Editor’s Note: With permission from the author, the following article was written by an experienced falconer who has perhaps a better understanding of the real agenda behind listing the Northern Spotted Owl for protection than the overwhelming majority of people in the world. I hope you enjoy the read. Mark Davis tells of the dedication of falconers, like himself, and the results of real conservation. He injects a bit of humor, innuendo and sarcasm as well. At the end of this piece, I have also included some comments by other readers concerning the devastation that the Endangered Species Act has foisted on innocent people.
“The Twenty Year Anniversary of the Spotted Owl”
By: Mark Davis
I have been a licensed falconer since I was 16 years old. I am now in my forties. Throughout my life I have flown with birds of prey ranging from American Kestrels hunting dragon flies, all the way up to and including the Golden Eagle hunting jack rabbits. I have worked for wild life parks, foundations, wildlife educational foundations, and with such people as Jim Fowler.
I grew up in northern California and spent much of my childhood hiking, hunting and playing in the Tahoe National Forest. As a young man, I worked for the U.S.D.A. [United States Department of Agriculture] Forest Service. This was during the time of the beginning of the Spotted Owl Controversy. Let me say this now before many of you waist your time reading any further. THE LISTING OF THE SPOTTED OWL ON THE ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST WAS AND IS A LIE!
(Brief obscene political statement: “The spotted owl was used as tool by the extreme left, wacko environmentalists, like the Sierra Club, to destroy the Timber Industry.”)
On June 26th 1990, the northern spotted owl was listed as an endangered species. I am going to ask you the very same question I asked myself back then; “Why list the northern spotted owl and not list the northern goshawk?” During this same time period lawsuits were filed throughout the Northern United States in an attempt to list the northern goshawk as endangered as well as the northern spotted owl. (Read on and find out why it failed.)
When “they” listed the northern spotted owl as an endangered spices, the majority of residents in the Northern United States had no idea what a spotted owl was, what it ate, or even looked like, let alone the fact that one even existed. However, there was a group, an elite group of individuals that did know what a spotted owl was, where it lived and what it ate, but even more importantly, they knew what a northern goshawk was, where it lived and even more importantly, WHAT IT ATE? (Insert spotted owl here)
Let me introduce to you, this elite group of individuals – The North American Falconer. They are responsible for developing the captive breeding techniques used to save such species as the California condor. They are the group of individuals that are responsible for re-defining speciation in birds of prey through captive breeding, and are responsible for saving the Peregrine Falcon, JUST TO NAME A FEW!
Falconers use several different birds of prey species while practicing their art/sport and, yes these individuals use the northern goshawk as hunting partners in the practice of their art/sport “Falconry”. Members of the Falconers are fanatics, and they spend thousands of hours scouting nest site locations, untold numbers of hours photographing, bird watching, recording behavior patterns, migration numbers – did I mention scouting nest site locations – and reading and studying every piece of literature on birds of prey they can afford and have room for in their homes. (See definition of library)
As a falconer I can testify to the fact that I have spent hundreds of hours in the Tahoe National Forest, with a forest service map in hand, mapping and scouting northern goshawk nest site locations. Why, you might ask? You can not hunt with a goshawk if you can not find one!
I started my quest for the northern goshawk nest site location with a visit to the local Forest Service office. After a brief visit with the head biologist, he was more than happy to circle 8 nest site locations of the northern goshawk on my U.S. Forest Service map that he had located during his time in the forest counting spotted owls. Now, I would be lying if I said he gave me the exact locations of the nests. He simply circled the mile squares, and gave me forest service road marker numbers (paddle marker numbers) and timber sale names to get me close; the rest was up to me. Through the years, and with my trusty Forest service map, I was able to locate a dozen ACTIVE northern goshawk nest sites.
At these sites I made several observations about these beautiful and majestic creatures that simply affirmed my belief that they truly are the king of hawks.
