Estimated Effects of Climate Change on the Reproductive Fitness of the Northern Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis caurina

Authors

Nadia Swit, Cleveland State UniversityFollow

Abstract

In this paper, the trends for current and future climate change were utilized to evaluate the potential reproductive success of the Spotted Owl, particularly the Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) subspecies. As breeding season would exert additional stressors on the animal, a time period of five months, from January to June, was selected for the spring breeding season in which to evaluate temperature change. Previous research performed by Weathers and colleagues (2001) concerning the California Owl (Strix occidentalis occidentalis) formulated a thermodynamic equation that was utilized to compare the metabolic rate of the owl at current and future environmental trends. Metabolic rates were then compared to the known lower critical temperature (T_lc) of 18.2°C and the upper critical temperature (T_uc) of 35.2°C (Weathers et al 2001). Temperature data for climate trends was obtained from the U.S. Geological Survey’s Climate and Land Use Change Research and Development Program. Marin County of California was selected as the area of interest in which the Northern Spotted Owl inhabits.

Recommended Citation

Swit, Nadia. "Estimated Effects of Climate Change on the Reproductive Fitness of the Northern Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis caurina." The Downtown Review. Vol. 2. Iss. 2 (2016) .
Available at: https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/tdr/vol2/iss2/5