The Utah Prairie Dog Revised Recovery Plan (USFWS 2012) sets forth recovery goals while addressing species threats and prescribing mitigation measures. Recovery actions include annual population monitoring and assessment, habitat identification and mapping, habitat improvement, establishment of new colonies via translocation, establishing conservation easements, research into Utah prairie dog biology and habitat requirements, and disease abatement. Many of these tasks/responsibilities fall to the Division, which maintains databases associated with the Utah prairie dog program and acts as the official curator of the data for the recovery program. In addition, Division personnel sit on the Utah Prairie Dog Recovery Team and the Utah Prairie Dog Oversight Group (UPDOG), and the Division is a key member of other cooperative Utah prairie dog management efforts.

The goal of the Utah prairie dog program is recovery and delisting of the Utah prairie dog. Individual objectives vary depending upon Recovery Team and UPDOG priorities and various cooperative agreements. Largely, objectives are defined by and closely tied to the tasks listed below in Methods. Anticipated outcomes are as follows: 1) improved habitat conditions for Utah prairie dogs, 2) increased numbers of Utah prairie dogs and acres of habitat on public and protected lands, 3) increased knowledge of Utah prairie dog biology, habitat needs, recovery options, threats and management, 4) continued implementation of the Utah prairie dog control program to provide relief in sensitive areas, and relief from agricultural damage, 5) establishment of additional recovery projects and improvement of existing projects, 6) inclusion of private lands and private landowners in the recovery program, and 7) coordinated operation of a cooperative Recovery Implementation Program.

Stopping Utah prairie dog management efforts to proactively address recovery goals, actions, and threats, could lead to up-listing and more stringent ESA regulation. The Division needs to continue its role in actively managing and monitoring the species to prevent both a decline for Utah prairie dogs and decreased public support for Utah prairie dogs. Threats for Utah prairie dogs include plague, urban expansion, over-grazing, cultivated agriculture, vegetation community changes, invasive plants, OHV and recreational uses, climate change, energy resource exploration and development, fire management, poaching, and predation. Each of these is addressed through current management efforts.

All activities in this proposal are done in support of the Utah Prairie Dog Revised Recovery Plan. The objectives of that plan are as follows: 1) to protect suitable habitat that is of sufficient size to support a viable Utah prairie dog population and is spatially distributed to provide connectivity within each Recovery Unit (RU), and 2) to establish and maintain viable Utah prairie dog populations in each RU. To achieve these objectives, the following criteria have been established: 1) at least 5,000 ac (2,023 ha) of occupied habitat are protected in perpetuity in each RU (West Desert, Paunsaugunt, and Awapa Plateau), 2) at least 2,000 adult animals (at least 1,000 counted adults in the spring counts) are present in each RU (West Desert, Paunsaugunt, and Awapa Plateau) within protected habitat for five consecutive years, 3) management strategies are in place to prevent and respond to threats from disease, 4) education, outreach, and public relations programs and State and/or local regulations are in place and are sufficient to minimize illegal take, manage legal lethal control post-delisting, and foster habitat management practices, and 5) Utah prairie dog-specific adaptive management strategies are in place on protected lands to improve suitable habitat in a manner that also will facilitate management responses to changing climatic conditions and other threat factors that are difficult to predict. Regarding the occupied habitat criteria, the occupied habitat will be spatially distributed to provide sufficient connectivity and gene flow within each RU. The Division routinely collaborates with other agencies and entities to increase Utah prairie dog habitat (easements), and protect and conserve existing habitat whenever possible. The Division oversees and coordinates all trapping and translocation efforts with the goal of sustaining, increasing, and creating new viable colonies on public and protected lands. The Division coordinates plague abatement activities with other public land entities (BLM, USFS), as well as participates in ongoing research into plague dynamics. The Division routinely participates in educational programs at schools and local interest events. The Division also performs training sessions for section 7 consultation on a yearly basis. The Division meets with local permitting offices, builder association and realty groups, appears on local radio etc. to ensure information is widely distributed regarding Utah prairie dog regulations. The Division is an active member of the Utah Prairie Dog Recovery Implementation Team. While the Division does not have sole authority on public lands, input is given and recommendations are made regarding adaptive management strategies. On privately owned yet protected parcels, the Division works with the landowner and managing agency on adaptive management strategies. In addition to the Recovery Plan, the Division is the leading agency that developed the Conservation Strategy. Upon delisting, the Conservation Strategy is expected to be the driving force behind Utah prairie dog management. The Conservation Strategy and accompanying rule successfully went through the RAC and Wildlife Board and were approved. Additionally, Utah prairie dog is a SGCN in the Utah Wildlife Action Plan (WAP). This plan is used by the Division and federal management agencies to prioritize wildlife population and habitat management programs across the state. Each of the threats to Utah prairie dogs listed in the Recovery Plan are also addressed in the WAP. Federal management of Utah prairie dog is also directed by the resource management plans of Dixie National Forest and BLM Field Offices (Cedar City, Kanab, Richfield, Hanksville). Translocations and habitat manipulations are conducted in coordination with those agencies as provided for in those plans.

