Hacker NewsJul 4, 2024
To save spotted owls, US officials will kill hundreds of thousands of other owls
https://apnews.com/article/shooting-barred-owls-wildlife-service-9081f926f3ebd27ac3ddc2ceaf332ca2
#ycombinator #Owls #Animals #Endangered_species #Oregon #General_news #OR_State_Wire #MT_State_Wire #AP_Top_News #WA_State_Wire #ID_State_Wire #CA_State_Wire #California #Science #U_S_news #Business #Climate_and_environment #Climate
To save spotted owls, US officials plan to kill hundreds of thousands of another owl species

U.S. wildlife officials are embracing a contentious plan to deploy trained shooters into dense West Coast forests to kill almost a half-million barred owls in coming decades. Their goal is to help spotted owls, which are being crowded out by barred owls from the eastern U.S. Past efforts to save spotted owls focused on protecting the forests where they live. But officials say the proliferation of barred owls in recent years is undermining that earlier work and putting spotted owls on the path to potential extinction. The notion of killing one bird species to save another has divided wildlife advocates and conservationists.

AP News
 Hacker NewsApr 6, 2024
Citizen scientist has measured Rockies snowfall for 50 years
https://apnews.com/article/citizen-scientist-snow-rocky-mountains-drought-water-3a4e053d7db9be3eb22aa6809eab57c0
#ycombinator #Weather #WY_State_Wire #ID_State_Wire #CO_State_Wire #CA_State_Wire #UT_State_Wire #NM_State_Wire #AZ_State_Wire #NV_State_Wire #Climate_and_environment #Science #Lifestyle #Colorado_River
Citizen scientist measured Rockies snowfall for 50 years. Two new hips help him keep going

As snow hydrologists fan across the western U.S. to measure peak snowpack this spring, citizen scientist Billy Barr will be measuring snow — as always — at 9,500 feet outside his cabin in the remote mountain town of Gothic in central Colorado. This is Barr’s 50th year logging snowfall amounts there. Researchers regularly reference his trove of data as they study a watershed that feeds the Colorado River. Two recent hip replacements let Barr carry on his field work longer than he expected. Now 73, he plans to keep measuring snowfall but is unsure who would fill his shoes when he retires.

AP News