Among these observations was the fact that there were spotted owl feathers in the branches and on the ground at the base of the trees where the northern goshawks’ nests were! In addition, I located several northern spotted owl kill locations that were obviously the kills of another birds of prey. (insert northern goshawk here)
Northern goshawks are very special to falconers. Although they are one of the toughest birds to train because of their many behavior and character defects, they are “killing machines” baby! Which, if you enjoy a roller coaster ride of a tail chase and better than average odds of success, they are the bird for you (must be licensed and over the age of 16 to enjoy this ride)
My point is this. Most falconers observe the above listed behaviors. They are no different than any other hunter. They study their prey and they study their tool of choice, i.e. gun, rifle, compound bow, hawk, falcon, you get the point. They also, scout where they are going to fly their birds, and they scout where they are going to trap their birds. I mention this for good reason. When the Sierra Club attempted to file a law suit against the U.S.F.S in the early 1990s to add the northern goshawk and the northern spotted owl to the Endangered Species Act list as a means of halting old-growth logging projects. Their attempt to get the goshawk listed failed due to, “a lack of evidence that goshawk populations were declining.” (I am not your parent look up the law suit yourself)
So, back to my earlier question. Why was the northern spotted owl listed and not the northern goshawk? Because the population study for the northern goshawk in effect, had already been done by falconers. When you trap or take a raptor out of the wild, you must fill out a USFWS Disposition and Acquisition Report that denotes the age and LOCATION and MEANS of take! And the USFWS and the USFS knew that there were hundreds of falconers all over Northern America that knew or could provide these statistics regarding the population of the northern goshawk to dispute the claims of endangerment!? It would be like the USFWS outlawing the Remington 870 shot gun for pheasant hunting! Do you think there would be a few pissed off people that could provide nest locations, eyes, (baby) counts in the nests etc?
So, how is it that an apex predator’s numbers do not decline when one of there prey species numbers does?
The argument would be that other prey species numbers did not decline sufficiently enough to affect the northern goshawk. Well, what do northern spotted owls really eat? At their nesting site, I located castings containing mice and squirrel remains. By the way, northern goshawks eat some of the same prey species as the northern spotted owl. They are both birds of prey. (That means predator)
So, not only do the northern goshawks live in the same forest as the northern spotted owl, but they eat the same prey animals. How is it that you can have a prey animal’s numbers decline, but the apex predator’s numbers stay up? Answer: you cannot. Especially when you look at the fact that northern goshawks hunting success ranges from a 1 to 8 or a 1 to 10 kill ratio; that is for every attempt at capturing prey animals in the wild it takes about 10 attempts for every capture. So, if ANY prey species numbers decline it would have a dramatic impact on the overall population!
On to the main argument. It is often quoted that northern spotted owls will only nest in old growth forests. Really? only? I will answer that statement with several questions. How did the barn owl get its name? How did the barn swallow get its name? How did the house wren get its name? Why is it that a wood duck will nest in a wooden box and not a tree? Why is it that the peregrine falcon will nest on a sky scrapper and not a cliff? Have we knocked down all the mountains? Answer……. Because they, like all other animals, are opportunistic; that is, something that has been programmed into their D.N.A. THE DRIVE TO SURVIVE AND REPRODUCE. (Insert 60’s porn music here) It was said that the spotted owl would only nest in old growth forest because there was no information that could be provided to dispute that testimony; like the information obtained and provided by falconers about the northern goshawk with the disposition and acquisition reports!
I have seen first hand, first-year spotted owl nests built on the very edge of a timber sale unit that had been clear-cut that very same year! (insert photo of middle finger here)
After thousands of hours hiking through the Tahoe National Forest, I revisited my U.S. Forest Service biologist buddy. I shared with him what I had discovered regarding the amount of nests found, the predation of spotted owls and the over all relative health of the forest. He was not surprised! And pointed out that at that time there were more trees throughout our Northern American forests than there had been in over 100 years! (Insert crapping my pants sound here)
The Defenders of Wildlife, the Sierra Club, and the rest of these bleeding heart, emotion driven, left-wing groups, all have one sinister common link. They, through their environmental protection programs, are destroying our America! These programs have and are destroying entire towns, cities, communities, families, and people.
