https://www.yahoo.com/news/plan-shoot-thousands-west-coast-212012510.html

I see one huge gapping hole in this proposal. You guy's tell me if I'm wrong....

Short of putting a bounty on Barred Owls, is eliminating the restrictions to legally harvest them going to make a major difference? Who here would recreationally hunt owls? And do it enough to have a marked impact?

The federal government plans to kill half a million West Coast owls
A federal government plan for hunters to kill thousands of invasive owls to protect the rapidly declining northern spotted owl has ruffled the feathers of dozens of animal advocacy groups. On Monday, a coalition of 75 animal rights and wildlife protection organizations sent a letter to U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland asking her to scrap what they describe as a "reckless plan" to wipe out half a million barred owls in West Coast states over the next three decades.

Deb Haaland is a crazy hippy too. I think this is fake just for optics. No one will target owls

They are easy to call in either with owl vocals as they are very territorial or prey sounds.

Yeah, I think they could be pretty easy to hunt with the right calls, but positive identification is going to be critical. Shoot the wrong species and you could be in jail for up to a year with a $15k fine. The law isn't going to grant Mulligans.

People used to predator hunt for them. I have some books about owl hunting.

I love owls ( except for barn owls, they look evil). I wouldn't want to shoot one.

I love Horned Owls and Screech Owls

Same. We have a couple that hang out around the house. Love to see and listen to them. If only they would eat the neighbors cats……

Note the suggested quarry in this old ad:

Back when most people in the country had chickens, owls were something to shoot on sight.

^^This.

Not too many owls reside on my place. But, I've got resident Red Tailed Hawks. I would think that is why there is a lack of owls around me.

The Hawks take full advantage of the hay cutter. Cotton tail buffet!

Killing owls was outlawed in 1970. I remember quite a few being killed around the Grandparents places as a kid, they had chickens.

I enjoy listening to owls and calling them in to watch them and getting turkeys to gobble in the early mornings.

I think it's great idea. Everytime man tries to control mother nature, it works without unintended consequence.

I just saved that picture for the future arguments on here about clips vs magazines.

Can you even eat owl? would you even want to? Seems so odd.

If I could convince myself that I could positively ID them, I'dv do it. Why not. Mount would be pretty cool.

Where I hunt (and live), I view owls as cool creatures and a great deterrent to rodents. Would never want to shoot one even if it was legal.

A couple thoughts.......

The Federal Govt, under Biden. is going to give west coasters guns to hunt with???


I was Duck hunting with a buddy on my family's ranch in East Texas years ago. No moon and we were up to our waists in a pot hole waiting for shooting light.
Still so dark you could not see your hand in front of your face. Suddenly SCRREEEEEEEE as loud as a KISS concert. I was like "WTF?' My buddy (after he made sure he hadn't crapped his waders) said that was a screech owl.
Freaked us both out but that's nature.

I find owls and hawks to be pretty cool creatures and don't think I would want to hunt them.

I have mixed emotions about messing with the balance of nature. Yeah, I hunt but unless something is a real problem, I leave it alone.

I don’t even shoot coyotes.

After the 4 year drought, I/we lost a lot of wildlife.

I manage populations on my ranch if needed, 5 years ago I couldn’t buy a turkey. I removed several hundred raccoons and now I have a large turkey population.

I know when they started protecting owls and hawks our Quail pop went south and hasn't recovered. Broom weeds help a lot.

^ This. In hunter’s Ed we teach that hunting is an important wildlife management tool but then don’t allow hunting for animals with healthy populations. If you read the article, the numbers need to be reduced. If for no other reason, these should be hunted to help the other animals.

Absolutely. Unfortunately a lot of people think with their hearts rather than their brains.

Invasive species? Lets see, they are from the eastern United States not from a foreign country. To me that is a nature's way of weeding out the weaker of a species.

"Barred owls and northern spotted owls are closely related and can even interbreed. But the barred owls, which originally hailed from the eastern U.S., have been described as its relative's "nemesis."

The barred owl is more of a generalist, eating a wider array of food and occupying a broader habitat.

The northern spotted owl is pickier — and smaller. Its range stretches from northwestern California to southwestern British Columbia, including western Oregon and Washington, according to the National Wildlife Foundation.

Smithsonian Magazine reports that spotted owl numbers have plummeted by about 75% over the last two decades, citing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, while barred owls appear to be thriving."