By Elmer Gutierrez | Contributing Columnist
Not every owl spends its nights hidden in the trees. Some find refuge underground and spend their days standing in the California sun.
The desert radiates heat outside our work truck as my coworker, Amy Tims, and I travel past agricultural fields stretching toward the mountains in the distance. The air conditioning is blasting, and the radio is struggling through the static. We are heading toward Rivers & Lands Conservancy conservation easements near El Centro for a monitoring visit. As we drive, I am hoping to catch a glimpse of one particular resident, the burrowing owl.
A burrowing owl can be surprisingly easy to overlook. Standing only about 7 to 10 inches tall, these small birds blend into the agricultural fields and desert landscapes they call home. Their long legs and bright yellow eyes make them unlike the owls many of us are used to seeing.
During that monitoring trip, we visited the Campo Verde, CSolar and Centinela Burrowing Owl Conservation Easements. I saw eight burrowing owls that day.
Seeing one was exciting. Seeing eight made the experience difficult to forget.
Watching them in the field gave new meaning to the monitoring work I was doing. These were no longer just photo observations recorded for a report. I was looking at the animals that these protected lands help support. The experience strengthened my passion for monitoring and protecting their habitat.
Unlike most owls, burrowing owls spend much of their time on the ground and can be active during the day. In California, they often depend on burrows created by other burrowing animals such as California ground squirrels) and San Joaquin kangaroo rats. Their burrows can also contain a few surprises. Burrowing owls sometimes place animal dung around their burrow entrances. It may seem like an unusual decorating choice, but the dung attracts beetles and other insects. The owls can then capture and eat the insects drawn near their doorstep.
The Imperial Valley has become especially important for burrowing owls. About 70% of California’s population occurs around the Salton Sea. Agricultural fields provide open areas with short vegetation for hunting, while the banks of canals and drains can provide suitable areas for burrows. Despite their ability to live in agricultural and other human-modified landscapes, populations of the western burrowing owl, a subspecies of the burrowing owl, have declined in California. Habitat loss from urban development and pesticide exposure are among the threats facing the species. These declines have raised concerns about the species’ future in California. The western burrowing owl is currently a candidate for listing under the California Endangered Species Act. Protecting remaining habitat is an important part of conserving the species.
This is where conservation easements can play an important role. Rivers & Lands Conservancy monitors three conservation easements in the Imperial Valley. These protected lands help preserve habitat within a region that supports a large portion of California’s remaining burrowing owls. Monitoring visits help document habitat conditions and wildlife observations over time.
Seeing eight burrowing owls that day transformed a routine monitoring visit into something I still think about. Each owl was a reminder that protecting open land also protects the homes and future generations of the wildlife that depends on it.
Elmer Gutierrez is a field technician at Rivers & Lands Conservancy, has a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in biology from Cal State San Bernardino.
Rivers & Lands Conservancy connects our community to natural, wild, and open spaces of Southern California through land conservation, stewardship, and education.