Dear Readers,
After a decade of relative obscurity, the Spotted Owl (SO) re-wilding issue has been revived by provincial and federal government bureaucrats. Actually, it arose over three decades ago in the U.S. Pacific northwest states and resulted in a moratorium on logging that was blamed for destruction of the old growth forest environment, deemed essential to SO survival. Severe economic hardship on forest workers and their communities, resulted as logging and processing mills were closed across the region. However, SO populations have yet to recover. A similar response in BC was equally ineffective in restoring SO populations.
The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office (OFWO) information exposes the fallibility of scientists who assumed that logging older mature timber was the primary cause of the SO population decrease. However, when competition and displacement by Barred Owls (BOs) was determined to be the major threat, they chose to cull them. Despite culling of 3,135 Bos, the SO populations have not increased. The scientists were wrong, very wrong. Equally wrong, were the politicians who enacted the moratorium on logging.
SOs barely qualify as BC residents, whereas BOs inhabit over one half of the province, and the northern halves of both Washington and Oregon states, where the species overlap. SOs are not found in northern Idaho and Montana.
For information on the ecology and range of Spotted and Barred owls, visit the Audubon website (https://www.audubon.org/). Additionally, the website app is free.
The BCWF program is certain to impose additional constraints on an already overly constrained forest industry that is essential to the economic well-being of local communities in south western BC without increasing SO populations. The recent article in the Vancouver Sun, is a Canadian Press reprint to ensure national coverage of a uniquely BC issue; similar to the Vancouver Island Marmot salvation effort a decade ago. Presently, the propagation of spotted owls, like the previous Vancouver Island Marmot restoration effort, is another desperate attempt at re-wilding; raising animals in captivity for release into former environments to restore their populations. An additional funding of two million dollars for the SO recovery program even with a culling of BOs is certain to fail, based on previous results. The economic survival of the bureaucrats is at least temporarily assured.
Habitat losses and alterations are the same rationale used by scientists in BC to explain threats to wildlife, particularly game populations and are a convenient excuse for explaining reductions in their numbers. Despite the millions of dollars being spent on purchasing and re-wilding Mountain caribou habitats, population restoration and recovery has not occurred. Predation by wolves is the main cause of the decrease in caribou populations in BC and other provinces except the island of Newfoundland. Grizzlies and black bears are also significant predators. Additionally, cougars were also identified as a factor in reducing several southern BC Mountain caribou herds. Presently, the BC government has implemented a Primary Predator Reduction Program (PPRP) in the western Chilcotin region, to increase caribou survival. Perversely, it has included a moose population reduction program by increasing the harvest of adult cows within and adjacent to the area where wolves are being culled. Moose, being the major wolf prey species, are deemed to draw wolves near enough to the caribou that are the easier prey, hence moose numbers must also be reduced in order to increase caribou survival.
Habitat Protection is the primary objective of maintaining wildlife populations in BC. This being affirmed during the mid-1970s when the Habitat Protection Division of the Ministry of the Environment was established. This resulted in a complete change in philosophy and policy; from production and use, to protection and essentially non-use. Believing that animal populations are self-regulating, the government has assigned Nature as the right and proper custodian of fish and wildlife in BC. In 1981, the BC Habitat Conservation Foundation (BCHCF) established a Trust Fund (BHCTF) with monies derived from licensed purchased by fish and game users. To date, over $181 million has been contributed by the users, and 2400 projects have been completed. However, the deplorable state of game populations is positive proof that money spent of game habitat has been a complete failure.
The "Serengeti of the North" that described the great East Kootenay moose, elk, deer and bighorn sheep populations of the 1970-90s that hunters expected to be maintained with their HCTF contributions are only a memory. Stoically or stupidly, they continue their contributions to the fund, but if the results of the past 40 years are any indication, they would be well advised to buy lottery tickets instead.
Visit the BCHCTF website for 2020 budget approved projects. https://hctf.ca/
Regards,
Ken Sumanik
https://www.fws.gov/oregonfwo/articles.cfm?id=149489616
