November 18, 2004
04-116
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Northern Spotted Owl
Still Threatened
Despite Progress in Addressing
Habitat Needs
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 Service's 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 we've 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 Service's 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:
· 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.
· 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.
· 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.
· 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.
· 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.
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.
In 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. SEI's 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.
The 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.
The 5-year review can be found on the Pacific
Region's website at
http://pacific.fws.gov/ecoservices/endangered/recovery/5yearcomplete.html.
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.
-- FWS --
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