Landscape characteristics of Northern Spotted Owl nest sites in managed forests of northwestern California

We investigated vegetative and topographic characteristics of forest landsc apes surrounding Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) nest sit es on managed timberlands in northwestern California. Nest sites occurred p rimarily in young (31-60-yr old) forests of redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii). We compared 60 Northern Spotted Ow l nest landscapes (0.8-km radius circle centered on the nest site) with 60 randomly selected landscapes. Vegetative type and age class were used to cl assify forest stands within the landscape. Landscape features differed betw een nest sites and random sites (Wilks' F = 6.073, P < 0.001) suggesting th at nest-site selection was correlated with landscape level features. Nest l andscapes had greater amounts of forest in the 31-45 and 46-60 yr-old age c lasses, and a greater amount of total edge. in addition, nest sites were lo cated lower on slopes. In our study area, dusky-footed woodrats (Neotoma fu scipes) were the major prey species. Edges may provide opportunities for ow ls to pr ey on woodrats that are abundant in early seral habitats. The coas tal forests of the redwood zone have unique characteristics that contribute to rapid development of Northern Spotted Owl habitat. These include coppic e growth (i.e., vegetative reproduction) of redwoods and several hardwood s pecies, favorable growing conditions and the occurrence of major prey speci es in young seral habitats. Despite differences in habitat types and age cl asses, Northern Spotted Owl nest-site selection in these young, managed for ests showed some consistent patterns with other portions of the owls' range .