There’s an eviction looming on the horizon, but the residents don’t see the signs.  An earthmover and bulldozer sit temporarily idle on a newly paved road.  Homes are in various stages of development a block away.  A sales center adorned with colorful flags and signs branded by the company’s name have settled on a gravel laden lot.  There is a hodgepodge of empty parcels including undisturbed habitat, farmland in the midst of returning to its pre-agricultural state, land that had been graded just prior to the housing crisis, and property in which streets have been etched into the surface but are yet to be installed.  A streetlight flashes on and off while waiting to be programmed to control future traffic.  One, two, three, ten and perhaps more than twenty burrowing owls perch along fresh sidewalks, rest atop water pipes, stand guard on a chain-linked fences, and occupy burrows peppered throughout the impending human sprawl.

There’s evidence that evictions have been here before, which has now been confiscated as spoils of war.  Obviously the attempt at burrowing owl eradication did not take.  Obviously the consultants failed to adhere to an eviction policy designed to prevent owls from returning. Obviously the owls will have to undergo the trauma and danger of yet another removal. And as I traversed the landscape I realized I had been here before.  The location is different, but the situation is the same.  It’s burrowing owl eviction déjà vu and I don’t like what I’m seeing.

However, there is a silver lining so to speak.  It’s not much but I have breeding season on my (our) side for the moment.  It’s better than nothing; it’s better than the status quo that has been allowed to proceed unfettered for years in California.  The good news is that the word is getting out and the plight of burrowing owls is spreading.  People are taking notice and an interest by providing tips and sighting reports.  And that’s exactly what we need to ensure future protections.

Unfortunately future protections will not save these owls so I am now looking for something a little more immediate.  I crave long-term solutions, but will settle for short-term action if it means these neighboring raptors will not become a statistic in the Bay Area’s recent 28% burrowing owl population decline.  So a visit to the Planning Department to review the Environmental Impact Reports was warranted.  If only it contained the answer to the burgeoning burrowing owl issue that is plaguing Contra Costa County.  Instead I stumbled upon Department of Fish & Game inconsistencies that make me wonder if there is a lack of policy understanding within the agency, if there is an attempt at disseminating propaganda, if consultants are completely misinformed, or if it is simply a little bit of everything designed to mislead the public and help developers instead of working for species conservation.  Whatever the reason it is completely unacceptable and it solidifies my resolve to make sweeping conservation changes in this state.

But while I formulate my plan of action, nature moves forward as intended.  A lone kestrel swoops down at a burrowing owl standing guard in front of its burrow.  A black-tailed jackrabbit explodes from the brush and disappears within seconds.  California ground squirrels dart for cover and sound the alarm as I sidestep growing tumbleweeds.  A burrowing owl crouches in an effort to blend with the dirt and weeds, and a plastic bag rolls across the site; reminding me that these owls are surrounded by urbanization and yet another illustration of habitat lost.

It’s an all too common occurrence.  The location is Anytown, USA.  The time is an hour after sunset just days before the Vernal Equinox.  The skies are clear and a crescent hangs in the distance.  The streets are partially illuminated with the radiance of every other lamp; casting a pattern of light, dark, light, dark, and so on.  Traffic is absent as are the houses, as are the people.  Fossorial life appears extirpated, but evidence of their existence persists in the form of divots  and memories. The grasses have sprung into action due to recent rains, and during daylight the downed vegetation will undoubtedly highlight the route used to access a landscape that has managed to become another instance of habitat lost.

Photographs of years gone by prove the burrowing owls predate man’s activities on this site.  Yet we are so eager to dismiss such claims in the name of progress.  And we are so eager to declare that the surrounding 800 acres was unsuitable burrowing owl habitat and that no such species of special concern was found amongst the impending sprawl.  But now that matters not as the next scheduled development in Anytown is prepped and owl free.

A street light flickers overhead and an object lies motionless in the gutter.  Upon approach the lamp dims, concealing the remains in the shadows.  A mobile phone illuminates the specimen and fear is quelled.  Not a burrowing owl.  Most unfortunate for the rabbit, but the predator dined well that night.  A glance down the road’s horizon reveals a figurine standing tall in an intersection.  I can recognize the posture and the silhouette; I’ve seen it a thousand times from dawn to dusk to night.  The burrowing owl stands firm, only swiveling its head to watch my passing.  He eventually runs across the pavement and I lose him in the patchwork of darkness.   I scan the area for movement, perhaps something adorning a fire hydrant, a gas line, a pipe, a street sign.  Nothing. 

