Removing Barred Owls Frees Old-Growth Habitat for California Spotted Owls

A California GPS-tracking study shows invasive barred owls overwhelmingly occupy tall, old-growth stands that spotted owls depend on, with 64% overlap in home ranges and 38% in high-quality nesting habitat. Ongoing management that removed 1,171 barred owls freed more than 1,800 square kilometers of habitat (including about 1,150 km2 of prime nesting/roosting forest) for spotted owl recolonization, underscoring the need for sustained barred-owl control to protect the old-growth ecosystem.