After completing a formal 5-year status review of the northern spotted owl, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has concluded that the species continues to warrant the protection of the Endangered Species Act as a threatened species.
The Services review uncovered both good news and bad news related to the species. On the positive side, the risks faced by the species when it was first listed, such as habitat loss on federal lands, have been reduced due to the success of the Northwest Forest Plan and other management actions.
On the negative side, the species overall population in Washington, Oregon and California continues to decline and new potential threats have emerged that need to be studied further, including fire, competition from barred owls, and West Nile Disease.
"We can celebrate the success weve had in reducing habitat loss on federal lands, but at the same time we must recognize that there are new risks out there that could present an even greater threat to the species," said Dave Allen, director of the Services Pacific Region. "Our conclusion is that while the species is still threatened it does not need to be elevated to endangered status."
The 5-year review considered all information that has become available since the original listing of the northern spotted owl, such as: population and demographic trend data; genetics; species competition; habitat condition; adequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms; and management and conservation planning information. The review assessed: (a) whether new information suggests that the species population is increasing, declining or stable; (b) whether existing threats are increasing, stable, reduced or eliminated; (c) if there are any new threats; and (d) if new information or analysis calls into question any of the conclusions in the original listing determination as to the species status.
Key findings of the review include:
TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric list -align: The rate of habitat loss on federal lands has been substantially reduced. This change in threat level was considered a reflection of the effectiveness of the Northwest Forest Plan in addressing what was identified as the paramount threat at the time the owl was listed. Nonetheless, habitat loss continues, especially on private lands, and uncharacteristic wildfires appear to be removing habitat at an increasing rate.
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TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric list -align: Demographic data collected over 15 years document declining population trends across the species range, with the most pronounced declines in British Columbia, Washington, and northern Oregon. This area of pronounced decline constitutes approximately 50 percent of the geographic range of the northern spotted owl, supports about 25 percent of all known northern spotted owl activity centers, and contains greater than 25 percent of all northern spotted owl habitat, most of which is federally managed.
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TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric list -align: These declines in the Washington and northern Oregon demographic study areas, as well as in Canada, indicate the northern spotted owl meets the definition of a threatened species (likely to become endangered throughout all or a significant portion of its range). However, populations are still relatively numerous in the southern portion of its range and are present in most of the species historic range, suggesting the threat of extinction is not imminent. The spotted owl is not "endangered" even in the northern part of the range where the demographic results are least promising.
TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric list -align: Management of federal lands under the Northwest Forest Plan was considered to provide a more certain contribution to conservation of the northern spotted owl. However, the continued decline of northern spotted owls in the northern portion of the range, despite the presence of a high proportion of habitat on federal lands, suggests that the threats contributing to declines have not yet been responsive to habitat management.
TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric list -align: The nature, magnitude, and extent of barred owl effects on northern spotted owls remain uncertain. Barred owl effects across the range must be weighed carefully, given uncertainty about how the species interact and potential time-lags in detecting effects. Likewise, the new threats of West Nile virus and Sudden Oak Death were perceived as both potentially severe and imminent, but substantial uncertainty about their effects mediated against placing too much weight on these factors.
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The 5-year review also identified additional research needs, particularly on the effects of barred owls, West Nile virus, and the interactions between northern and California spotted owls.
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TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric-align: autoIn conducting the 5-year review, the Service chose an independent contractor, Sustainable Ecosystems Institute (SEI), to review, analyze and summarize all available scientific and demographic information about the northern spotted owl that has become available since it was listed. SEI convened a panel of experts who, assisted by a staff of scientists and outside experts, reviewed thousands of pages of data and reports over a period of 10 months. SEI also held four public meetings to gather additional information and to air preliminary findings. SEIs report, "Scientific Evaluation of the Status of the Northern Spotted Owl," provided the primary biological basis for the conclusions of the 5-year review. The report made no recommendation on the listing classification of the owl.
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TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric-align: autoThe Service then convened a panel of seven agency managers, assisted by species experts, who met for 1.5 days to review the SEI report and other information in the context of federal policy and guidelines.
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TEXT-AUTOSPACE: ideograph-numeric-align: autoThe 5-year review can be found on the Pacific Region's website at http://pacific.fws.gov/ecoservices/endangered/recovery/5yearcomplete.html.
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The Service conducted the 5-year review of the northern spotted owl following a lawsuit filed by the Western Council of Industrial Workers.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