I grew up in a mining and lumber industry town. The endangered species act was passed and it smashed our community like an anvil!
My final question for all of you is this. If the spotted owl was really such an endangered species, then why is there only one breeding pair in all of the United States, located at the High Desert Museum. Just look at the efforts afforded the other endangered raptors in the United States for your answer! (They are not endangered)
I was approached by a close personal friend of mine and we got on this topic of the Canadian wolves that had been introduction into our ecosystem and he mentioned the spotted owl controversy that was still going on in the Northern States, and I conveyed the above information to him. At his bequest, I have provided you with this information.
I have all but given up on conserving our wildlife; it is a lost cause! I feel that truly in my heart. I have witnessed in my life a group of radical socialists take hold of America, and America’s wildlife and use it as a weapon shot through the barrel of the Endangered Species Act, to destroy our wild hunting heritage and Americans! It makes me sick to this very day.
I challenge everyone who reads this to find one thing, one issue, one person, one wild animal that a liberal has truly helped or saved. They, all of them, are creatures of control and destruction. I have all but given up on America and our Constitutional Republic and given what I do for a living, that is sad.
My friend, my brother, has said to me repeatedly, “if not me than who”? It is with a tear in my eye that I finish this, Scott I have told you that I will follow you. My arm and my sword are yours when you need it.
A final note, I once heard a very old and very wise man say; believe nothing that you hear, half of what you read, and only what you see with your own two eyes!
-Let’s Roll-
The following are some comments made in response to Mark Davis’ article:
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Regarding “-Let’s Roll-”
Friends of the Northern Yellowstone Elk Herd , back on Jan. 11, 2000 presented a 3 Ph.D’s . One was Dr. Robert Taylor, to an audience of 600 at the Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks “Predator Manage Symposium”
Dr Taylor had many years of experience working with those communities , families and businesses that were destroyed by the use of spotted owls as bio weapons by those environmental organizations that were obsessed then with destroying the timber industry.
Dr. Taylor informed the audience that wolves were being used as a bioweapon to destroy hunting, cattle grazing on federal lands and ultimately private property ownership in the rural intermountain west. He was also the Ph.D that used the competing computer model to the Mark S. Boyce computer . The Taylor model predicted that the YNP prey base would collapse to extinction and then the wolves would go extinct in YNP once again. {who was correct?}
At the aforementioned meeting Dr. Taylor also made one last prediction to the audience of 600 that left them appalled , angry and aghast.
Dr Taylor predicted to U. S. Senator Conrad Burns, Lt. Governor Judy Martz , Congressional aides and all the Federal and State wolf bureaucrats that wolf introduction and the ensuing destruction that it would cause would ultimately end in blood shed, a decade ago.
The Davis letter was dead on ; it’s got nothing to do with animals, it never has.
Robert T Fanning Jr.
President and Founder – Friends of the Northern Yellowstone Elk Herd
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From “Barry”
Please forward my thanks to Mark for this inside and truthful article. It is the release of this type of inside information that can make a difference, I truly hope he doesn’t succumb. I am not sure if you have seen this article on spotted owls before or not, or if Mark has (see link). It adds one more problem to the equation, the do gooder biologist’s out driving their agenda actually did more harm to the spotted own than their predators did. They studied them to death, literally.
http://www.sosforests.com/?p=515#more-515
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From “rrsue”:
Thank you for including me in this conversation. My grandfather had experience with starving wolves growing up in Russia as a very young man. The wolves would try and hamstring the team of horses and they would shout and swing axes yet could hardly drive them off.
In the last five years we have watched the wolves around where we live – protected until last year and not shot at by humans. They have gradually gotten bolder and less afraid of people. Exactly as Dr. V. Geist outlined in his 7 steps of habituation. All but the 7th step – an actual attack on a human has occurred.
We are not rancher or hunters, we are a couple of old retired farts with old animals that we don’t want to see become wolf food (we adopted a lame mare than had been hamstrung by wolves.) Horses have been killed, dogs killed, people followed, etc. This is the reality – not the warm fuzzy fantasy portrayed in the propaganda.
