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A snowy owl photographed near Burns, Oregon in December. Snowy owls live in the arctic and are only rare winter visitors to the state. - Photo courtesy of Charlotte Ganskopp

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

SALEM, Ore --(Ammoland.com)-Fourteen species of owls can be seen —and heard— in Oregon. From the tiny sparrow-sized northern pygmy owl to the great horned owl with its powerful talons to that rare visitor the snowy owl, they delight and amaze.

To help Oregonians learn about the state’s owls, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has produced a new fact sheet, Whooooo Am I? Designed primarily for kids, it is the third in a series of flyers that is popular with Oregonians of all ages.

The fact sheet provides a description and photograph of each of Oregon’s 14 owl species and tells where they live. The flyer is available in the Living with Wildlife section of the ODFW website.

“We have wonderful species of owls in the state,” said Andrea Hanson, ODFW Conservation Strategy coordinator. “Learning about owls is the first step in knowing where you might hear or see one.”

Some of the facts in the new educational flyer:

• Most owls are nocturnal, hunting for insects, fish, frogs, birds, mice and other small mammals in the night
• Owls have large eyes so they can see in dim light
• Owls cannot move their eyes up, down or sideways, but they can rotate their heads 270 degrees!
• Owls do not build nests; instead, they use tree cavities, nests created by other species, naturally occurring structures or made-made nest platforms

Oregon Owls In Need Of Conservation
The flammulated, short-eared, northern spotted, western burrowing and great gray owls are identified in the Oregon Conservation Strategy as species of conservation concern. The northern spotted owl is listed as threatened under both the federal and state Endangered Species acts. Visit the Conservation Section of ODFW’s website to learn more.

Download the flyer from ODFW’s website.
Other flyers in the series are Batty for Bats and Frogs are Cool.
For a print copy, email odfw.info@state.or.us

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Oregon Cougar Hunting Closed In Coast & North Cascade Region For Rest Of Year

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

SALEM, Ore --(Ammoland.com)- ODFW is closing cougar hunting through the end of this year in the Coast/North Cascades region, after reaching the zone’s quota of 120 cougars.

Since Jan. 1, 2011, 120 cougars have been killed by sporthunters or in response to damage or public safety concerns in Zone A (Coast/North Cascade). ODFW closes sport hunting if a zone’s quota is reached.

The closure only applies to sport hunting. Cougars may still be killed if they are threatening livestock, pets or human safety.

This is only the third year that cougar sport hunting has been closed in Oregon. Previous closures occurred in 2001, with one zone closed, and 2002, when two zones closed.

Most of the increased take of cougars in Zone A this year is from “non-hunter” kill, or cougars taken due to damage, public safety concerns, roadkill or other reasons. So far, 59 cougars were killed in this category in 2011, compared to 48 in 2010 and 38 in 2009. Sporthunter harvest of cougars was 61 in 2011, 55 in 2010 and 61 in 2009.

ODFW closely tracks the take of cougars. Sporthunters and any landowner that kills a cougar due to damage or public safety issues must check in the cougar’s skull and hide (with proof of sex) at an ODFW office within 10 days of harvest. During the check-in, ODFW collects data to estimate the cougar’s age.

The data is used to estimate the overall cougar population in Oregon, which is about 5,700 cougars today. To keep the cougar population healthy, ODFW closes sporthunting zones when a certain quota is reached as it was today in the Coast/North Cascades.

Cougar sport hunting in the Coast/North Cascade region will resume on Jan. 1, 2012, when the 2012 season begins with the same quota for the new year.

Find a map of zones and each zone’s quota at the link below: http://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/hunting/big_game/cougar/quota.asp

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