Date: 1/17/26 5:31 am From: Karla Bloem <000048c984dcee7a-dmarc-request...> Subject: [mou-net] free owl webinars coming up
Hi everyone,
The International Owl Center is hosting four webinars in January and February for their Virtual Owl Expert Speaker series. These webinars are free for everyone to watch. Webinars are about one hour long, with up to one more hour for questions. Register to get the Zoom link to join and ask questions, or they will be concurrently streamed to the Owl Center’s YouTube channel.
January 18: Barred Owls eat everything while Spotted Owls lose ground: a genetic perspective on Anthropocene landscapes by Dr. Emily Fountain and Dr. Daniela Arenas
Emily Fountain and Daniela Arenas are scientists at the University of Wisconsin – Madison who use genomics to inform the conservation of Spotted Owls and ecological communities in California, United States. Their talk will address the role of human modified landscapes in the decline of California and Northern Spotted Owls, including but not limited to, the invasion of Barred Owls into the western United States. They will discuss their genetic research on the declining California Spotted Owl in Southern California, as well as the molecular assessment and ecological impacts of the diet of Barred Owls in the Pacific Northwest.
January 25: Managing Barred Owls to save the Spotted Owl: a longstanding Conservation Tool with Janice Reid
Janice Reid, a longtime Northern Spotted Owl researcher, will speak about Barred Owl management and its role in addressing the ongoing decline of Spotted Owl populations in the western United States. Reid spent more than 30 years studying Northern Spotted Owls in western Oregon with the Pacific Northwest Research Station and brings deep field experience to this complex and often controversial topic.
Her talk will place current Barred Owl control efforts in a broader conservation context, emphasizing that the use of lethal management to protect vulnerable species is not a new or unprecedented tool. Reid will discuss why Barred Owl management has generated heightened public controversy compared to other species control programs, and what the science tells us about competition, habitat, and the future of the Northern Spotted Owl.
February 1: One nest box at a time: bringing Barn Owls and kestrels back to Maryland’s working landscapes with Andy Brown and Alex Pellegrini
Andy Brown and Alex Pellegrini from the Maryland Bird Conservation Partnership’s Farmland Raptor Program will discuss their efforts to bring American Barn Owls back to Maryland’s working landscapes. Through nest box installation, systematic monitoring, and targeted field research, they are building a clearer picture of what these owls need to persist in working landscapes. The talk will highlight insights gained from nest box programs, methods for safely capturing and banding adult American Barn Owls, and how these data inform our understanding of survival, movement, and breeding ecology.
You can make a donation to support this project by clicking here <https://marylandbirds.org/donate> . Please indicate in the comment section that your donation is for the Farmland Raptor Program.
February 8: Where the owls go: methods and insights from Short-eared Owl research in Maryland with Andy Brown and Alex Pellegrini
Andy Brown and Alex Pellegrini from the Maryland Bird Conservation Partnership’s Farmland Raptor Program will present their ongoing research on Short-eared Owls in Maryland, focused on understanding winter habitat use, movement, and behavior in fragmented agricultural and grassland landscapes. Their work aims to address key knowledge gaps for a species that remains difficult to study and conserve. The talk will highlight preliminary insights, methodological challenges, and opportunities for collaboration to better understand and protect Short-eared Owls in the Mid-Atlantic United States.
