 |
JVASBack | Home |
1000 Steps
Important Mammal Area
DRAFT — 5/23/2005
CONSERVATION ASSESSMENT
PENNSYLVANIA IMPORTANT MAMMAL AREA #18
1000 STEPS
Draft pages for the Upper Juniata River Water Trail Guide, prepared by Brian Spang, Allegheny Ridge Corporation
Size
5,341 acres (2,162 hectares)
Ownership
Public (State), Private
State Game Lands 112 – managed by PA Game Commission
Rothrock State Forest – managed by Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry
Private – numerous small parcels (a few permanent residences, a larger number of camps, and no large commercial owners)
County
Huntingdon
Physiographic Province/Watershed
Ridge and Valley Province – Appalachian Mountain
Section
Susquehanna River Basin
IMA Selection Criteria
IIB – The area supports an important population
segment of the Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister,
PA Threatened).
IIIA & IIIB – The area supports a confirmed
viable local population of the Allegheny woodrat (PA
Threatened) that regularly occurs at the site during one or
more seasons.
General Site Description
General Location: 40° 24’ N, 77°
54’ W
Located east of Huntingdon along SR 22, this site
adjoins the Juniata River and includes the southern portion
of SGL 112 and Rothrock State Forest. The boundary is
composed of SR 22 on the south, a natural elevation break
on the west, State Game Lands boundaries to the north and
west, and Rothrock State Forest to the north and east. The
current Sportsmen’s Recreation Map of SGL 112 and the
GIS Stewardship Layer do not show the full extent of the
lands managed by the PA Game Commission. Two additional
tracts of land have been acquired – the 1000 Steps
area (673 acres) and Melnyk Tract (approximately 100 acres)
immediately east of 1000 Steps, so that SGL 112 now extends
south to Rt. 22 and further east than shown on published
maps. Lands in private ownership within the IMA lay to the
east and north of 1000 Steps and the Melnyk Tract.
Dominated by mixed woodlands, there are extensive rock
outcroppings and several quarries. 1000 Steps Trail is a
part of the Link Trail (a trail joining the Tuscarora and
Mid-State Trails) and provides access to the southernmost
part of SGL 112, ending about half-way up Jake's Mountain.
The trail, which gains approximately 1100 feet in ½
mile, was built in the 1930’s and formerly used by
quarry workers on a daily basis. The quarry itself opened
around 1900, experienced peak activity in the early
1920’s, and closed in 1936 when a flood destroyed a
bridge that was used to carry materials across the Juniata
River.
The section of Rothrock State Forest that is included
within the IMA has a north-south band of habitat designated
as an "L" management zone (L = Limited Resource: site
topography does not allow cutting). Although not visited
for verification, this area is likely to include suitable
Allegheny woodrat habitat.
Summary of Mammals
A dense population of Allegheny woodrats occupies the
1000 Steps area and the adjoining Melnyk Tract (both now
part of SGL 112), which together constitute an almost
800-acre tract that provides ideal habitat for this
species. Woodrat sign is abundant, both among the rocks and
in the remaining quarry buildings.
Past and Present Monitoring Efforts
PA Game Commission personnel monitored Allegheny
woodrats at the site in 1995, 1997, 1998, and 2002. There
has been no systematic monitoring of other mammals.
Management/Conservation Issues and Opportunities
Important Bird Area Status: The 1000 Steps IMA does not
coincide or overlap with any IBAs.
Other Significant Fauna/Flora: Thick-leaved meadow rue
(Thalictrum coriaceum) and Virginia mallow (Sida
hermaphrodita), state endangered species, occur in the
Jacks Narrows portion of the IMA. Timber rattlesnakes
(Crotalus horridus, PA Candidate) occur on all State
Game Lands within the IMA. The quarry area is also
well-known as a fossil-hunting site.
Although the site is not currently under threat, there
is a potential for negative impacts. For example, there are
no immediate plans to widen Rt. 22 at Jack’s Narrows,
but such a project would pose a critical threat to
Allegheny woodrat populations. Although the hiking trail is
popular and there is a local "Save the Steps Committee"
that assists with maintenance of the trail, human impacts
are minimal. In the past, the parking area along Rt. 22
that adjoins the 1000 Steps Trail has been used for an ad
hoc flea market on weekends. Signs have been placed in the
parking area indicating that parking is prohibited except
for persons using the State Game Lands on foot. While the
flea market itself likely had no significant effect on the
habitat, it is probably generally better to discourage such
activities in proximity to such critical wildlife
habitat.
