The Northern spotted owl takes the blame for the decline in logging in much of the Northwest. Yet the numbers of owls continue to drop.
This is true of the owl's close relative, the , which is not listed under the Endangered Species Act.
Researchers from the Universities of Wisconsin and Minnesota are keeping an eye on California owl populations. They theorize that the kind of habitat the owls favor takes a long time to grow. We get the full ramifications of the research from Gavin Jones, doing doctoral research in Wisconsin.