Roe Ecological Services, LLC - Representative Projects

Comprehensive Property Management Prairie Dog Management Pre-Development Analysis & Planning External Review

RES has conducted numerous wildlife and habitat surveys and management activities for urban, suburban, and rural areas. These projects all add to our credibility as experienced wildlife biologists and prove our ability to conduct analysis and provide management recommendations for wildlife populations and their habitat(s).

The purpose of this assessment was to determine the potential impacts of this Development on elk and other wildlife that make use of the property, the surrounding subdivisions, and the area as a whole. Our biologists examined:

Current, pre-development property characteristics;
Proposed post-development property characteristics;
Elk, deer, and other wildlife behavior; and
Past development within Estes Park and its subsequent impact on elk behavior, movement, and reproduction.

Based on the results of the assessment, a conservation plan was developed which addressed:

The potential impacts to a highly valued, locally important, wildlife viewing area (primarily for elk and to a lesser extent deer and other wildlife), and the efforts to be taken to minimize potential impacts;
The potential impacts to daily and seasonal loafing and foraging resources for elk and other wildlife, and the efforts to be taken to minimize potential impacts;
The potential impacts to elk and other wildlife movement across the property, and the efforts to be taken to minimize potential impacts;
The potential impacts to elk and deer calving/fawning that may occur on the property and within the surrounding area, and the efforts to be taken to minimize potential impacts; and
The potential impacts the Development might have on nuisance wildlife/bear interactions within the area, and the efforts to be taken to minimize potential impacts.

RES biologists were hired to survey over 130,000 acres covering numerous habitat types across southern Colorado for wildlife and ecological resources. RES obtained baseline information on:

Vegetative community and individual occurrences of species of interest;
General wildlife species and habitat;
Quantification and description of riparian acres;
Identification of possible archaeological ruins;
Identification of bald eagle nest sites and determination of bald eagle activity level;
Habitat assessment for potential presence of Mexican spotted owl and other birds of concern;
Identification of big game winter range; and
Current management activities and impacts to the ecosystem or area.

Baseline Ecological and Wildlife Inventory

RES was contracted by a private property owner to conduct baseline habitat assessments, and develop strategies to help maximize ecosystem health, enhance trophy elk management, and mitigate the impacts of nearby coal bed methane development. The goal of the first phase of RES’ work was to find a balance between forest-thinning efforts and the conservation or enhancement of valuable elk habitat components throughout portions of the property.

Because of concerns over past timber-thinning prescriptions as they related to trophy elk production, management, and archery hunting, RES did the following:

Identified critical elk habitat components that lay within the proposed thinning area (namely, bedding and foraging areas, water resources, etc.);
Identified movement patterns/corridors that traversed the proposed thinning area as well as the habitat components they connected;
Identified areas where timber thinning could meet the needs of forest fire fuels reduction while at the same time providing benefit to trophy elk production and management, or to archery hunting opportunities;
Identified opportunities to minimize impacts of thinning efforts on trophy elk production and management, or archery hunting, through creative thinning prescriptions and/or alternative thinning locations; and
Identified locations where additional water development might benefit elk and other wildlife, archery hunting opportunities, and/or future fire-fighting efforts.

Elk bedding cover

RES believes that, if properly carried out, forest management practices and thinning efforts to reduce the risk of wildfire could help move the property toward a more balanced forest ecosystem, and directly benefit the landowner and their goal of increasing the likelihood of producing, and harvesting, trophy bull elk and other big game species. In addition, the survey protocol and basis for recommendations stemming from this and subsequent assessments are expected to provide a valuable model for future thinning and coal bed methane development across the property.

The project objective was to clear and open-up previously accessible - and used - habitat for the existing S34 bighorn sheep herd in order to allow and encourage resident sheep to utilize more habitat within the Pike National Forest. With greater suitable habitat area, it may be possible to facilitate an increase in overall herd numbers and increase overall range.

RES biologists established permanent photo documentation/monitoring points in several areas throughout the treatment and surrounding area to assist in long-term monitoring efforts. As well, RES biologists established permanent sheep pellet plots/monitoring aids throughout the treatment area to assess long-term project success.

Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep

Wildlife biologists from RES surveyed City-owned properties for prairie dog habitat suitability attributes to help guide their overall wildlife management planning efforts.

Attributes surveyed included (1) soil type; (2) vegetation composition within and surrounding existing prairie dog colonies; (3) slope, location, size, and density of existing prairie dog colonies; (4) associated species (if any); and (5) other significant or sensitive wildlife species and/or habitats. RES biologists placed prairie dog colonies into one of four designated management categories based on the attributes found and their characteristics, as well as the following:

Land use objective and possible conflicts or benefits from prairie dogs;
Habitat suitability attributes for prairie dogs or other valuable/sensitive wildlife species;
Barrier availability/needs;
Concerns of adjacent landowners; and
Visitor health and safety concerns.

Prairie Dog Inventory

All too often we see other consultants steer their clients toward expensive Habitat Conservation Plans and extensive mitigation plans (that take years of implementation and management and hence lots of consulting fees) rather than working to minimize impacts to threatened and endangered species. Alternatively, we at RES got into this field not to make a fortune off of developers - but to work to protect wildlife and wildlife habitats. Often this attitude works to the advantage of our clients; avoidance or at least minimal impact to threatened and endangered species and their habitats is typically the least expensive option for the client and ultimately the best for the wildlife resource.

The goal of these projects, which focused on Preble’s meadow jumping mouse and its habitat, was to identify and evaluate the biological attributes of the species in question and enable our clients to come up with development plans that intruded minimally on the habitat of this listed species. We also structured a land management/enhancement/allocation strategy that would not negatively impact the species, but that would instead preserve or enhance its habitat. Because we were able to develop plans with our clients that satisfied this goal, a Habitat Conservation Plan and consultation under Section 7 or 10 of the Endangered Species Act was not necessary.

Understanding the need for a balance between development on the one hand, and wildlife and habitat conservation on the other, the developers chose to set aside a portion of their properties along Monument Creek as permanent Open Space and made the commitment to maximizing the habitat potential of the area. Improvements through shrub plantings and grass/forb seeding on this portion of the property are likely to improve habitat not only for Preble’s meadow jumping mouse and other small mammals, but for migratory songbirds and raptors as well.