Sand mining operations were active in the distant past
along the western boundary of the IMA, but if Allegheny
woodrats had been there, their habitat would have been
destroyed. Apparently some talus resulted from these
quarrying operations, but it is not known whether this
talus provides habitat (or perhaps a corridor for
dispersal). Current sand-mining activities are far removed
from the IMA boundary.
The Western PA Conservancy, in its Natural Heritage
Inventory for Huntingdon County, designates the 1000 Steps
area as a Biological Diversity Area (Jacks Narrows BDA)
because of the presence of Allegheny woodrats, thick-leaved
meadow rue (Thalictrum coriaceum), and Virginia
mallow (Sida hermaphrodita)
Suggested Conservation Actions
Current Efforts
The site is "passively managed" for wildlife, with PA
Game Commission biologists making recommendations for
mitigation or prevention of impacts on Allegheny woodrats
as appropriate. PGC management plans are outdated and
Allegheny woodrat habitat needs are not addressed.
Timbering occurs in portions of SGL 112, but not in the
1000 Steps/Melnyk tract sections.
Rothrock State Forest operates under the general State
Forest Resource Management Plan and does not have an
individual comprehensive management plan. Forest stands
in higher elevation rocky habitats in the Rothrock State
Forest portion of the IMA are not timbered because of
prohibitive conditions. If Allegheny woodrats occur in
the Rothrock portion of the IMA, it is likely to be in
these habitats.
Preliminary Recommendations
- maintain current protection levels and monitor for
adverse impacts of any proposed development
- consult with PA Game Commission Regional Wildlife
Diversity Biologist (Dan Mummert) to obtain more
information about habitats on private lands (review of
private lands to be completed by end of summer
2005)
Research Needs
- monitor Allegheny woodrat populations at regular
intervals
- determine whether (or where) Allegheny woodrats occur
within the Rothrock State Forest section of the IMA and
in portions of State Game Lands outside the 800-acre core
woodrat area (Cal – any info on this?)
- survey for Allegheny woodrats on private lands if
habitat is present
Contacts
Nominator
Mammal Technical Committee
Mammal Technical Committee Consultant
Cal Butchkoski, PA Game Commission, 4294 Eberle Road,
Petersburg, PA 16669. Phone: 814-667-3685. Email:
cbutchkoski@state.pa.us.
Agency Personnel
Bureau of Forestry
Gary Rutherford, District Forester, Bureau of
Forestry, P.O. Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon, PA
16652. Phone: 814-643-2340. Email: grutherford@state.pa.us.
Randall White, Assistant District Forester, Rothrock
State Forest, P.O. Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon,
PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-2340. Email: ranwhite@state.pa.us.
Brian Pfister, Forester, Rothrock State Forest, P.O.
Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone:
814-643-2340. Email: bpfister@state.pa.us.
PA Game Commission
Rob Criswell, PA Game Commission, Land Management
Supervisor, P.O. Box 537, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone:
814-643-1831. FAX: 814-643-2952. Email: rcriswell@state.pa.us.
Justin Vreeland, Regional Wildlife Biologist,
Southcentral Region, PA Game Commission, 8627 Wm Penn
Highway, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-9635 ext.
410. Email: jvreeland@state.pa.us.
Daniel P. Mummert, Regional Wildlife Diversity
Biologist, Wildlife Diversity Division, 656 Newton
Road, McVeytown, PA 17051. Phone: 814-542-8759. Email:
dmummert@state.pa.us.
Other
Beth Brokaw, Ecologist, Pennsylvania Natural
Heritage Program, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, 209
Fourth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. Phone:
412-586-2312. Email: bbrokaw@paconserve.org
(Huntington Co. inventory).
Materials
Map of Rothrock State Forest
Map of SGL 112 – sketch of current boundaries
Map showing ownership of tracts in vicinity of IMA
Description and map of Jacks Narrows Biological
Diversity Area (Western PA Conservancy) (on CD with
conservation assessment report)
DCNR Forest Resource Management Plan (generic for state
forests, no specific plan for Rothrock)
CD with shapefiles and pdf files showing stand typing
for sections of Rothrock State Forest within the IMA
(aerial photos available from PASDA)
Ridge and Valley Province – Appalachian Mountain
Section
Susquehanna River Basin
IMA Selection Criteria
IIB – The area supports an important population segment of the Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister, PA Threatened).
IIIA & IIIB – The area supports a confirmed viable local population of the Allegheny woodrat (PA Threatened) that regularly occurs at the site during one or more seasons.
