Chapter 10. Dynamics of subalpine forests

Abstract

The boreal owl's fairly specific habitat requirements restrict its range in the conterminous U.S. to subalpine forests (see Chapter 9). These forests provide tree cavities, uncrusted snow that facilitates preying on small mammals, and cool microclimates essential for summer roosting. Such forests also provide habitat for the owl's prey which consists primarily of red-backed voles, mice, and other small mammals. Significantly these prey animals often eat lichens and the sporocarps of fungi. Both are common at high elevations or along drainages in the middle and northern Rocky Mountains, the Blue Mountains, and the northern Cascade Range. This chapter focuses on the distribution, structure, and dynamics of subalpine forests in these areas, with emphasis on the Rocky Mountains

Parent Publication

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

Citation

Knight, Dennis H. 1994. Chapter 10. Dynamics of subalpine forests. In: Hayward, G. D.; Verner, J., 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. 128-138