(Mirror Daily, United States) – Humans are an invading species, but they spend their time studying other “bully” animals that endanger smaller, defenseless ones. They find radical solutions against predators they forced to behave badly in the first place. This is exactly the case of the biologists who restored spotted owl population by massively murdering barred owls.

An experiment made by a biologist who is also a contractor for a lumber company is ironic, to say the least. Lowell Diller, a biologist who is on the payroll of the Green Diamond Corporation, a lumber managing company in Humboldt decided that the only way in which he can restore the population of a local endangered owl is to shoot another one out of existence.

It’s funny how people complain that there are too many mice in the rural areas, that there are too few trees and animals are disappearing one by one, but then they decide to shoot some owls because they’re big and they’re bothering the smaller ones.

While it is true that the barred owl migrated into the Californian area from the eastern part of the United States, thus driving the spotted owl population to the north, we should examine the reason behind this massive relocation before using them as target practice.

Diller learned to differentiate between the two species from the curator of ornithology at the Sciences Academy in California, Jack Dumbacher.

After spending some time with Dumbacher, Diller applied for a permit and the rest is history, or, at least, a great number of barred owls are.

The biologist lumberjack devised a scientific experiment that will soon be published in the Wildlife Management journal. Diller divided an area of the forest in two. One he left alone while in the other he shot every barred owl he could find.

After four years of continuously shooting the barred owls, Diller came to the conclusion that the spotted owl population was restored and even started to flourish once again.

But what was the cost of this spotted owl population restoring? Maybe if the biologist in question wasn’t also working with a lumber company he would have thought of a better preservation method that did not involve the massive murder of an owl species, like the conservation of the owl’s territory.

This whole problem wouldn’t have existed if the natural territories of the barred owls wouldn’t have been destroyed. It’s ironic that the first idea that crossed Diller’s mind was to shoot the invasive species.

Biologists restored spotted owl population by massively murdering barred owls. Maybe owls, bears, pumas, deer and all other species that are affected by the constant spread of human settlements should apply for a permit as well.

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