# Presentation: 579243

## Northern Spotted Owl Conservation StrategySisters Ranger District

## Background

- East Cascades NSO Habitat Development Primarily Due to Fire Exclusion
- Changes in Species Composition
- Changes in Stand Densities
- Changes in Stand Structure

## Background

- East Cascades NSO Habitat Decline
- Spruce Budworm (Insect/Disease Complex)
- Wildfires
- Management

## 72% of NRF Habitat was Lost between 1985 and 1996 due to an Insect and Disease complex associated with western spruce budworm, the primary disturbance agent.

- 1985 = 5,621 acres of NRF
- 1996 = 1,547 acres of NRF

_**NSO Habitat Decline Due to Insect/Disease Complex**_

_**McCache Example**_

## McCache Project Area NRF

- 1996

- 1985

## Revelation 1

_**Revelation 1**_

**Insects and Diseases Can be Very Bad for NSO Habitat.**

## NSO Habitat Decline Due to Wildfire

- Matrix

## NSO Habitat vs. Wildfire

- After

- Before

## Davis Fire

- June 20, 2003

**Notes:**
The changes in mixed conifer communities that have resulted in habitat conducive to northern spotted owl, have also resulted in a vegetative shift towards greater instability.  Much of this “new” spotted owl habitat may be transient because replacement DF and PP nest trees are unlikely to develop given the present stand densities.  In addition, the changed structure and species comp makes these  MC communities much more susceptible to uncharacteristically sever wildfire, and insect and disease outbreaks.  A recent dramatic example of this is the Fire in the Davis LSR last June.   (June 28, 2003), 30% of the LSR burned in a few days, 80% complete stand replacement.  Two occupied spotted owl nests were consumed (this photo shows what is left of the next tree for the Davis Pair).  

## Spotted Owl

_**B and B Complex**_
**Lost 21,000 acres of NRF**
**Of 21 known owl sites only 7** are still potentially viable
**66% of the watershed owl sites lost **
**59% of the district owl sites lost**

**Spotted Owl**

**Notes:**
This impact to the LSR was followed in the same year by the loss of 21,ooo acres of spotted owl habatat in the bear and both fire on sisters RD

## Revelation 2

_**Revelation 2**_

**Wildfire can be very Bad **
**for NSO Habitat**

## Status of NSO on the Sisters Ranger District

| Management Allocation | Before Wildfire | After Wildfire |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  | Viable | Viable | Not Viable |
| LSR | 14 | 6 | 8 |
| Matrix | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| CWD | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Total | 24 | 10* | 14 |
| *4 of 10 are marginal at best due to impacts from wildfire. |  |  |  |

## Revelation 3

- Management of the Majority of an East Cascade Landscape for NSO Habitat is Not Biologically Possible!

## Evolution of NSO Strategy

- Proposed Landscape Strategy

## Deschutes NF LSR Landscape Strategyfor NSO(Science Team)

**Notes:**
Forest strategy based on best available science at the time and local knowledge on NSO & disturbance.  

## Example

***McCache Project Area Stratified by Focal Species***

- Elevation ranges from 3500-5800 ft.

**Notes:**
The first step is to recognize that not all of the LSR is capable of growing old growth that would be colonized by spotted owl.  However there are other old growth species that are important in these areas.  This is represented by stratifying the area by focal species.  For example in the MC plant PAGs the focal species is spotted owl.  For the ponderosa pine associations (denoted by orange) the focal species may be white-headed woodpecker or northern goshawk, for the lodegepole Pine (green) the focal species is black backed woodpecker. 