A soft voice flows down the blacktop, “It’s right beside you.”  And on the corner of Anystreet I find myself 6 feet from the incredible raptor, moments before taking flight and settling on the street yet again.  We observe from a distance.  Erratic movements along the street and sidewalk.  It ducks under overhanging mustard, leaps onto a gas line breaching the soil and awaiting connection to an eventual home, darts to the convergence of concrete and dirt, and repeats the episode.  Frustrated and clearly confused, our hearts are broken for the wayward owl.  It tries desperately to discover shelter, revisiting the locations where burrows once provided protection.

In the distance a lone plexiglass door blocks an entrance.  When one goes out, they cannot get back in.  It all makes sense.  The owl has lost its only home.  It has nowhere to go.  Should the eviction device be removed uncover of night or would that potentially doom the owl to being buried alive?  When morning comes would the hole simply be backfilled by returning consultants?  Although quite torn, the one-way door is left intact.  Now it’s a battle against predation, it’s a battle for survival, and it must defend itself without a shield.  Such is the life of the declining western burrowing owl in Anytown, USA.

The day has come for a response from the California Attorney General’s office in regards to my letter and request for burrowing owl assistance.  After numerous calls and emails to the ‘Office’ over the last month regarding burrowing owl evictions, I was informed during today’s conversation that there may be a potential conflict of interest.  And if you sense a red flag then you are most certainly not alone.

Proceeding a potential hardcopy that may formally arrive via mail in the next day or so was a scanned copy from the Natural Resource  Section patiently awaiting my inbox perusal.    The contents of the letter are as follows (click here for a larger image):

I can definitely understand the concept of a conflict of interest so no arguments here.  Oh, except that it is too bad California’s agencies do not appear interested in protecting the People’s burrowing owl populations and wildlife resources.  But to that I must say Bravo to those employees (scientists, biologists, etc.)  working to correct the status quo and make conservation a priority.  And the saga continues…

And just when one thought the burrowing owl dilemma in the East San Francisco Bay Area could not get any more incredible, a series of shady events unfolded during the last two weeks.  I held off reporting some of these facts because I have been in direct contact with and awaiting responses from the Department of Fish and Game (CDFG), but I could do so no longer.  As I huddled in the shadow of the Heidelberg castle in Germany amidst a light snowfall last week, I discovered via a text message that an owl occupied burrow had been blocked by numerous tumbleweeds.

These magic tumbleweeds managed to crawl up a retaining wall and settle on top of a burrow entrance.  And without any wind to propel the rolling plant and a locked chain link fence keeping out unauthorized personnel, I can only surmise that the culprits must have had a key to this patch of land.  And all of this occurred just days after the CDFG issued Monk & Associates a notice to remove all one-way eviction doors and refrain from collapsing any more burrows on the property.  Perhaps the CDFG should have been more specific in their request, but then again I could not have imagined such a crafty solution for evicting burrowing owls.

And after my tumultuous return from Germany and rush to address the Burrowing Owl Consortium last weekend, I visited the project site for the first time in a week.  To my surprise the tumbleweeds were gone, but unfortunately so was the owl.  It was then that I realized my victory was just as short-lived as the burrowing owls’ stay of execution.  By the way, I am still waiting for answers from the CDFG.

Yet the saga continued and the unexplained events were not limited to the prior week.  During a few stolen minutes from lunch on Monday , I witnessed tumbleweeds being collected and strategically positioned on a slope.   Had I not encountered a previous tumbleweed scheme, I may not have been so leery of the situation that unfolded before my eyes.  And so I waited for the day to end and the activity to fade.  And just before sunset I returned with a telephoto lens to capture evidence of an eviction door behind a wall of tumbleweeds.  No comments necessary!  Phone calls to the CDFG were not returned, and my emails were returned with zero information pertaining to the events. 

So the tale of Antioch’s Blue Ridge burrowing owls continues to twist in directions that I could never had imagined.  I am looking forward to some revelations next week that may in fact define our next steps.

Perhaps in a bid to counterbalance the relentless activities of humankind upon the Earth, Mother Nature intervened just as time was running out for the Blue Ridge burrowing owls.  The finale was a spectacular culmination of a rather innocuous series of events that when I now look back appear to have been set in motion long before the onset of January 30^th, which is a day that would spark jubilation and a sigh of relief.  Whether you choose to believe it was preordained by nature or was simply a chain of coincidences, the outcome remains the same.

