NFR Anybody want to shoot some owls....
- Thread starter Brian in OR.
- Start date
Non-fishing related
Glad you took advantage of it. About 1/2 my Land Survey class at Renton in 90-92 was displaced loggers. The common attitude was take the training, and stipend, but then go back to the OP and find something else to do.
There is a key difference between the two owl species that I think explains this. Barred owls are "habitat and forage generalists," while spotted owls are "habitat and forage specialists." The barred owls preferred habitat includes a wider range of forest structure, and a structure that has become more common as Chromers pointed out in his post. The barred owls will also eat a wider variety of forage. These two attributes make it easier for barred owls to expand their range. The spotted owl is more demanding of habitat that is either old growth or older conifer forests, and have a narrower range of forage. I've heard they specialize on western flying squirrels, but I've never seen one of those, so it makes me wonder. Another attribute is that barred owls are larger and more aggressive than spotted owls, which makes it easy for them to expand into and displace spotted owls.
A
Anonymous member 148
Guest
Yes...
Supplement the lack of grouse
Supplement the lack of grouse
Gyrfalcon22
Legend
I need to add that I messed up on murrelets species in my post.. Should have been the endangered Marbled Murrelet, not Ancient Murrelet that nest in the old growth.
So better eating then is what you're saying ?
At one time many years ago I was given a Barred Owl by a friend. He picked it up after it was hit by a car.
Many useable feathers
Thank you for explaining that so clearly.
Though it wasn't in my professional wheelhouse, I recall California doing barred owl removal several years ago. January 11 was the anniversary of Aldo Leopold's birthday so I will repeat one of my favorite AL quotes: To keep every cog and wheel is the key to intelligent tinkering. During Leopold's time (this quote was from 1948), I don't believe there was much issue with the anthropogenic expansion of species. I wonder what he would say about the barred/spotted owl issue?
I'm also a big Aldo Leopold fan. I wish we could get his take on a lot of things nowadays. I suspect he would recognize that we might still have most of the cogs and wheels, but we have more or less lost an entire plate of the mechanism in that the Great Plains, thought to have been an effective barrier for westward expansion of various species, essentially no longer exist, having been developed for Ag and residential and transportation.
Crickets huh?
Creatch’r
Potential Spam
I couldn’t eat an owl. They are far too majestic. I’d make an omelette with bald eagle eggs and not think twice but I can’t even throw a rock at any of the barred owls on my property that occasionally pick off one of my chickens. I’ve got a huge maple tree adjacent to my chicken yard and it’s a pretty good place to spot an owl at any given time. We almost never close the blinds in the living room that look out at the chickens and the treeline and I’ve seen many owls perched above. Here’s one of them I spotted from the couch and chased off. Such a cool animal.
Dustin Chromers
Legend
Don't worry the rules changed on those under cover of darkness to inflict maximum pain on small landowners while larger companies pursue safe harbour agreements. The real win for the new regulation is the wholesale cut it now fest that will ensure this stuff doesn't get to be habitat. Another *feels good" rule change that will have the opposite of the desired effect and result in less habitat for the birds. I would like to thank all the experts involved in their big win to make landowners cru and screw the bird at the same time. It's hard to screw everyone all at once but you did it.
Dustin Chromers
Legend
The flying squirrels are actually pretty common. They are nocturnal though so that's likely why you haven't seen them. They are really cool as well. Big eyes, oversized clothing, and flat tails. They are very vulnerable to myriad predators on the ground. They aren't fast on the ground with the baggy overalls on.
Much like the Cattle Egret. Originally from the African Savannah, they spread to every continent on Earth, except for Antarctica, due to damage to their original habitat. I’ve even seen them in Hawaii. Invasive? More like environmental refugees.I think these are not really invasive ... rather, they are simply expanding their range, just as many other species of birds and mammals have done ... which, to me, makes the whole population control idea ludicrous ...
Yup, I had no idea they existed in western Wa until my neighbor’s cat brought one up to my porch one night before consuming it. The big eyes, distinctive ears and fluffy tail had me looking it up for ID. This was in Burien. Fairly common from what I’ve read but you never see them due to their nocturnal nature. The cat left the head and the tail for me. I’ve had that tail in salt for years and just snipped off a small piece a few weeks ago and dyed it with dyer’s polypore mushroom. Came out a little darker than I wanted (used a cast iron pot for the iron mordant) but still workable.
I'm pretty sure I killed an owl once. It was about midnight in the fall and I was doing 70 southbound on highway 101 somewhere between Forks and Kalaloch when an owl came out of the treeline and slammed face first into the passenger side window and scared the everliving fuck out of me. I can still see it's face as a flash of light. It appeared to end up on the ground, but I didn't stop to check. I'm uncertain of the species, but maybe I was just a super early adopter of this program 
Barred Owl Management Strategy Position - Birds Connect Seattle
Birds Connect Seattle shares our organizational position on US Fish & Wildlife Service's proposed Barred Owl Management Strategy for the protection of the Northern Spotted Owl, listed under the Endangered Species Act.
birdsconnectsea.org
Here is a nuanced take on this management dilemma. I know that nuance and rationality has little place in an emotional, reactive discussion, but I thought this was interesting and informative nonetheless.