General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-22
The Northern Goshawk in Utah: Habitat Assessment and Management
Recommendations
General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-22
The Northern Goshawk in Utah: Habitat Assessment and Management Recommendations
Abstract, The Authors, and Acknowledgments
Abstract
Graham, Russell T.; Rodriguez, Ronald L.; Paulin, Kathleen M.; Player, Rodney L.; Heap, Arlene P.; Williams, Richard. 1999. The northern goshawk in Utah: habitat assessment and management recommendations. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-22. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 48 p.
This assessment describes northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) habitat in the State of Utah. Because of fire exclusion, insect and disease epidemics, timber harvest, livestock grazing, or a combination of these factors the forests and woodlands of Utah have changed drastically since the early 1900's. Forests are now dominated by mid- and late successional species (Douglas-fir, white fir, and subalpine fir) rather than the early successional species (lodgepole and ponderosa pine). Along with these changes came suspected declines in goshawk populations. Goshawk habitat in Utah was assessed using potential vegetation types, current vegetation types, and expert knowledge. Subalpine fir (17 percent) and quaking aspen (10 percent) potential vegetation types were the most common forest types in the State. Nearly 95 percent of the subalpine fir potential vegetation type was rated as high or medium for nesting habitat, while nearly 90 percent of the quaking aspen potential vegetation type was rated as high or medium for nesting. Similarly, combining nesting and foraging preferences 70 percent of the subalpine fir potential vegetation type is rated as either high value or optimum habitat. In addition, throughout Utah all of the high value habitats are well connected. The present conditions of the forests and woodlands of Utah are prone to insect and disease epidemics in addition to the risk of stand replacing fires. To ensure the goshawk's continued existence in Utah will require the restoration of these degraded habitats and the protection of native processes.
The Authors
Russell T. Graham is a Research Forester with the Rocky Mountain Research Station's Forestry Sciences Laboratory in Moscow, ID. He holds a B.S. degree in forestry, an M.S. degree in forestry, and a Ph. D. degree in forestry.
Ronald L. Rodriguez is the Wildlife Program Leader on the Dixie and Fishlake National Forests in Cedar City, UT. He holds a B.S. degree in wildlife and range management, and an M.S. degree in wildlife and range management.
Kathleen M. Paulin is a Wildlife Biologist on the Ashley National Forest in Vernal, UT. She holds a B.S. degree in biology, and an M.S. degree in wildlife ecology.
Rodney L. Player is a Wildlife Biologist on the Manti-La Sal National Forest in Price, UT. He holds a B.S. degree in range management, and an M.S. degree in range and wildlife relationships.
Arlene P. Heap is the GIS Laboratory Manager on the Dixie National Forest in Cedar City, UT.
Richard Williams is a Wildlife Biologist on the Wasatch-Cache National Forest in Salt Lake City, UT. He holds a B.S. degree in wildlife management.
Acknowledgments
This assessment was successfully completed, thanks to the contribution and help of many people from throughout the State of Utah. Hugh Thompson, the Forest Supervisor of the Dixie National Forest, provided support and encouragement and, more importantly, he set priorities that facilitated the assembling of the team to complete the project. The wildlife biologists from several different agencies that helped with the project deserve a special thanks. The details of a project of this size always take more time than anticipated. Mark Madsen spent many days working with maps and data that were the heart of the project and we thank him for his effort. We thank Nancy Brunswick, Theresa Rigby, and Angela Dudley who were invaluable in helping us assemble the multitude of tables used. Also we thank Theresa Jain for her invaluable help in completing the final draft, and the Publishing Services staff of the Rocky Mountain Research Station, and in particular, technical publication editor B. Shimon Schwarzschild for his editing suggestions. And last, but not least, we thank our families. Without their support and understanding we could not have endured the long hours and days away from home.
Title: Abstract,
The Authors, and Acknowledgments: RMRS-GTR-22
- The Northern Goshawk in Utah: Habitat Assessment and Management
Recommendations
Electronic Publish Date: May 26, 1999
Expires: Indefinite
Last Update: January
15, 2002