Throughout the month of January Antioch remained under fog, obscured by rain clouds, and could generally be characterized by many as “gloomy” weather.  I for one love the mystique of fog and rain, but I digress.  Interspersed throughout the darkened skies were 3 to 4 days of sunshine and a few off and on light showers that were followed by a weeklong storm that practically ended the first month of 2010.  And with the weather conditions less than amenable and owl conservation absconding with my free time, the yard work had entered a hiatus.  But as the storm passed it left a healthy legacy of weeds behind to adorn the perimeter of my home.  Since procrastination could not be tolerated during the sun’s weekend appearance, I systematically removed weeds from the saturated soil and just under an hour had managed to pull a record number I am ashamed to say.  And as I pulled our now full yard waste container around the corner of our lot, the habit I developed over the last year and a half of glancing towards the Blue Ridge property manifested itself as usual.

Upon the hill I saw an individual that was most definitely out of range for proper identification.  I immediately thought that the consultants, Monk & Associates, were on the scene scouting for owls and installing more one-way eviction doors.  I made a few more steps towards the garage but curiosity prevailed and I just had to know.  As I hustled down the sidewalk I was greeted by a burrowing owl that I had identified and confirmed its presence on the property in a new burrow the day before.  As a side note this owl had been evicted at least 2 times previously from other burrows.  As I approached the chain link fence an individual was peering through binoculars and sweeping the landscape.  And to my surprise there was a second person that was dressed in the uniform of the CDFG!

My attempts to catch their attention failed and my ability to approach directly was impeded by the fence. The only way to ensure a meeting was to run back and get my car, which is just what I did.  And in yet another instance of perfect timing, I found the pair just as they were exiting the site and putting gear back into their truck.  And so began a conversation that lasted an hour…

A warden and a senior environmental scientist had been dispatched to the Blue Ridge development to document the presence of any owls, squirrel bait/fumigants, and one-way eviction doors.  But much to my surprise evidence had been removed from the bulk of the property on Friday, including the tractor (hmmm, odd is it not?).  Thus, the CDFG was leaving under the impression that there were no owls on the property and that there were no eviction doors. Shocked by their findings or lack thereof, I blurted out that I just saw an owl and numerous eviction doors.  I was promptly asked if I could show them the location of an owl as they would like to document a presence.  I replied that I could not show them because I did not want the location relayed to those performing the eviction.  However, I soon discovered that their intentions were admirable and that they needed to document the presence of an owl in order to halt further evictions on the property. Eureka, an owl at last!  The senior environmental scientist confirmed the presence of the burrowing owl.  At 4:43pm on January 30^th, the California Department of Fish & Game informed Monk & Associates:

“THEREFORE to avoid violation of DFG Code Sect. 3503.5, during a Burrowing Owl nesting season, before 1st February 2010 you shall remove ALL one-way doors from Burrowing Owl burrows and you DO NOT collapse any remaining Burrowing Owl burrows.”

So here’s the breakdown:

• 1) A wet month produces rampant weed growth
• 2) A weeklong rainstorm causes evictions to halt during 3^rd week of January
• 3) The fog lifts and the sun shines providing crystal clear views
• 4) Perfect Saturday weather forces me outdoors to pull weeds on the same day CDFG visits site
• 5) I finish pulling weeds and enter a position at the same time the scientist maneuvers into my line of sight 1500 feet away (thanks Google Maps)
• 6) I catch CDFG just as they were leaving and find out they were going to report zero owl observations
• 7) I noted the location of one of the remaining owls on Friday and was able to aid CDFG in documenting presence.

And on February 1^st, all eviction doors were removed from the property because of a chain of events set in motion by the forces of nature.

*My Legal Disclaimer/Note:  CDFG did not give me permission to enter the property and locations of owls and eviction doors were visible without a need for trespassing.

Dear Attorney General Brown,

I am formally requesting that an investigation be implemented into the current California Department of Fish & Game’s (CDFG) burrowing owl eviction policies.  As you may be aware, the S.F. Bay Area has become enveloped in an owl eviction controversy because of a CDFG approved eviction plan that is currently underway at the Kiper Homes’ Blue Ridge development in Antioch, CA. 