General Site Description
General Location: 40° 24’ N, 77° 54’ W
Located east of Huntingdon along SR 22, this site adjoins the Juniata River and includes the southern portion of SGL 112 and Rothrock State Forest. The boundary is composed of SR 22 on the south, a natural elevation break on the west, State Game Lands boundaries to the north and west, and Rothrock State Forest to the north and east. The current Sportsmen’s Recreation Map of SGL 112 and the GIS Stewardship Layer do not show the full extent of the lands managed by the PA Game Commission. Two additional tracts of land have been acquired – the 1000 Steps area (673 acres) and Melnyk Tract (approximately 100 acres) immediately east of 1000 Steps, so that SGL 112 now extends south to Rt. 22 and further east than shown on published maps. Lands in private ownership within the IMA lay to the east and north of 1000 Steps and the Melnyk Tract.
Dominated by mixed woodlands, there are extensive rock outcroppings and several quarries. 1000 Steps Trail is a part of the Link Trail (a trail joining the Tuscarora and Mid-State Trails) and provides access to the southernmost part of SGL 112, ending about half-way up Jake's Mountain. The trail, which gains approximately 1100 feet in ½ mile, was built in the 1930’s and formerly used by quarry workers on a daily basis. The quarry itself opened around 1900, experienced peak activity in the early 1920’s, and closed in 1936 when a flood destroyed a bridge that was used to carry materials across the Juniata River.
The section of Rothrock State Forest that is included within the IMA has a north-south band of habitat designated as an "L" management zone (L = Limited Resource: site topography does not allow cutting). Although not visited for verification, this area is likely to include suitable Allegheny woodrat habitat.
Summary of Mammals
A dense population of Allegheny woodrats occupies the 1000 Steps area and the adjoining Melnyk Tract (both now part of SGL 112), which together constitute an almost 800-acre tract that provides ideal habitat for this species. Woodrat sign is abundant, both among the rocks and in the remaining quarry buildings.
Past and Present Monitoring Efforts
PA Game Commission personnel monitored Allegheny
woodrats at the site in 1995, 1997, 1998, and 2002. There
has been no systematic monitoring of other mammals.
Management/Conservation Issues and Opportunities
Important Bird Area Status: The 1000 Steps IMA does not
coincide or overlap with any IBAs.
Other Significant Fauna/Flora: Thick-leaved meadow rue
(Thalictrum coriaceum) and Virginia mallow (Sida
hermaphrodita), state endangered species, occur in the
Jacks Narrows portion of the IMA. Timber rattlesnakes
(Crotalus horridus, PA Candidate) occur on all State
Game Lands within the IMA. The quarry area is also
well-known as a fossil-hunting site.
Although the site is not currently under threat, there
is a potential for negative impacts. For example, there are
no immediate plans to widen Rt. 22 at Jack’s Narrows,
but such a project would pose a critical threat to
Allegheny woodrat populations. Although the hiking trail is
popular and there is a local "Save the Steps Committee"
that assists with maintenance of the trail, human impacts
are minimal. In the past, the parking area along Rt. 22
that adjoins the 1000 Steps Trail has been used for an ad
hoc flea market on weekends. Signs have been placed in the
parking area indicating that parking is prohibited except
for persons using the State Game Lands on foot. While the
flea market itself likely had no significant effect on the
habitat, it is probably generally better to discourage such
activities in proximity to such critical wildlife
habitat.
Sand mining operations were active in the distant past
along the western boundary of the IMA, but if Allegheny
woodrats had been there, their habitat would have been
destroyed. Apparently some talus resulted from these
quarrying operations, but it is not known whether this
talus provides habitat (or perhaps a corridor for
dispersal). Current sand-mining activities are far removed
from the IMA boundary.
The Western PA Conservancy, in its Natural Heritage
Inventory for Huntingdon County, designates the 1000 Steps
area as a Biological Diversity Area (Jacks Narrows BDA)
because of the presence of Allegheny woodrats, thick-leaved
meadow rue (Thalictrum coriaceum), and Virginia
mallow (Sida hermaphrodita)
Suggested Conservation Actions
Current Efforts
The site is "passively managed" for wildlife, with PA
Game Commission biologists making recommendations for
mitigation or prevention of impacts on Allegheny woodrats
as appropriate. PGC management plans are outdated and
Allegheny woodrat habitat needs are not addressed.
