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Photo by Judd Patterson
Photo Copyright Judd Patterson
Flammulated owl
Psiloscops flammeolus
NatureServe conservation status
Global (G-rank): G4
State (S-rank): S2
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Species range
(This species occurs in Utah throughout the mountainous areas. McCallum (1994) mapped the distribution in Utah as including the Wasatch Mountains, the Uinta Mountains, the Deep Creek Mountains, the La Sal Mountains, the Abajo Mountains, and the mountains of the central high plateaus from the Pine Valley Mountains to the Wasatch Mountains. Walters and Sorensen (1983) indicated breeding in the southwestern and the north-central parts of the state. G. V. Oliver 2001)
Habitat
In Utah ". . . it lives in forested areas especially in the mountains" where "[i]t is known to nest in woodpecker holes" (Hayward et al. 1976). Walters and Sorensen (1983) listed its habitats in Utah as coniferous forest and aspen forest. McCallum (1994), writing about the species throughout its range, stated: "Nests and/or singing birds almost always found in or near open conifer forest with (1) some large old trees, (2) scattered thickets of saplings and/or shrubs, and (3) clearings. Nests almost always found in stands containing (but not limited to) yellow pine . . ., although aspen is also a frequent component of nesting habitat in Colorado . . . and Nevada . . .."
Threats or limiting factors
(Threats in Utah are not known. Loss of habitat through timber harvest is likely a threat in this state. McCallum (1994) opined: "Most visible impact of humans is loss of nest cavities. At present, most immediate human threat to species in North America may be cutting (authorized and unauthorized) of dead trees for firewood. . . . Recruitment of snags (dead trees or branches with good potential for holes) and health of woodpecker populations essential to conservation of all cavity-nesting owls. . . . Extirpation of flickers by introduced European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) would probably be disastrous." G. V. Oliver 2001)
