CURRENT SITUATION OF

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CURRENT SITUATION OF NORTHERN SPOTTED OWLS IN
DRY FOREST ECOSYSTEMS
Jim Thrailkill USFWS Oregon State Office May 24,
2005
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(No Transcript)
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• PRESENTATION OUTLINE
• History
• 5-Year Review Findings
• NWFP Monitoring Findings
• USFWS Perspective

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par-a-dox a tenet contrary to received opinion
Recommendations to reduce owl habitat in order
to save it may seem a paradox. We believe such
implementation will, in the long run, better
protect owl habitat than a more short-sighted
attempt to continue total protection. Active
management in some areas to reduce the
probability of large-scale catastrophic events
is the most rational management direction.
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NSO Draft Recovery Plan Forest Protection
Guidelines, Agee and Edmonds, 1992
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RISK LEVELS FROM DISTURBANCE AGENTS
NSO Draft Recovery Plan
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Changes in Forest Structure Since Active
Management Began
NSO Draft Recovery Plan
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SEI Report (2004) A Scientific Evaluation of The
Status of the Northern Spotted Owl
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HABITAT TRENDS Data of Mixed Quality
Estimated Rates of NSO Habitat Change on Federal
Lands 1994-2003 (Based on project consultations
and local estimates of natural disturbance)
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Northwest Forest Plan
Congressionally Reserved
Late-Successional Reserves
Matrix

• Core Principles Supported
• Scientifically Credible
• Implementation Problems

Adaptive Management Areas
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NWFP and Spotted Owls

• Conservation Principles Appropriate today
• Large Blocks of Suitable Habitat
• Connectivity Habitat

LSR
Matrix Riparian Reserves
LSR
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HABITAT ASSOCIATIONSNew Information - Well
Understood

• Association with forest
• structure confirmed
• Other forest components
• locally important
• Effects of forest fragmentation
  heterogeneity better understood

Suitable Non-suitable Habitat
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Habitat Associations
EASTERN CASCADES WASHINGTON

• NSO locations with less old-growth forest
• More forest of 20-64 cm dbh than random
  locations
• Lowest apparent survival
• Highest fecundity

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PREYNew Information Poorly Understood
woodrat
northern flying squirrel

• Prey conclusions generally confirmed
• Owl home ranges sizes vary with prey type
• Secondary prey species may influence spotted
  owls
• Drives NSO biology

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DEMOGRAPHY New Information Well Understood
with data gaps
4.1 decline over all of the studies 2.5 decline
on 8 monitoring areas vs 6.6 for the other
areas Washington populations doing poorest



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Barred Owl Implications?

• NSO Displacement

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NWFP 10 Year Monitoring Reports
Habitat Chapter www.reo.gov
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THE NEXT DECADE? WILDFIRE WILL EFFECT FUTURE
HABITAT

• 13,200 wildfires
• 50 lightning
• 50 human caused
• 75 of acres burned were from lightning fires

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THE NEXT DECADE? WILDFIRE WILL EFFECT FUTURE
HABITAT
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THE NEXT DECADE? WILDFIRE WILL EFFECT FUTURE
HABITAT
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THE NEXT DECADE? WILDFIRE WILL EFFECT FUTURE
HABITAT
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PERSPECTIVE
PROBLEM STATEMENT We recognize dry forest
ecosystems have declining northern spotted owl
populations and increasing fuels accumulations.
The trend in forest succession will continue to
increase the risk of owl habitat loss. How can
we minimize these risks while maintaining
adequate (spatial and temporal) suitable spotted
owl habitat?
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FWS Goal Through interagency planning, forest
fuels are managed and forest habitat is developed
that benefits the spotted owl at a stand and
landscape level.

• Work Collaboratively
• Maintain Connectivity
• Promote Healthy Forests

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Conceptual Approach Landscape Scale Treatment
Spatial Scales
Aggregate of Watersheds
Landscape Principles Assumptions
stand
Fire Risk of Stands Owl Locations
X of Sites
XX of Sites
territory
Prioritize NSO fitness
Treat w/in Core Area
Do Not Treat in Core Area
Home range
XX of Sites - Work Outside Core XX of Sites -
No Work
XX of Sites - Work Outside Core XX of Sites -
No Work
landscape

• Treatment Principles
• No harvest of trees gtdbh
• Retain CWD features
• Other features?

Desired Future Condition
Temporal Scale
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A Few Words About Risk

• Science-based
• Strategic (landscape)
• Situational
• ------------------------------
• Paradigm Shift?
• On the table for discussion..
• LSRs
• Owl Circles
• NRF

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• Forest Health/NSO Dilemma
• in Dry Forest Ecosystems
• basically do nothing and hope for the best or
• 2) restore some semblance of historical range of
  variability
• in disturbance (MacCraken et al. 1996)

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Acknowledgements Ray Davis, USFS Joe Lint,
BLM Eric Forsman, PNW Bob Anthony, OCFWRU Jim
Agee, Univ. WA Joan Kittrell, USFS Stephen
Courtney, SEI Robin Bown, USFWS Sandra Ackley,
USFWS Nancy Gilbert, USFWS Jennifer OReilly,
USFWS
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QUESTIONS?