Endangered Ark

Spotted Owl

Strix occidentalis

Queen of Diamonds

Art by Jennifer ‘Nambroth’ Miller

http://www.featherdust.com

nam_art@hotmail.com

Western NY state

The Northern Spotted Owl is a lovely medium sized owl that ranges in the old growth forests of the Pacific Northwest. These owls are considered an indicator species (a species that defines a trait or characteristic of a habitat or environment system) for the old growth forests of the Pacific Northwest and have been on the decline because of a two part problem.

First and most notable is the loss of habitat both from logging and encroaching human development. Research has shown that nearly all spotted owls need the habitat formed by 2000+ year old growth forests in order to survive and reproduce. This owl has unwittingly sparked a very fierce debate over the years as the logging industry, who can stand to loose hundreds of thousands of jobs to the owl as its environment is protected, has fought with environmentalists that seek to save the owl and its old growth habitat.

The second major factor is the Spotted Owl’s cousin, the Barred Owl. As the habitat of the Spotted Owl has dwindled and fragmented, the more adaptive and aggressive Barred Owls have moved into these habitats and have further driven the Spotted Owls out.

There are thought to be fewer than 5,000 Northern Spotted Owls left and are still steadily declining with an average decline of 4% a year. These owls have involuntarily become a poster child for ever growing battle of human development versus environmental conservation.