OLYMPIA, Wash. — Northern spotted owls are probably doomed in Washington in the next decade unless barred owls are sacrificed, according to a new report by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Related species rarely co-exist, and barred owls have the edge. Barred owls reproduce and disperse faster and have a wider taste in prey and habitat than do spotted owls.
Unless wildlife managers intervene, spotted owls are likely to soon become too few to ever recover in Washington, even with other conservation actions, the report warns.
"Barred owl competition is the greatest direct factor driving the current and continued population decline of the spotted owl and may limit the positive effects of other conservation actions in the near term," the report reads. Read more...
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