It has come to my attention that CDFG management in Sacramento, California has been suppressing a report by CDFG biologists and owl experts regarding the conservation of burrowing owls.  The burrowing owl conservation guidleines, dated April 14, 2008:

• Outlines the proper protocol for a passive relocation to minimize “Take”
• Indicates that current mitigation measures will no longer be used because it does not adequately compensate for habitat loss
• Takes advantage of temporary opportunities to conserve burrowing owls while longer-term regional programs and conservation plans are developed
• States that concerted conservation actions are needed to maintain viable burrowing owl populations in California and to help prevent the need to list this species under the state or federal endangered species acts
• Provides guidance that supersedes and augments or clarifies the current Department’s Staff Report on Burrowing Owl Mitigation
• And ubiquitously recognizes that because owls are dependent on burrows for survival and reproduction, excluding them from nesting, roosting, and satellite burrows on a project site may actually lead to direct or indirect take and therefore is a violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 (16 U.S.C. 703-711), California Admin. Code, Title. 14, § 251.1, Harassment of Animals, California Fish and Game Code Sections 1801-1802 (2008), CEQA, etc.

Even more disturbing is the likelihood that the CDFG is and has continued to conceal the report over the last two years in an effort to afford developers a free reign in removing burrowing owls from breeding, wintering, and critical California habitat. These actions beg the question as to why CDFG management does not like to ask developers to comply with an agency report designed to conserve an ailing burrowing owl population.  I have also come across information indicating that CDFG management is trying to quickly revise the policy without the input of CDFG burrowing owl experts.  This is a contradiction of the agency’s mission:

The Mission of the Department of Fish and Game is to manage California’s diverse fish, wildlife, and plant resources, and the habitats upon which they depend, for their ecological values and for their use and enjoyment by the public.

Additionally, this information comes on the heels of a 2004 revelation in which documents were made public through a California Public Records Act request.  The August 2003 Petition Evaluation for Western Burrowing Owl revealed that the CDFG covered up a department report recommending that the western burrowing owl be considered for endangered or threatened status under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA).  According to the Center for Biological Diversity:

“The improperly withheld report evaluated a formal petition to list the burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) submitted by conservation organizations in April of 2003. The California Fish and Game Commission voted 4-0 in December 2003 to reject the burrowing owl petition, based in part on a second contradictory CDFG report blatantly biased against listing and widely criticized by conservationists and owl experts as fraught with inaccuracies and inconsistencies. In contrast, the report CDFG refused to release to the Commission and the public recommended that the owl be immediately protected as a “Candidate” species while a year-long status review was conducted by DFG.”

The CDFG has no authority to authorize the “Take” (defined by CDFG code as hunt, pursue, catch, capture, or kill, or attempt to hunt, pursue, catch, capture, or kill) of burrowing owls or other raptors except pursuant to a Natural Community Conservation Plan (NCCP).  Because existing practices for excluding owls usually employ only portions of the appropriate methods or employ the methods inadequately, there is a higher likelihood that current policies are resulting in direct take or are the proximate cause of take. Thus, the CDFG is actively approving eviction plans that are responsible for decreasing numbers and are in direct violation of California Fish and Game Code.

On the behest of the people of California, I ask you to intervene to protect the State’s natural resources by stopping CDFG’s policy of evicting burrowing owls, a California species of special concern, and hold the CDFG management accountable for suppressing an agency report designed to protect a declining California burrowing owl population.

Sincerely,

Scott W. Artis

[This letter was sent to CA Attorney General Brown and copied to Governor Schwarzenegger, Asst. to AG Brown, and CDFG Director McCamman.  The letter was accompanied by the Kiper Homes Blue Ridge eviction plan approved by the CDFG, the 2003 recommendation to list under the CESA, and the 2008 report for burrowing owl conservation.]

If you are in the East Bay neighborhood and want to show support for the protection of our burrowing owls, JOIN US from 2-3pm on Sunday, January 3rd.  Let’s start 2010 with a call for conservation action, changes to eviction policies and an increase in habitats across the Bay Area and the State.  It’s grass roots conservation at its best!  You can also find more details at our new website http://friendsofeastbayowls.org.

See you Sunday!

Where: Canada Valley Road & McFarlan Ranch Drive in Antioch, CA
Time: 2pm to 3pm
Date: January 3, 2010 (Sunday)