Jared Hobbs

The passion of Jared Hobbs's commitment to the Spotted Owl is evident in both the beautiful photographs he takes of the ghostly creatures and the words he uses to talk about them. Below is some insight into why he's drawn to these nocturnal birds.

What was your inspiration, or motivation, to produce a book on Spotted Owls?

Gathering the images I needed to illustrate the fascinating ecology of this species was a ten year effort that began one fateful night in 1997 when I first looked into the eyes of a Spotted Owl. I imagined the owl, out there in the forest, living year-round through winters where temperatures rarely climb above zero for any length of time, hunting on sub-zero nights to find enough food to survive and keep warm. The owl hunts in the blackness of night with only its senses and its talons to secure food for itself and its young. The owl has no shelter from the elements and no alternative options if food is scarce. For us these are pretty inhospitable conditions – any creature that can survive, and even thrive, in these conditions certainly deserves our respect. I’ve had many great experiences photographing Spotted Owls over the years; I’ve had the owls fly, with a ghostly silence, just inches over my head. I’ve watched the owl catch their prey, alerted only by the faintest sounds or movements that the owl detected from hundreds of meters away. These experiences have imparted an immense respect in me for the species.

Over the decade I’ve spent working on a species that lives in a beautiful, and sadly diminishing, old growth forest ecosystem I’ve hiked hundreds of kilometers through many gorgeous and remote wilderness areas. I’ve also been fortunate enough to share these experiences with some amazing people who have helped along the way. My commitment to this task has taken me on a fantastic journey that I’m happy to be able to share through my images.

What actions could people take to further conservation of forest resources in North America?

The usual trite answer could be applied – reduce, reuse, recycle – however, to be more direct I would advocate greater wisdom in consumer and political choices. Consumers should not support companies that operate in jurisdictions with weak environmental regulations where little consideration is given to balancing environmental concerns in resource extraction. Politicians are also sensitive to public opinion including the public’s sympathy around key issues such as the environment. Unfortunately, all too often public concerns are allayed with weak policies that sound good on the surface but in reality achieve very little in terms of resource protection for the issue at hand. There are recent examples of this in both Canada and the US - I think a weak approach to sound environmental management lacks foresight for future generations and perhaps even more importantly lacks consideration for other species that also depend on these resources.

What about the role of the Barred Owl in the Spotted Owls decline?

The Barred Owl is a partial culprit behind the Spotted Owl’s decline but we should be cautious of messaging that attempts to place sole blame on the Barred Owl as a scapegoat to circumnavigate the issue of habitat in the Spotted Owls decline. The increasing population of Barred Owl’s in the forests of western North America certainly continues to negatively influence Spotted Owls but we will never really know if the Barred Owl would have become established in our western forests without the human caused changes in these forests that served to create favorable conditions for Barred Owls. In addition, these human-caused changes have simultaneously made conditions even more inhospitable for the Spotted Owl by diminishing the extent of old growth forest that Spotted Owls require. Under current landscape conditions the Barred Owl may be the final nail in the coffin for the Spotted Owl however this doesn’t obviate us, as humans who have guided the management of our old growth forests through our political system, from the responsibility we have for the Spotted Owl’s decline.

What lessons have you learned, through your experiences photographing this owl that you would like to impart?

The Spotted Owl is representative of an old growth forest ecosystem that is rapidly disappearing along the west coast of North America. I hope the book will create increased awareness of the species’ plight by giving readers a more intimate look into the secretive life of this fascinating nocturnal forest raptor. By visually celebrating the owl, I hope that society will come to better respect and value the owl and the old growth forested ecosystems it lives in. The Spotted Owl is a ‘canary in the coalmine’ and through its decline the owl carries a worrisome message about the state of our diminishing old growth forest ecosystem.

The closing words of the book perhaps capture this sentiment best:

After watching the owl hunt, alerted only by the almost inaudible sound of its prey as it brushes a leaf on the forest floor, I have no doubt about the owls ability to listen but after watching the owls decline throughout its range I question the ability of we mere humans to hear the message the owl is trying to tell us.

The Spotted Owl controversy is often referred to as the ‘war in the woods’ – what do people mean by this?

The management of Spotted Owl populations, on both sides of the Canada-US border, is a classic case of competing objectives. Environmentally concerned citizens advocate better conservation of natural resources whilst others are more motivated by short-term economic benefits realized from resource extraction activities (i.e.; logging). In the forests of the Pacific Northwest the Spotted Owl is caught squarely in the middle of this raging debate, epitomized in the ‘80’s as the “War in the Woods”. In both the US and Canada the government has responded to this by implementing management plans that claim to balance these objectives but, all to often, conservation objectives are heavily compromised by short-term economic considerations.

The Spotted Owl is simply another example of a species that is loosing ground as it heads towards extinction along with many other species on earth – its just slightly more charismatic and a lot closer to home as this ‘war in the woods’ is occurring right here, not in the remote tropics of the Amazon or the forests of Madagascar. As one species on the planet we continue to give our human need for resources priority over the needs of other species that also depend on those same resources for their survival. The extirpation and ultimately, perhaps extinction, of the Spotted Owl is a poignant reminder of inadequate government management of competing needs for natural resources.