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| Killing barred owls will aid recovery of Oregon's spotted owls, federal wildlife officials believe. --The Oregonian, July 23, 2013 |
Talons withdrawn, nests gone,
the spotted owl loses its grip
on security, abundance, old-growth,
silenced victims of manipulated
moaning forest. The wind hears
loss
in the call of the barred
owl, manifest west from the east,
filling a niche
like the coyote
jumping at chance, taking bets
to eat what the wolf wouldn’t,
go where the wolf couldn’t.
An answer: slaughter 3,600
barreds. Invite spotteds
to return and they will
say biologists managing trays
of barred dead. The wind
puzzles out wagers of kills
to save life.
A croupier spins the wheel.
Wrenching bets on black, and the ball
explodes.
Tricia Knoll is a Portland, Oregon poet. In these days of dwindling biodiversity, she was recently thrilled to see a barred owl on a highway stanchion in Seattle, a place the spotted would never light.