Project Code:	WEYDV-02-045
Program:	FRIP
Area:	Applied Research
Sponsor:	Weyerhaeuser Company Limited
Region:	Slave Lake
Project Status:	Complete

This project was designed to survey owl populations in the Drayton Valley FMA and ran from February to April 1999. The surveys began half an hour after sunset and continued up to seven hours into the night. Eight routes were surveyed, each being sampled twice during the period, with routes being accessible via logging or resource roads. The surveyors stopped at 1600 metre intervals and listened for 20 minutes. Except for the first two minutes, recorded owl calls were used to solicit responses. After analyzing the data to rule out the possibility of the same owl being heard at two different locations, the results indicated 146 owls heard at 107 stops. The Northern Saw-whet owl was the most heard (23), followed closely by the Boreal (52), Barred (22) and Great horned (15) owls. Data was inadequate to account for habitat variances. The final report was written by Roger Brown in July 1999, entitled, “Report of the 1999 Owl Survey for Weyerhaeuser’s Drayton Valley Forest Management Agreement Area”.