Fuels treatments within and adjacent to Utah prairie dog colonies can be advantageous to the species.

Not applicable

All aspects of the Utah prairie dog recovery program maintain compliance with ESA standards. When applicable, NEPA and cultural resources surveys are conducted as required, primarily by the federal land management agencies.

The following tasks support the Utah Prairie Dog Revised Recovery Plan: 1) complete annual population monitoring on all federal, state, and private lands, 2) annually update Utah prairie dog databases to include new count information, 3) annually update all maps of Utah prairie dog habitat and distribution, 4) support plague abatement on public and protected lands, 5) administer provisions of the Recovery Plan and assist in development of future management documents/plans/agreements, 6) oversee and coordinate trapping and translocation of Utah prairie dogs for the establishment of new public land colonies, 7) administer agricultural depredation program allowing take of Utah prairie dogs causing agricultural damage, 8) assist and advise the public and fulfill requests for information and education as needed, and 9) coordinate habitat management actions on the SITLA mitigation bank lands in the Awapa Recovery Unit with the Habitat Section and SITLA.

Many of the tasks identified in this project will be implemented on public lands. Land management agencies have already, in many cases, amended or established land/resource use/management plans providing for such actions. The Division's involvement in Utah prairie dog recovery is tied directly to guidance and mandates of the Utah Prairie Dog Revised Recovery Plan. The effectiveness of Utah prairie dog recovery actions will be monitored through annual population counts, habitat evaluations, and results of research projects. The U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the Division all have annual monitoring responsibilities within the recovery program. In addition, the Utah Prairie Dog Oversight Group meets annually to evaluate the Utah prairie dog recovery program and make recommendations for future recovery efforts.

United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, United States Forest Service, National Park Service, Brigham Young University, Utah State University, SITLA, Utah Department of Natural Resources, Iron County, and Garfield County. The Utah Prairie Dog Recovery Team supports this proposed project.

Future management of Utah prairie dogs is directed by the Recovery Plan and the plan will continue to be the guiding document until rescinded. Federal agency resource management plans, some under review/renewal, will also continue to direct recovery actions. In addition to the Recovery Plan, the Division is the leading agency that developed the Conservation Strategy. Upon delisting, the Conservation Strategy is expected to be the driving force behind Utah prairie dog management. The Conservation Strategy and accompanying rule successfully went through the RAC and Wildlife Board and was approved. Final signatures are being collected from partners on the MOA accompanying the Conservation Strategy.

Funding this program would allow for biological input on grazing allotments associated with Utah prairie dog conservation. The Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service are multi-use agencies and have grazing allotments on many of the Utah prairie dog colonies on federal land. In addition, the sagebrush removal projects the Division aids with to improve Utah prairie dog habitat may improve grazing conditions.