The Northern Spotted Owl: An Endangered Species

There was a time when the Northern spotted owl, the size of a cantaloupe, produced an uninterrupted proliferation of offspring that could be matched with field mice.  But, today, spotted owls are vanishing faster than ever.  Unscrupulous loggers whose indifference to environmental needs, are causing this to happen.  At the same time,  it seems Nature has thrown the bird a curveball:  A larger, meaner bird — the barred owl, is driving away the spotted owl from their turf.  Biologists and environmentalists continue to voice their concerns about the deteriorating effects of environmental abuse that could sadly spell the extinction of endangered animals and birds.  Environmentalists have witnessed sick chicks with eyes crusted shut, abandoned by adult birds and left alone to perish in their nests.

Spotted owls hide in dark woods, nesting in cavities and canopies of ancient trees, where they feast on wood rats, flying squirrels and deer mice.

In the wake of World War II, their was an explosive rash of logging in the Pacific Northwest, shrinking the forests and threatening the owls’ existence.  In spite of petitions to Congress, indifference  to the impending catastrophe served to sadly diminsh the owl population.  However, the saying, “better late than never” became the rallying-cry of environmentalists to halt the total  disappearance of the species:  There was an eruption of protests by environmentalists, both verbally and through sales of T-shirts and bumper-stickers, as well as lawsuits, until, in 1990, the Northern spotted owl was finally included under the Endangered Species Act.  Consequently, a sweeping federal court ruling in 1991, closed much of the Northwest woods to logging.  But this, itself,  could not help protect the Northern spotted owl.  It seemed as if Nature had doomed the species to disappear three times faster than biologists had feared.  Presently, few such birds remain throughout the Pacific Northwest.  Today, the last, sixteen known wild spotted owls are being bred in captivity, in order to help save the species from total annihilation.

Other owls, such as the barred owls, are presently thriving in the Oregon woods and are colonizing the Pacific Northwest. They have invaded the habitat of the Northern spotted owl.  There is fear that the presence of the barred owls in areas where the Northern spotted owls habitually nest, could cause the latter’s disappearance altogether.  The problem is that barred owls consume almost anything, while spotted owls are finicky eaters.  Barred owls have, therefore, been branded with the reputation of being the new bully on the block.  It would be a mystery if Nature springs a sudden surprise by giving yet another chance to the Northern spotted owl to reclaim its natural habitat.