How protected areas are helping a threatened owl

Spotted Owls (Strix occidentalis) have faced a number of challenges for decades. A recent study provides evidence that designated protected areas are helping the Mexican Spotted Owl subspecies (Strix occidentalis lucida) maintain a foothold in the Southwestern United States.

The results were published in the Journal of Raptor Research in the paper “Testing the Efficacy of Protected Areas: Use of Protected Activity Centers by GPS-Tagged Mexican Spotted Owls.” Given the current dynamism of global climate conditions, understanding the functionality of protected areas is an important part of supporting vulnerable wildlife species, especially in arid regions.

The Mexican Spotted Owl is indigenous to mature forests and canyons of Mexico and the Southwestern United States, and is considered threatened by both governments. Logging and habitat loss are the primary reasons for their precarious status. With the increasing prevalence of wildfires and other climactic unknowns, their success is far from secure.

Biologists apply a management tool for this species called “Protected Activity Centers” which specifically protect “core habitat of an individual owl’s territory,” says lead author of the paper, Dana Reid. “They lead to a patchwork mosaic of protected areas across public lands rather than one large Spotted Owl preserve like you might find for big game.”

Reid and her research team investigated Mexican Spotted Owls at two sites; one in Arizona and one in New Mexico. They wanted to know how owls were using PACs, if individual owls used more than one PAC, and if their home range sizes aligned with PAC size.

To tackle these questions, the team tagged 22 individual owls with GPS units during the breeding season of 2023. This kind of “space use” study can provide critical information on whether management parameters set in place are, in fact, helping the target species as intended.

Results showed that Mexican Spotted Owls used PACs extensively for key activities including roosting, foraging, and nesting. Most owls used just one PAC, but there were high levels of individual variation—some owls remained loyal to one area while others flew “all over the place,” as Reid puts it.

Home ranges varied in size based on sex, breeding status, and location. For example, male owls showed larger home ranges than females. These results offer the kind of attuned detail needed to effectively tweak PAC boundaries when needed.

Overall, PACs appear to be helping Mexican Spotted Owls. However, given the variability in individual owls’ space use and the threat that wildfire and drought pose to owl habitat, forest management needs to remain adaptable. Studies like this are crucial in bolstering the integrity of management practices by informing that adaptability.

“Our research is just a tiny fraction of a collaborative process between governmental, tribal, NGO, and other institutions all working towards the conservation and preservation of this species,” says Reid.

“Owls use all sorts of areas, on both public and private lands. Our forest ecosystems are all connected, and we need to work together to manage these landscapes in ways that are beneficial to both wildlife and local communities.” A big challenge, but one that these collaborators are up for.