USFWS seeks public input for barred owl management plan

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is developing a plan to manage the invasive barred owl population on the West Coast. The barred owl is more aggressive than native spotted owl species, and is contributing to their decline.

The invasive owl has already spread throughout the northern spotted owl range in the Pacific Northwest, and is slowly making its way south into Central California.

“So our intent in the California spotted owl range, however, because there are so few Barred owls, is to limit the extent of invasion into that area," said Fish and Wildlife’s Robin Bown, who is helping develop the plan.

Bown says the plan will have to be extensive, to cover the entire range of both spotted owl species.

The agency is seeking input from the public as they develop the plan, including areas they might include or exclude, and alternative population control methods that could be effective.

A virtual public meeting will be held Thursday night, July 28, to answer questions. Bown expects the plan to be completed by the end of next year.