The Western Burrowing Owl is struggling. As modern agricultural practices have removed the prairie dogs and ground squirrels that they depend on to provide nesting burrows—and as more of their sagebrush steppe habitat disappears as a result of wildfires each year—these extraordinary owls are forced to seek shelter and sustenance in airports, golf courses, and vacant lots. Most alarmingly, their home landscapes aren’t returning from seed after severe climate change-fueled wildfires, meaning the ecosystem’s very existence is in jeopardy.
Birds have been telling us for quite some time that we must take climate action—and because we have listened—we’re already protecting vulnerable birds in every landscape where we work. We identify which birds are threatened, which habitats are most in need of protection, and which birds will most benefit from our efforts. We defend the laws that protect birds and promote strong new legislation aimed at keeping important habitats resilient. We fight for the bold action birds need now.
You can change their fate
Climate change is intensifying wildfire seasons globally.
Wildfires present severe challenges for bird populations, in some cases causing significant population decline.
There’s still time to change course, but we must act now.
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