Barred Owl (Strix varia)

County List:

Rule:

Forested or Mixed Forested/Nonforested Landscapes

1st alternative:
      (Oak (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Assorted Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Northern Hardwood (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
   containing:
      Conifer Inclusions
      and Snags 
      and Living Cavity Trees
      and (Stand Gap Openings or Riparian)

2nd alternative:
      (Hemlock (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (White Pine (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
   containing:
      Deciduous Inclusions
      and Snags 
      and Living Cavity Trees
      and (Stand Gap Openings or Riparian)

3rd alternative:
      (Mixed Northern Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Mixed Upland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Any Lowland Deciduous (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Mixed Lowland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
   containing:
      and Snags 
      and Living Cavity Trees
      and (Stand Gap Openings or Riparian)

Habitat List:

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Literature:

Habitat: Barred Owls favor mature forests, both deciduous and coniferous. Nest site vegetation ranges from open stands of eastern hemlock and white pine to beech-maple forest to heavily wooded swamps and riverbottoms. An average home range of 282 ha has been recorded for pairs in Marquette Co.

Natural tree cavities are preferred for nest placement, although old open stick nests built by hawks or squirrels occasionally suffice. Conifers, grapevine tangles, or other thick cover near the nest is beneficial, providing roosting sites concealed from crows and other birds that mob owls. The general habitat requirements of this owl nearly mirror those of the Red-shouldered Hawk, causing Bent to characterize the two as complementary and friendly species, one hunting by day and the other by night in the same locality.

The Barred Owl's penchant for old-growth forests, a trait shared by its famous relative of the Pacific Northwest, the Spotted Owl, has important management implications. Removal of aged and diseased trees for firewood or thinning purposes can drastically reduce the availability of suitable nesting cavities. Reproduction is rarely successful when pairs are forced to use an old stick nest, exposed to the elements. Under such circumstances nesting boxes are often a readily acceptable alternative. Habitat fragmentation through residential development is currently a serious problem in the southern Lower Peninsula, where the continual addition of houses to woodlots finally drives resident pairs away. Perhaps the best means to insure the future of Barred Owls in Michigan are selective logging practices, in which snags and den trees are left and outright preservation of large acreages of mature forest.

Habitat: Breeding: Low, wet deep woods, heavily wooded swamps often near open country where it may hunt for food. Frequently uses mixed or coniferous woods for nesting and roosting. Prefers mature oak woods for nesting and feeding. Wintering: In times of food shortage, birds often migrate south in search of food.

Special Habitat Requirements: Cool, damp lowlands, large trees with cavities for nesting. Minimum dbh of suitable trees is 20 inches.

Habitat: Woodlands, wooded river bottoms, wooded swamps. Favors mostly dense and thick woods with only scattered clearings, especially in low-lying and swampy areas. Most common in deciduous or mixed woods in southeast, but in north and northwest may be found in mature coniferous trees.

Diet: Mostly small mammals. Eats many mice and other small rodents, also squirrels (including flying squirrels), rabbits, opossums, shrews, other small mammals. Also eats various birds, frogs, salamanders, snakes, lizards, some insects. May take aquatic creatures such as crayfish, crabs, fish.

Nest: Site is in large natural hollow in tree, broken-off snag, or on old nest of hawk, crow, or squirrel. Rarely nests on ground. In east, often uses old Red-shouldered Hawk nest; hawk and owl may use same nest in alternate years.