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• 4.4.2 Alternative 2: ProMsed Action Issuance of an 17P and Implementation of Sebastian NC.P Alternative 2 (Proposed Action), is tine issuance of a Section 10(a)(1)(B) ITP by the FWS to allow the incidental take of the Florida scrub -jay for a 20 -year period. The authorized take would be incidental to the otherwise lawful activity of constructing single-family residential homes within the platted residential areas of the Sebastian Highlands subdivision. Authorization of the ITP is predicated on the full implementation of the Applicant's HCP and compliance with all other requirements for permit issuance. Issuance of an ITP for the proposed action would authorize the take of Florida scrub -jays and potential Florida scrub -jay habitat located in all platted residential areas within the Sebastian Highlands subdivision (ITP impact area). Based on collected existing data and field surveys conducted in the ITP impact area in the summer/fall 1998, issuance of the Sebastian HCP ITP is anticipated to result in the taking of 79,3± acres (317 lots) of habitat currently identified by the FWS as occupied and potentially occupied by scrub -jays. Seven 'scrub -jay families, concentrated within Units 10 and 17 of Sebastian Highlands, will be potentially affected by the proposed action. These scrub -jay families are part of the south subpopulation. Based on the 1998 surveys, the Sebastian HCP Scrub -Jay Habitat Compensation Areas currently support 6 to 7 scrub -jay families within 195,5± acres of poor to sub -optimal duality habitat located mainly in the North Sebastian Conservation Area/Sebastian Airport (4 families), and the: Wabasso Scrub Conservation Area (2 to 3 families). As directed by the Sebastian HCP operating conservation program presented in Section 5.0, the currently occupied scrub -jay habitat, in addition to 128,5± acres of potential, but presently unoccupied habitat, will be immediately restored and managed to provide optimal scrub -jay habitat conditions within a total of 324± acres. In addition, the 94± acre Sebastian Airport dispersal corridor tract will be immediately restored to provide an open landscape matrix to facilitate movement between the study population and the study metapopulation. This dispersal corridor, composed of a mesio flatwoods habitat type, does not provide suitable habitat conditions to adequately support a scrub -jay territory. Therefore, the 94 ± acres area was not included in the following consideration of the potential carrying capacity of tite Scrub -Jay Habitat Compensation Areas or into the calculation of total potential scrub -jay habitat mitigation acres. Based on an average territory size of 22,5 acres in optimal scrub habitat (Fitzpatrick et a/. 1991), the habitat restoration and rnanagernent measures prof)osed under this HCP have the potentia( to increase the scrub -jay carrying capacity to 7 to 8 territories within the 195;5± acres of presently occupied habitat and to provide suitable, conditions for recruitment of an additional 6 territories within the_ 128,61 acres targeted for restoration. Therefore, the potential carrying capacity of the 67