Developing and managing sustainable forest ecosystems for spotted owls in the Sierra Nevada

Abstract

Studies of the California spotted owl have revealed significant selection for habitats with large, old trees; relatively high basal areas of snags; and relatively high biomass in large, downed logs. Based on planning documents for national forests in the Sierra Nevada, we projected declining amounts of older-forest attributes. Region 5 has adopted measures to retain these attributes, generally distributed throughout the conifer zone, for an interim period. We believe that a long-term strategy for the owls, and for other species associated with older forests, must retain some level of these attributes that otherwise can take over a century to develop after regeneration harvests.

Citation

Verner, J.; McKelvey, K.S. 1994. Developing and managing sustainable forest ecosystems for spotted owls in the Sierra Nevada. Pages 82-97 in Foley, L.H., ed., Silviculture: From the Cradle of Forestry to Ecosystems Management. Proceedings of the national silviculture workshop; 1993 November 1-4; Hendersonville, NC. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southeastern Forest Experiment Station; Gen. Tech. Rep. GTR-SE-088