Chapter 1. Approach: The flammulated, boreal, and great gray owl assessments

Abstract

This forest owl conservation assessment focuses on three species of forest owls that occur on national forest lands in the United States. Sixteen other species of owls also regularly breed in the United States, but these three species were designated "sensitive" on forests in more than one region of the Forest Service in 1992. Within the National Forest System, "sensitive species" are plants and animals whose population viability is identified as a concern by a regional forester. Sensitive species require special management, so knowledge of their biology and ecology is critical. The inter-regional distribution of these owls necessitates a coordinated approach to management. Therefore, the forest owl conservation assessment addresses the biology of these owls throughout their range within the United States. The broad nature leads to some constraints on the specificity of information for particular locales. Furthermore, completing the assessments promptly required establishment of some sideboards concerning the geographic scope of particular aspects of the assessment and further analysis of existing (but unanalyzed) field data. These sideboards are described later in this introduction. This brief chapter outlines the scope of the assessments and describes the process used in producing the assessments.

Parent Publication

• Flammulated, boreal, and great gray owls in the United States: A technical conservation assessment

Citation

Hayward, Gregory D. 1994. Chapter 1. Approach: The flammulated, boreal, and great gray owl assessments. In: Hayward, G. D. and J. Verner, tech. editors. Flammulated, boreal, and great gray owls in the United States: A technical conservation assessment. Gen. Tech. Rep. RM-253. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. p. 2-4