Here is the USGS study for those 4 years previous. It served as background for this work. https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2019/1074/ofr20191074.pdf
There are three main reasons any removal will have to be done by carefully trained folks: 1. The similarity between the two species, they have to be absolutely certain a Spotted Owl isn’t shot. 2. Barred Owl is still a protected species under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) and thus only individuals with proper permits can be allowed to do any removal. 3. Owls are not a game species, so there are no allowed shooting of any owl or raptor.
It’s a very complicated subject, hopefully those with thoughts or ideas will send in comments as USFWS has much to weigh here in their decision. There are links to comment in the Seattle Times article.
Scott Downes
Downess at charter.net
Yakima Wa
On Dec 6, 2023, at 5:40 PM, Robert O'Brien wrote:
For those interested in more info, OPB did a 20 minute interview last week with
Kessina Lee, the state supervisor of Oregon’s USFWS office, and Robin Bown, barred owl management strategy lead for USFWS, I have not listened to it yet myself.
Bob OBrien
This didn't come out of the blue. It has aleady been going on for years. From this article:
In four study areas in Oregon, Washington and northern California, killing barred owls under an agency research study brought spotted owls to almost stable populations, whereas in a neighboring control population, spotted owl populations declined by 12%.
One far-out option I've thought of is to have an open season on Barred Owls, very similar to, say, ducks and geese, Goose shooting was allowed during the time when the Dusky Canada Goose was under extreme protection. There was a rigid checking system to guarantee (so much as possible) Duskies were not shot, and hunters had to learn how to ID them.
When you think about it, this is not too different from protection for the Kirtland's Warbler, wherein to this day (I'm pretty sure). Cowbirds are regularly trapped and killed. Cowbirds are of course native american birds, normally protected as with most of the other birds. They are just easier to catch (by trapping) and dispose of.
Bob OBrien Portland