We Love Our Hooters!
Recovery Plan for the Threatened Mexican Spotted Owl
Species Name: Strix occidentalis lucida
Listing Type: Threatened
Listing Date: September 5, 2012
Description & Ecology of the Mexican
Spotted Owl:
- The Mexican spotted owl is a medium-sized owl without ear tufts
- The white spots of the Mexican spotted owl are generally larger and more numerous than in the other two subspecies, giving it a lighter appearance.
- Females are larger, on average, than males.
- The Mexican spotted owl, being territorial and primarily nocturnal, is heard more often than
seen.
- Most calls are low in pitch and have pure tones- essential for accurate communication through dense vegetation.
- Males have a deeper hoot than females, and call out more often.
- The most common set of hoots is four unevenly spaced hoots with females using a sharp whistling sound.
- The Mexican spotted owl occurs in forested mountains and canyon lands throughout the Southwestern U.S. and Mexico
- In addition, previously occupied riparian communities in the southwestern U.S. and southern Mexico have undergone significant habitat alteration since the historical sightings.
- For example, in southern Utah and northern Arizona, inundation of Glen Canyon by Lake Powell created a 299-kilometer (km) (186-mile [mi]) long and 40-km (25-mi) wide reservoir that may have flooded habitat for a potentially large population in the canyon lands region.
- In the United States there are an estimated 2,106 Mexican Spotted Owls. Numbers in Mexico are also dangerously low and declining.
- Top Three Main Threats:
- 1) Destruction of Habitat: Timber-harvest practices in the Southwestern Region
- 2) Overutilization for Scientific Purposes: examples include studying the birds for educational purposes
- 3) Disease or Predation: Great Horned Owls are a major predator of the MSO. Increased habitat for Horned Owls caused by humans threatens the MSO.
- Cause of Listing:
- Mexican Spotted Owl population is steadily declining.
- Major concern for population of this owls as climate is changing.
Recovery Plan:
- Originally completed in 1995, revised and approved in 2012.
- Attempts to:
- Includes an ESA five-factor threats analysis.
- Changes RUs to EMUs to conform to FWS policy.
- Provides a more explicit definition of an owl site.
- Merges Southern Rocky Mountain (SRM)-Colorado and SRM-New Mexico EMUs into one (SRM).
- Revises boundary between Colorado Plateau (CP) and SRM to reflect ecological differences between the two EMUs.
- Extends boundary of Basin and Range East (BRE) EMU into Texas to incorporate verified sightings and suspected habitat.
- Reduces the size of the Basin and Range West (BRW) EMU by removing much of the western part where there are no records of owls and little, if any, known owl habitat
- Adds descriptions of canyon cover types as they relate to the owl.
- Provides a clearer definition of riparian habitats as they relate to the owl.
Fun Facts:
- Height: 16-19 inches.
- Length: 17 inches (wingspan of 42-45 inches).
- Weight: 1.2-1.4 lbs; males smaller than females.
- Lifespan: 16-17 years in the wild.
Sources Used:
http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/MSO_Recovery_Plan_First_Revision_Dec2012.pdf
http://www.defenders.org/mexican-spotted-owl/basic-facts
http://blog.cuzie.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Did-you-know.jpeg
http://www.charlesbergman.com/Animals/Spotted-Owls/i-4Z3Cw2w/5/L/Owl-Spotted--Crystal%20Mtn--Female%20Fly%201-L.jpg
http://images.parentherald.com/data/images/full/4190/don_diego_spotted_owl-co-wild-at-heart-owls-jpg.jpg?w=500
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