Notice: The Game and Fish web site will be down for standard maintenance on Monday, November 9, 2009 from 1:00pm - 4:00pm |
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Study to determine how to protect burrowing owls from development News Media Feb 28, 2006 PHOENIX - Burrowing owls are big-eyed, long-legged, small owls that live underground, and you may not even know you're walking by or over their homes. Unfortunately, developers also may not realize that burrowing owls live on a property where they plan to build.
Developers can call the Arizona Game and Fish Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or a volunteer, nonprofit organization called Wild at Heart for more information about relocating burrowing owls through an inexpensive process that can help prevent construction project delays. The federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and state regulations protect burrowing owls, which are considered a "species of concern" here in Arizona and are listed as a threatened species elsewhere. The Arizona Game and Fish Department wants to help with burrowing owl conservation to ensure the continued presence of these owls in our state. The department began a study of artificial burrows for burrowing owls in 2003. Wild at Heart and other project cooperators have already removed hundreds of owls from development sites, quarantined and then relocated them to artificial burrows. These burrows consist of a long tunnel made of flexible drain tubing, which leads to a protected area, an inverted five-gallon bucket, buried underground. Game and Fish biologists are now carefully monitoring 20 artificial burrow clusters in many different types of habitat, including fenced-off industrial parks, urban parks, residential areas and abandoned agricultural fields, all the way from the Phoenix metropolitan area down to the Tucson area. "We want to see whether burrowing owls do better in artificial burrows in areas where they can eat a diverse diet of prey or where they have a good supply of just a few prey species, such as insects and lizards," says Lirain Urreiztieta, a research technician working on the owl study. "We also want to learn which types of habitat they like most, where they live longest and where they reproduce in the greatest numbers." The purpose of the study is ultimately to develop the best possible standards and guidelines for the artificial burrows. If you're interested in learning more about burrowing owls and the relocation project, a brochure is available. Call biologists Renee Wilcox or David Grandmaison at (623) 236-7306 for a copy. The study results on the artificial burrows will be available in 2008. Burrowing owls only grow to be up to 11 inches long and can weigh up to 6 ounces. They are white to beige in color and have long, rounded wings. |
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