Plan to kill barred owls in WA, OR, CA finalized

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has finalized a comprehensive strategy to manage invasive barred owls in an effort to protect the imperiled northern and California spotted owls in Washington, Oregon and California.

The plan aims to mitigate the significant threat posed by barred owls, which are native to eastern North America but have spread westward, outcompeting and endangering native spotted owls.

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A barred owl, also known as the northern barred owl, or striped owl, perched in a tree in a park in Kirkland, Wash. (Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Barred owls, which have become more numerous than northern spotted owls across much of their shared range, contribute to the rapid decline of the threatened northern spotted owl populations. The California spotted owls, which face similar risks and are proposed for Endangered Species Act listing, are also threatened as barred owls continue moving south into their habitats.

"As wildlife professionals, we approached this issue carefully and did not come to this decision lightly," said Service Oregon Office state Supervisor Kessina Lee. "Spotted owls are at a crossroads, and we need to manage both barred owls and habitat to save them. This isn’t about choosing one owl over the other. If we act now, future generations will be able to see both owls in our Western forests."

The strategy includes a range of management alternatives, including non-lethal methods, but concludes that the lethal removal of barred owls is the only proven effective measure to improve spotted owl populations.

The plan allows for the removal of less than one-half of 1% of the current North American barred owl population annually. Removal efforts will be conducted by trained professionals in designated areas where barred and spotted owls coexist, particularly within the northern spotted owl’s range, and to limit barred owl expansion into the California spotted owl’s range.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has a Migratory Bird Treaty Act special purpose permit to implement this strategy. Under this permit, tribes, federal and state agencies, companies or specific landowners can be designated to manage barred owls on their lands if actions comply with the strategy, permit conditions and state laws. Those participating must adhere to annual monitoring and reporting requirements.

"No public hunting of barred owls is allowed under the strategy and no lead ammunition will be used for removals," Lee stated.

Public feedback was incorporated throughout the strategy's development, including input during a 2022 scoping period and after the draft environmental impact statement was released in 2023.

For more information, including the final Environmental Impact Statement and strategy, visit the Service’s barred owl management website. The notice of availability for the final strategy and record of decision will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days online.