[obol] Owl calling impacts

[Josh Ellis]

My partner spent a summer doing Spotted Owl surveys outside of Eugene
and her friend did it up in the Olympics.  I'd be willing to bet that
they are the most harassed owls around.  Not only do they face intense
and oftentimes fierce competition from Barred Owls, but the amount of
energy expended responding to regular human calling is likely
non-trivial (especially since most of it occurs during breeding season).
Additionally, they are all captured and banded at some point in their
lives and many have blood drawn as well.  Spotted Owls almost certainly
have more face-to-face contact with humans than any other Northwest owl
species as a whole, and most of them are very well trained to take mice
from humans.

However, if there's ever an experience that will change your life, it's
seeing a Spotted Owl.

There were many times when she would come home with tears in her eyes
after a long day surveying a beautiful mature forest that was on the
chopping block, not having found an owl.  Finding an owl apparently had
the potential to prevent that area from getting logged.  When you are
doing the surveys it really drives home how ludicrously insane our
logging policies are, and how amazing the Spotties are for hanging on as
long as they have.

~Josh
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Josh Ellis
Product Engineer
Electrical Geodesics, Inc.
2979 Chad Dr. 
Eugene, OR 97408
541-334-0384
jellis at egi.com