Where does spotted Owl live?

Spotted owls occur in a variety of hardwood and coniferous forest habitats, although the species prefers closed-canopy, uneven-aged, late-successional, and old-growth forests. The Mexican subspecies may also make use of chaparral and pinyon woodlands, including areas in deep, steep-walled canyons with little canopy cover. The California subspecies uses unlogged, complex early seral forests created by wildfire for foraging, and more high-severity fire in a territory increases reproduction. Large trees seem to constitute preferred nesting and roosting habitat for all three subspecies, and canopy cover greater than 40% (often greater than 70%) is generally sought out. Substantial tall shrub cover is a common characteristic of spotted owl habitat. Spotted owls can be found at elevations of 70–6,600 feet (21–2,012 m) for the northern subspecies, at 1,000–8,500 feet (300–2,590 m) for the California subspecies, and rather higher (6,000–8,500 feet (1,800–2,600 m)) for the Mexican spotted owl. All subspecies appear to value the proximity of water sources.