The barred owl is an invasive species that threatens the spotted owl, which is endangered. Now, a plan that includes shooting barred owls in Washington, Oregon and California is in jeopardy.

California

Wildlife authorities have clarified details surrounding a federal strategy aimed at managing barred owl populations in Washington, Oregon, and California to protect the endangered northern spotted owl. The plan, developed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, allows for the removal of barred owls by qualified personnel but does not mandate or fund the killing of a specific number of birds. 

Officials emphasized that the strategy is designed to give agencies legal authority to control barred owl populations in remote, mature forests where spotted owls reside, not in urban or suburban areas. The plan has faced legal, legislative, and funding challenges, and animal rights activists have criticized it as inhumane. Other efforts to protect spotted owls include habitat preservation and exploring captive breeding or translocation, though such programs are not yet in place.

Controversial plan to kill thousands of owls along West Coast

We're getting an update on a controversial plan to kill thousands of owls along the West Coast. The barred owl is an invasive species in our region and threatens the spotted owl, which is endangered. Last year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service approved a strategy that includes shooting barred owls in Washington, Oregon, and California. The L.A. Times recently reported that plan is now in jeopardy after the Trump administration canceled grants in California that would help get the program going. I spoke with a Washington wildlife official who wants to clear up some confusion here about the barred owl strategy. I'm joined now by Julia Smith from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Thank you so much for speaking with us. Thank you so much for having me. So last year, we learned about the plan to protect the spotted owls by killing barred owls. So where does that plan stand right now here in Washington? The barred owl management strategy is a federal document that was developed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. We're aware of legal and legislative challenges to this strategy, but as of now, it's our understanding that that record of decision and the strategy are still in effect. OK, so any problems with funding that you're seeing to be able to make sure that the project can move forward? Well, we might talk about this later, but the barred owl management strategy actually never committed any funding to this strategy in the first place. I think that's where there's a lot of misunderstanding about what the strategy is and does. So what kind of threat does the barred owl pose to the northern spotted owl? Although barred owls and spotted owls look very similar, and it would be easy for folks to confuse the two and think that they're similar, they're very different animals and they fill very different niches. The northern spotted owl is a specialist species that depends on mature forests and mostly preys upon flying squirrels. They breed every other year and lay one to two eggs. The barred owl, on the other hand, is larger, more aggressive, breeds annually, and lays up to five eggs. They can displace spotted owls from their territories, disrupt their nesting, and outcompete spotted owls for food. Unlike spotted owls, barred owls can and do eat just about anything, from frogs and turtles to other owls. Because barred owls are replacing spotted owls and other owls, such as western screech owls in ecosystems across the Pacific Northwest, they're likely disrupting food webs and putting other species of greatest conservation need at risk. So the plan is not without some pushback. Animal rights activists called it inhumane. What are your thoughts about that criticism? Yeah, it's perfectly understandable why there's criticism of the strategy. But I also think, as I mentioned before, there's a lot of misunderstanding about what the barred owl management strategy actually is and does. It's not a plan that commits any funding or staffing to barred owl control. It simply allows agencies like the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to obtain permits to control spotted owls for the purpose of protecting spotted owls. There's no cost estimate associated with the strategy, and we know that endangered species recovery work can always be expensive, regardless of the species or activity, whether that's habitat protection and restoration, reintroduction, or invasive species control. I want to clarify something else, that the barred owl management strategy also doesn't commit or require a certain number of barred owls to be killed. So it's simply incorrect to refer to it as a plan to kill up to half a million owls. The environmental impact statement simply is an analysis with an upper limit on actions. That's where that high number comes from. But the number of barred owls removed will be far fewer and will not be widespread. This is not something that would be happening in city parks or backyards. It would be happening in those remote, mature forests, those remote, mature forests where spotted owls live. It's the few places we have left that we still have spotted owls and areas where they could return to. Would it be fish and wildlife agents that are killing the barred owls, or would they have hunters also participate in this? So it would only be limited to qualified individuals that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would be willing and able to permit. As far as the Department of Fish and Wildlife goes, we have not determined yet what people would be conducting this work, only that they would be permitted and qualified individuals. And I just wanted to say that the strategy simply gives the authority to qualified entities that want to conserve spotted owls through barred owl control the legal ability to do so. And we need that authority to give owls a fighting chance against extinction. Okay, real quickly, are there any other strategies in addition to killing the barred owls? Certainly, yes. Barred owl control is only one component of saving spotted owls. As I said before, spotted owls are closely tied to mature forests, and any strategy to save them must include protection of their habitat. Mature forests support many unique species, not just spotted owls, and high levels of biodiversity. So habitat protection requires partnership and collaboration with land management agencies such as the Washington Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Forest Service to ensure sustainable timber management practices. Also another strategy here in Washington, we're also exploring the feasibility of augmenting the spotted owl population through captive breeding or translocation. There are no breeding programs in the United States breeding spotted owls in captivity or conducting translocations. So we're learning as much as we can to lay the groundwork for this recovery action in Washington. Okay. Thank you so much for clarifying all of that. Julia Smith with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Have a good day. Thank you so much.

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