The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is preparing to kill nearly half a million barred owls throughout Washington, Oregon and California after a short-lived effort to halt the cull was thwarted in the Senate last week.

The management plan, finalized in August 2024, authorizes killing up to 450,000 barred owls across the West to protect another owl species: the northern spotted owl, which is listed as “threatened” under both the California Endangered Species Act and its federal counterpart.

The Fish and Wildlife Service has been managing spotted owl populations since the late ’70s, when population declines were attributed to habitat loss across federal lands due to timber harvesting.

The agency’s management plan said an accelerated decline since 2008 “corresponds with the continued invasion and population expansion of barred owls.” Barred owls are larger and more aggressive and produce more chicks than spotted owls, disrupting their nesting and outcompeting them for food. Barred owls are even known to attack hikers to protect their young.

Under the 30-year management plan, qualified personnel must confirm the presence of barred owls before certified “removal specialists” shoot the birds. Roughly 15,000 barred owls would be euthanized annually. There are no official cost estimates included in the plan or the agency’s record of decision, but opponents of the plan have said it could cost $1.35 billion. That’s based on a $4.5 million contract awarded in 2024 to kill about 1,500 barred owls over four years, bringing the euthanization cost to about $3,000 per owl killed.

The Department of the Interior declined an interview request from SFGATE about the management plan, likely due to the ongoing federal government shutdown. Top officials in the region have spoken in support of the management plan in the past, though.

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