Timbering occurs in portions of SGL 112, but not in the
1000 Steps/Melnyk tract sections.
Rothrock State Forest operates under the general State
Forest Resource Management Plan and does not have an
individual comprehensive management plan. Forest stands
in higher elevation rocky habitats in the Rothrock State
Forest portion of the IMA are not timbered because of
prohibitive conditions. If Allegheny woodrats occur in
the Rothrock portion of the IMA, it is likely to be in
these habitats.
Preliminary Recommendations
- maintain current protection levels and monitor for
adverse impacts of any proposed development
- consult with PA Game Commission Regional Wildlife
Diversity Biologist (Dan Mummert) to obtain more
information about habitats on private lands (review of
private lands to be completed by end of summer
2005)
Research Needs
- monitor Allegheny woodrat populations at regular
intervals
- determine whether (or where) Allegheny woodrats occur
within the Rothrock State Forest section of the IMA and
in portions of State Game Lands outside the 800-acre core
woodrat area (Cal – any info on this?)
- survey for Allegheny woodrats on private lands if
habitat is present
Contacts
Nominator
Mammal Technical Committee
Mammal Technical Committee Consultant
Cal Butchkoski, PA Game Commission, 4294 Eberle Road,
Petersburg, PA 16669. Phone: 814-667-3685. Email:
cbutchkoski@state.pa.us.
Agency Personnel
Bureau of Forestry
Gary Rutherford, District Forester, Bureau of
Forestry, P.O. Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon, PA
16652. Phone: 814-643-2340. Email: grutherford@state.pa.us.
Randall White, Assistant District Forester, Rothrock
State Forest, P.O. Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon,
PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-2340. Email: ranwhite@state.pa.us.
Brian Pfister, Forester, Rothrock State Forest, P.O.
Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone:
814-643-2340. Email: bpfister@state.pa.us.
PA Game Commission
Rob Criswell, PA Game Commission, Land Management
Supervisor, P.O. Box 537, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone:
814-643-1831. FAX: 814-643-2952. Email: rcriswell@state.pa.us.
Justin Vreeland, Regional Wildlife Biologist,
Southcentral Region, PA Game Commission, 8627 Wm Penn
Highway, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-9635 ext.
410. Email: jvreeland@state.pa.us.
Daniel P. Mummert, Regional Wildlife Diversity
Biologist, Wildlife Diversity Division, 656 Newton
Road, McVeytown, PA 17051. Phone: 814-542-8759. Email:
dmummert@state.pa.us.
Other
Beth Brokaw, Ecologist, Pennsylvania Natural
Heritage Program, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, 209
Fourth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. Phone:
412-586-2312. Email: bbrokaw@paconserve.org
(Huntington Co. inventory).
Materials
Map of Rothrock State Forest
Map of SGL 112 – sketch of current boundaries
Map showing ownership of tracts in vicinity of IMA
Description and map of Jacks Narrows Biological
Diversity Area (Western PA Conservancy) (on CD with
conservation assessment report)
DCNR Forest Resource Management Plan (generic for state
forests, no specific plan for Rothrock)
CD with shapefiles and pdf files showing stand typing
for sections of Rothrock State Forest within the IMA
(aerial photos available from PASDA)
PA Game Commission personnel monitored Allegheny woodrats at the site in 1995, 1997, 1998, and 2002. There has been no systematic monitoring of other mammals.
Management/Conservation Issues and Opportunities
Important Bird Area Status: The 1000 Steps IMA does not coincide or overlap with any IBAs.
Other Significant Fauna/Flora: Thick-leaved meadow rue (Thalictrum coriaceum) and Virginia mallow (Sida hermaphrodita), state endangered species, occur in the Jacks Narrows portion of the IMA. Timber rattlesnakes (Crotalus horridus, PA Candidate) occur on all State Game Lands within the IMA. The quarry area is also well-known as a fossil-hunting site.
Although the site is not currently under threat, there is a potential for negative impacts. For example, there are no immediate plans to widen Rt. 22 at Jack’s Narrows, but such a project would pose a critical threat to Allegheny woodrat populations. Although the hiking trail is popular and there is a local "Save the Steps Committee" that assists with maintenance of the trail, human impacts are minimal. In the past, the parking area along Rt. 22 that adjoins the 1000 Steps Trail has been used for an ad hoc flea market on weekends. Signs have been placed in the parking area indicating that parking is prohibited except for persons using the State Game Lands on foot. While the flea market itself likely had no significant effect on the habitat, it is probably generally better to discourage such activities in proximity to such critical wildlife habitat.
