundant in marshes associated with the St. Lawrence River Valley and Lake Ontario. Hudson River and requires water or the marshy edges. 2.1 Short-nose sturgeon The shortnose sturgeon is the smallest of New York's sturgeons, rarely exceeding 3.5 feet in length and 14 pounds in weight. It has a short, conical snout with four barbels in front of its large underslung mouth. Five rows of bony plates (called scutes) occur along its body: one on the back, two on the belly, and one on each side. The shortnose sturgeon is restricted in range to the Atlantic seaboard in North America. It occurs from the Saint John's River in New Brunswick to the Saint John River in Florida. In New York State, the shortnose sturgeon is only found in the lower portion of the Hudson River from the southern tip of Manhattan (river mile 0) upriver to the Federal dam at Troy (river mile 152). Hudson River. 2.3 Atlantic sturgeon The largest of New York's sturgeons, Atlantic sturgeon in the Hudson River occasionally reach over 200 pounds in weight and six to eight feet in length. Individuals up to 14 feet long and 800 pounds have been recorded from New Brunswick, Canada. The Atlantic sturgeon is olive green to blue-black on its back and upper sides, shading to white on the belly. It can be told apart from its cousins by its long, narrow snout with a relatively small underslung mouth and four barbels. Atlantic sturgeon are anadromous, migrating from saltwater to spawn in freshwater. At spawning time, male sturgeon move into the river first followed by the females. Spawning occurs from April-June upstream of the salt front. Individual fish have been known to travel over 900 miles to spawn. Following spawning, female Atlantic sturgeon will move out of the river while males may remain until the fall. Female Atlantic sturgeon reach sexual maturity at years of age when they are six to eight feet long and over 70 pounds. Males become sexually mature at years of age, when they are 3.5 to 6.5 feet long. Spawning sturgeon scatter the eggs across a wide area. The eggs are sticky and attach themselves to

6 Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment Report Page 6 stones and vegetation. Following hatching, the young fish remain in freshwater for two to seven years before moving out to sea. As they grow, they feed on a variety of benthic or bottom organisms, including worms, amphipods, isopods, midge larvae, plants, and small fishes. Atlantic sturgeon are sometimes seen basking at the water's surface and making spectacular jumps. After spending up to the seven years of life in freshwater, Atlantic sturgeon migrate out to sea to spend the rest of their lives. Only during spawning season do adult sturgeon return to large costal rivers and estuaries. In New York, Atlantic sturgeon are generally found in the deeper portions of the Hudson River. While occasionally found as far upriver as Albany, young fish are rarely seen upstream of Hudson. Hudson River. 2.4 Bald eagle Bald eagles are wholly North American, and currently are found in every state except Hawaii, as well as throughout Canada. Eagles prefer undisturbed areas near large lakes and reservoirs, marshes and swamps, or stretches along rivers where they can find open water and their primary food, fish. Historically, bald eagles nested in forests along the shorelines of oceans, lakes or rivers throughout most of North America, often moving south in winter to areas where water remained open. Prior to the 1900s, they used as many as 80 nest sites in New York, primarily in the northern and western parts of the state. Wintering grounds are from southern Canada south, along major river systems, in intermountain regions, and in the Great Plains. Many hydroelectric plants, including some in New York, provide suitable wintering habitat for bald eagles. A bald eagle nest is a large structure, usually located high in a tall, live white pine tree near water. The nest is reused and added to (decorated) each year, often becoming eight or more feet deep, six feet across, and weighing hundreds of pounds. Conclusion - The property was reviewed to determine if any trees contained bald eagle nest/s or satellite nest/s. The trees on the property are small in size and do not contain any nests or suitable trees for nest establishment. Bald eagles most likely can be observed cruising in the general vicinity of the property due to the proximity to the Hudson River. No impacts are expected to occur to this species. 2.5 Davis' sedge Carex davisii occurs in mesic limestone, rich bottomland, and floodplain forests. It also occurs in wet meadows and open gravel bars of large rivers. It is often found near rivers and there are many populations adjacent to the Hudson River. The soils vary from mesic to wet or often seasonally flooded and sometimes are alluvial. Plants can occur or sometimes be restricted to disturbed areas, floodplain forests, rich deciduous forests, and forest margins, usually along streams or in ditches, wooded ravine slopes, meadows, fields and thickets; often associated with calcareous soils.

7 Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment Report Page 7 Hudson River and does not contain the habitat requirements associated with this species. This species was not observed during the field walk.