The Barred Owl Dilemma

David Wiens, Research Wildlife Biologist at the U.S. Geological Survey Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center

Please join us on May 27th for a Virtual Program Night with David Wiens. Dr. Wiens is an avian ecologist and Supervisory Research Wildlife Biologist with the USGS Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center in Corvallis, Oregon. David has conducted research on the conservation and management of birds of prey for over 30 years. He received his PhD in Wildlife Science from Oregon State University in 2012, where he studied competition and resource partitioning between spotted owls and barred owls. David is also the lead scientist of a large-scale field experiment on the ecological impacts of barred owls on spotted owls and associated native wildlife in Washington, Oregon, and California.

Within the past 50 years invasive barred owls have become a widespread and common avian predator in woodlands throughout much of the Pacific Northwest. As their populations expanded, barred owls displaced northern spotted owls from their protected old-forest habitats and complicated long-term forest management plans. This presentation will address the history, ecology, and conservation dilemma triggered by this remarkable invasion, with a focus on recent efforts to reduce the negative impacts of barred owls on spotted owls and associated native wildlife.

Photo Credit by Mick Thompson.