Sand mining operations were active in the distant past along the western boundary of the IMA, but if Allegheny woodrats had been there, their habitat would have been destroyed. Apparently some talus resulted from these quarrying operations, but it is not known whether this talus provides habitat (or perhaps a corridor for dispersal). Current sand-mining activities are far removed from the IMA boundary.
The Western PA Conservancy, in its Natural Heritage Inventory for Huntingdon County, designates the 1000 Steps area as a Biological Diversity Area (Jacks Narrows BDA) because of the presence of Allegheny woodrats, thick-leaved meadow rue (Thalictrum coriaceum), and Virginia mallow (Sida hermaphrodita)
Suggested Conservation Actions
Current Efforts
The site is "passively managed" for wildlife, with PA Game Commission biologists making recommendations for mitigation or prevention of impacts on Allegheny woodrats as appropriate. PGC management plans are outdated and Allegheny woodrat habitat needs are not addressed. Timbering occurs in portions of SGL 112, but not in the 1000 Steps/Melnyk tract sections.
Rothrock State Forest operates under the general State Forest Resource Management Plan and does not have an individual comprehensive management plan. Forest stands in higher elevation rocky habitats in the Rothrock State Forest portion of the IMA are not timbered because of prohibitive conditions. If Allegheny woodrats occur in the Rothrock portion of the IMA, it is likely to be in these habitats.
Preliminary Recommendations
- maintain current protection levels and monitor for adverse impacts of any proposed development
- consult with PA Game Commission Regional Wildlife Diversity Biologist (Dan Mummert) to obtain more information about habitats on private lands (review of private lands to be completed by end of summer 2005)
Research Needs
- monitor Allegheny woodrat populations at regular intervals
- determine whether (or where) Allegheny woodrats occur within the Rothrock State Forest section of the IMA and in portions of State Game Lands outside the 800-acre core woodrat area (Cal – any info on this?)
- survey for Allegheny woodrats on private lands if habitat is present
Contacts
Nominator
Mammal Technical Committee
Mammal Technical Committee Consultant
Cal Butchkoski, PA Game Commission, 4294 Eberle Road, Petersburg, PA 16669. Phone: 814-667-3685. Email: cbutchkoski@state.pa.us.
Agency Personnel
Bureau of Forestry
Gary Rutherford, District Forester, Bureau of Forestry, P.O. Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-2340. Email: grutherford@state.pa.us.
Randall White, Assistant District Forester, Rothrock State Forest, P.O. Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-2340. Email: ranwhite@state.pa.us.
Brian Pfister, Forester, Rothrock State Forest, P.O. Box 403, Rothrock Lane, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-2340. Email: bpfister@state.pa.us.
PA Game Commission
Rob Criswell, PA Game Commission, Land Management Supervisor, P.O. Box 537, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-1831. FAX: 814-643-2952. Email: rcriswell@state.pa.us.
Justin Vreeland, Regional Wildlife Biologist, Southcentral Region, PA Game Commission, 8627 Wm Penn Highway, Huntingdon, PA 16652. Phone: 814-643-9635 ext. 410. Email: jvreeland@state.pa.us.
Daniel P. Mummert, Regional Wildlife Diversity Biologist, Wildlife Diversity Division, 656 Newton Road, McVeytown, PA 17051. Phone: 814-542-8759. Email: dmummert@state.pa.us.
Other
Beth Brokaw, Ecologist, Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, 209 Fourth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. Phone: 412-586-2312. Email: bbrokaw@paconserve.org (Huntington Co. inventory).
Materials
Map of Rothrock State Forest
Map of SGL 112 – sketch of current boundaries
Map showing ownership of tracts in vicinity of IMA
Description and map of Jacks Narrows Biological
Diversity Area (Western PA Conservancy) (on CD with
conservation assessment report)
DCNR Forest Resource Management Plan (generic for state
forests, no specific plan for Rothrock)
CD with shapefiles and pdf files showing stand typing
for sections of Rothrock State Forest within the IMA
(aerial photos available from PASDA)
Map of Rothrock State Forest
Map of SGL 112 – sketch of current boundaries
Map showing ownership of tracts in vicinity of IMA
Description and map of Jacks Narrows Biological Diversity Area (Western PA Conservancy) (on CD with conservation assessment report)
DCNR Forest Resource Management Plan (generic for state forests, no specific plan for Rothrock)
CD with shapefiles and pdf files showing stand typing for sections of Rothrock State Forest within the IMA (aerial photos available from PASDA)