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| Northern spotted owl (left) and barred owl (right) |
The U.S Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) had published a proposal in November 2023 to cull approximately half a million barred owls in order to protect the northern spotted owls in the American Northwest. The proposal has recently gained attention from dozens of animal welfare and wildlife protection organizations who signed a letter disputing the plan. The letter urges Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland to reject what it calls a "reckless" plan. Conservationists, including the USFWS, and animal welfare organizations have been locked in a debate regarding the moral issue of killing one species to protect another. The Fish and Wildlife Service stated that without taking action in culling the barred owl population would result in the extinction of its less aggressive and threatened relative the northern spotted owl. It further added that the barred owl is displacing the northern spotted owl in the northwestern states. The proposal would guarantee the northern spotted owl's survival by eliminating over 470,000 barred owls across California, Oregon, and Washington over a span of thirty years. The proposal would also help prevent decrease in the population of the California spotted owl, which is also threatened by barred owls. On the other hand,Wayne Pacelle, president of the Center for a Human Economy and its lobbying force, Animal Wellness Action, who co-authored the letter, called the plan "unworkable" and that it's unclear it would be successfully implemented across such a long time frame. He further argued that lethal management programs usually succeed on closed ecosystems such as islands, and that a management program covering such a far-flung region wouldn't be as effective. Retired emeritus researcher Cameron Barrows from University of California Riverside's Center for Conservation Biology supported the proposal saying that the spotted owls would disappear if the barred owl management plan is not implemented. He also criticized the letter opposing the plan, saying it would mean "We'd rather have barred owls than spotted owls." One Washington-based conservation organization called Birds Connect Seattle also backed the proposal by publishing a letter in January 2024 citing "preventive extinction" as one of its priorities. Its executive director Claire Catania stated that it acknowledges the management plan's need.
I very much believe that while it is necessary to cull the barred owl population in the American Northwest, strong emphasis needs to be placed on preventing another possible wave of barred owls into the area. Originally from the eastern U.S, barred owls were forced to travel across the country in search of new forests due to habitat destruction in their native homeland. The northern spotted owl was initially under threat as a result of the logging industry, which reduced its old-growth forest habitat into patches where this species now lives. Now, these forests are being taken over by the highly adaptable barred owls. Therefore, the competition between these two owl species is indirectly attributed to human-induced factors. I would strongly suggest that significant measurements need to be implemented to prevent barred owls from coming into the northern spotted owl home range. This includes conducting surveys across vast stretches of land in areas outside the American Northwest in order to locate and determine any presence and numbers of barred owls. Once located, the owls should be humanely captured and relocated to their former haunts. This brings me to another point that proper forested areas should be identified in the eastern U.S as ideal barred owl habitat and therefore protected from human encroachment and habitat destruction. I also think that the owl population in the Midwest should be thoroughly studied in order to understand how it is being affected by the barred owl and act accordingly.
