The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) released its final environmental impact statement (EIS) regarding proposed barred owl management plans to protect northern and California spotted owls in Washington, Oregon and California.
The proposed plan’s preferred alternative is to implement a barred owl management strategy to annually remove less than one-half of 1% of the current North American barred owl population. Northern spotted owl populations have declined due to invasive barred owls and habitat loss, and California spotted owls face a similar risk.
“Without actively managing barred owls, northern spotted owls will likely go extinct in all or the majority of their range, despite decades of collaborative conservation efforts,” said USFWS Oregon Office State Supervisor Kessina Lee.
Public hunting of the owls would not be allowed. USFWS will announce a final decision at least 30 days after the EIS is published in the Federal Register.
