Wildlife Agency’s Plan to Kill Barred Owls Gets Second Challenge

The US Fish and Wildlife Service’s plan to kill almost half a million barred owls in the Pacific Northwest was hit with another legal challenge from a conservation group.

Friends of Animals on Tuesday alleged the agency’s population management plan is the result of its wrongful failure to protect the similar, endangered spotted owl species.

The group’s case, filed in the US District Court for the District of Oregon, echoes one filed earlier this month by Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy in federal district court in Washington state against the same federal plan.

“Historical destruction of old growth forests that the spotted owl relies on is the main threat to the species,” the complaint said. “The lethal management strategy does nothing to address this threat or even ensure habitat remains protected in areas where barred owls are killed.”

The Lethal Barred Owl Management Plan classifies the barred owl as an invasive species in the Pacific Northwest and sets a goal to kill approximately 450,000 birds over the next 30 years, according to the complaint.

The group says the agency didn’t offer a “compelling justification” for the plan as required under the the Migratory Bird Treaty Act—an agreement between the US, Russia, Canada, and Japan to protect migratory bird populations.

Barred owls also shouldn’t be classified as an invasive species when they weren’t introduced to the region directly by human activity, Friends of Animals said. Instead, they migrated to the Pacific Northwest because of climate change, the suit said.

The Fish and Wildlife Service didn’t immediately respond to request for comment.

Friends of Animals are represented by in-house counsel as well as Bahr Law Offices.

The case is Friends of Animals v. Morrison, D. Or., No. 3:24-cv-01928, complaint filed 11/19/24.