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Large trees seem to constitute preferred nesting and roosting habitat for all three subspecies, [ 4 ] and canopy cover greater than 40% (often greater than 70%) is generally sought out. [ 3 ][ 14 ] Substantial tall shrub cover is a common characteristic of spotted owl habitat. [ 15 ]
- Habitat
- Diet
- Breeding
- Behavior
- Conservation status
- Other sources
Over the full extent of their range, Spotted Owls occur in a variety of habitat types centered around mature forests with dense canopies. The Northern Spotted Owl requires unlogged, expansive, mature coniferous forest stands with large trees and a complex array of vegetation types, sizes and ages. This subspecies tends to avoid crossing clearcut, r...
Spotted Owls eat mainly small and medium-sized mammals, especially rodents. The two dominant food items for both the Northern and California Spotted Owl are flying squirrels and dusky-footed woodrats; the Northern subspecies' range is limited to areas where these two animals are available. Other common prey animals, some shared by all three subspec...
The female scrapes out a shallow depression in debris found at the site, but adds at most only a few feathers as nest material. Diameters of nests created by the Northern Spotted Owl have been measured from 15 to 23 inches. Spotted Owls will use artificial nest cavities.
Though not especially swift, Spotted Owls are agile and maneuverable fliers, interspersing gliding flight with quick wingbeats. Except when dispersing from natal territory, they don't tend to fly above the canopy or travel long distances. Spotted Owls move up and down in the canopy to adjust to temperature changes, which may be one reason they requ...
Spotted Owl populations have declined sharply as a result of habitat loss in the ranges of all three subspecies. Partners in Flight estimates the global breeding population at 15,000 individuals, with 56% in the U.S., 4% in Canada, and 40% in Mexico. The species rates a 15 out of 20 on the Continental Concern Score and is listed as a Tri-National C...
Gutiérrez, R. J., A. B. Franklin and W. S. Lahaye. 1995. Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis), version 2.0. In The Birds of North America (P. G. Rodewald, editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York, USA.
When do Spotted Owls nest? Spotted owl pairs begin associating more closely early in the spring, roosting together ahead of the breeding season and calling to each other at dawn and dusk from mid-February onwards.
The northern spotted owl nests in cavities or on platforms in large trees. It will also use abandoned nests of other species. Northern spotted owls remain in the same geographical areas unless forced out from harsh conditions or lack of food.
In the 1990s the Spotted Owl was catapulted into the spotlight over logging debates in the Pacific Northwest. This large, brown-eyed owl lives in mature forests of the West, from the giant old growth of British Columbia and Washington, to California's oak woodlands and the steep canyons of the Southwest.
Nest: Chooses a sheltered site inside large hollow tree in deep forest, in cave or crevice in cliff, sometimes in old stick nest of hawks or other large birds. No nest built, makes simple scrape in debris in bottom of site.
Back then nests were scarce. “Spotted Owls wouldn’t even hoot,” Colegrove remembers. “It was pretty bad.” Since then, monitoring has documented a 3 percent increase in Spotted Owl adult survival and rebounding reproduction.