*Spotted Owl Stand—Simulated Wildfire*

_**Assumptions**_***:******Eastside NRF is Unstable****** ***

**Notes:**
Eastern Cascades spotted owl habitat is inherently unstable because of its susceptibility to insects, diseases and wildfire
For large sized tree structure to develop lower densities are needed

## Assumptions:

***Large****** ******tree structure****** ******requires****** ******low densities to develop***
*** ******Strategy****** ******to manage for sustainable spotted owl habitat is ******realistic***

**Notes:**
Eastern Cascades spotted owl habitat is inherently unstable because of its susceptibility to insects, diseases and wildfire
For large sized tree structure to develop lower densities are needed

## Viability Assumption

***20-40%****** of the landscape should always be NRF***

**Notes:**
The success of the alternatives at meeting the mgt objectives is then modeled and evaluated against the following criteria

## LSR

**Strategy  to Sustain 20-40% NRF**

_**Protection**_**: surround key habitat with low hazard  forests**_**Develop future habitat**_** in other locations on the LSR landscape**

**Notes:**
Within the spotted owl focal species area there is a stated overall strategy.  This strategy consists of two parts.   Protection and development of new habitat
 incorporated a the forestwide LSR analysis. The low risk stands can develop into spotted owl habitat within a relatively short timeframe; thus existing habitat areas could be replaced before they deteriorate.  

This stragety helped the davis fire purpose and need///////

## Eastside spotted Owl Habitat probably developed in stages.  The large tree structure developed historically under low intensity fires.

**Dense canopy cover as a result of the absence of fire transformed the forest into prime spotted owl habitat**

**Notes:**
Tactically, the plan is to develop spotted owl habitat in the order that it happened in the first place; aka by growing the large tree structure first and then letting the understory fill in.  

## Slide 22

**Notes:**
These maps display how habitat changes over time.  The first map displays the EC on these maps we have added another indicator of large tree structure.  The lighter orange indicates that the stand is displaying satisfactory progress towards large tree structure.  On this next map the dark areas are the areas chosen by the ID team for treatment.  The next 2 pairs of  maps represents projected habitat in 2030 and 2060, respectively.  Note that that the development of long term habitat appears to be at the expense of dispersal habitat.  This is because the WF is rapidly providing canopy cover in the untreated stands.  

## Conclusions of McCache Analysis:Overall effects of Treatment Proposal on Late Successional Reserve

-  In LSRs that have Experienced Serious Deterioration, Critical levels of NRF will probably not be met for a long time and will depend on the status of Large Trees.

**Notes:**
Given current conditions we probably cannot meet the 20-40% NRF on the landscape no matter what we do

## Sisters RDLandscape Strategyfor NSO(New and Improved)

- Chocolate Chunk Cookie Concept
-  on a Grand Scale

## Chocolate Chunk Cookie NSO Landscape Strategy

- Identify the most productive sites to manage for NSO habitat – the areas with the highest likelihood of growing and maintaining NRF habitat over time.
- The “Chocolate Chunks”
- Manage the remainder of the landscape as large-tree dominated fire climax structure.
- The “Cookie Dough”

_**Objective**_:
- Risk Reduction to the Choc. Chunks (i.e., NRF)

## Process

- Ignore current land management Allocations (LSR vs. Matrix)
- Identify the most productive sites.
- Plant Associations
- Soils
- Fire Regimes
- IIIa lined up with the “Dough”
- IIIb lined up with the “Chunks”

## We will only manage for NSO nesting habitat where site productivity is high enough to develop and sustain the desired structure

- Matrix

## B&B ProjectRelated to NSO Strategy

- Reduce Current & Future Fuel Loadings
- Ensure desired reforestation
- Species Composition
- Douglas-fir
- Ponderosa Pine
- Western Larch
- Stand Density
- Variability in species composition and density
- Grow the large tree component

## Conclusion

_**Conclusion**_

- Modification of Existing Forest LSR Strategy
- Encompasses Entire Mixed Conifer -- Not just LSR
- Targets Most Productive Sites for NRF
- Conceptual at this Time
- Needs Refinement
- Has not been Approved or Implemented

## QUESTIONS??

## Slide 31

## Spotted Owl Stand—Simulated Wildfire

*Spotted Owl Stand—Simulated Wildfire*

**Notes:**
Here the visualization program SVS is taking the predicted results of a wildfire generated by FVS-FFE using a tree list from the stand exam we did for the Hamner Butte Nest Site.  As you can see, the results of the actual wildfire match the predicted results nicely.