Copyright Newsweek
This week, U.S. senators voted against halting a plan to kill off more than 450,000 barred owls to protect another species of owl—the spotted owl. Why It Matters The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) explains that spotted owls are native to western North America and are threatened by invasive barred owls, in addition to habitat loss from timber harvests and wildfires. Barred owls, native to eastern North America, began expanding west around 1900 as human activity altered forests and the Great Plains. Larger and more aggressive, barred owls have displaced spotted owls from their historical territory, according to the agency. USFWS has previously said that actions to address the threat of barred owls to spotted owls are “necessary to support the survival of the threatened northern spotted owl and avoid substantial impacts to the California spotted owl populations from barred owl competition.” Newsweek previously reported that the plan—finalized during the Biden administration—would involve trained shooters targeting the invasive species over 30 years across California, Oregon and Washington. What To Know Below is a breakdown of how each senator voted on the resolution, according to C-SPAN. Republican Banks (R–IN), Nay Barrasso (R–WY), Nay Blackburn (R–TN), Yea Boozman (R–AR), Nay Britt (R–AL), Yea Budd (R–NC), Nay Capito (R–WV), Nay Cassidy (R–LA), Yea Collins (R–ME), Yea Cornyn (R–TX), Nay Cotton (R–AR), Nay Cramer (R–ND), Yea Crapo (R–ID), Nay Cruz (R–TX), Yea Curtis (R–UT), Nay Daines (R–MT), Nay Ernst (R–IA), Yea Fischer (R–NE), Nay Graham (R–SC), Nay Grassley (R–IA), Yea Hagerty (R–TN), Yea Hawley (R–MO), Nay Hoeven (R–ND), Yea Husted (R–OH), Nay Hyde-Smith (R–MS), Not Voting Johnson (R–WI), Yea Justice (R–WV), Nay Kennedy (R–LA), Yea Lankford (R–OK), Yea Lee (R–UT), Nay Lummis (R–WY), Nay Marshall (R–KS), Yea McConnell (R–KY), Nay McCormick (R–PA), Yea Moody (R–FL), Yea Moran (R–KS), Yea Moreno (R–OH), Nay Mullin (R–OK), Nay Murkowski (R–AK), Yea Paul (R–KY), Yea Ricketts (R–NE), Nay Risch (R–ID), Nay Rounds (R–SD), Nay Schmitt (R–MO), Nay Scott (R–SC), Yea Scott (R–FL), Yea Sheehy (R–MT), Nay Sullivan (R–AK), Nay Thune (R–SD), Nay Tillis (R–NC), Nay Tuberville (R–AL), Yea Wicker (R–MS), Not Voting Young (R–IN), Nay Democratic Alsobrooks (D–MD), Nay Baldwin (D–WI), Nay Bennet (D–CO), Nay Blumenthal (D–CT), Nay Blunt Rochester (D–DE), Nay Booker (D–NJ), Yea Cantwell (D–WA), Nay Coons (D–DE), Nay Cortez Masto (D–NV), Nay Duckworth (D–IL), Nay Durbin (D–IL), Nay Fetterman (D–PA), Nay Gallego (D–AZ), Not Voting Gillibrand (D–NY), Yea Hassan (D–NH), Nay Heinrich (D–NM), Nay Hickenlooper (D–CO), Nay Hirono (D–HI), Nay Kaine (D–VA), Nay Kelly (D–AZ), Nay Kim (D–NJ), Nay Klobuchar (D–MN), Nay Luján (D–NM), Nay Markey (D–MA), Nay Merkley (D–OR), Nay Murphy (D–CT), Nay Murray (D–WA), Nay Ossoff (D–GA), Nay Padilla (D–CA), Nay Peters (D–MI), Nay Reed (D–RI), Nay Rosen (D–NV), Nay Schatz (D–HI), Nay Schiff (D–CA), Nay Schumer (D–NY), Nay Shaheen (D–NH), Nay Slotkin (D–MI), Nay Smith (D–MN), Nay Van Hollen (D–MD), Nay Warner (D–VA), Nay Warnock (D–GA), Nay Warren (D–MA), Nay Welch (D–VT), Nay Whitehouse (D–RI), Nay Wyden (D–OR), Nay Independent King (I–ME), Nay Sanders (I–VT), Yea What People Are Saying Republican senator from Louisiana John Kennedy said in a speech before the Senate, as reported by The Guardian: “The barred owls are not hurting anybody. They’re just doing what nature teaches them to do. We’re going to change nature? “We’re going to control our environment to this extent? We’re going to pass DEI for owls?” Texas Senator Ted Cruz said, per Politico: “Killing a half-billion owls seems like a crazy thing for the government to be doing.” Environment and Public Works Chair Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) said, according to Politico: “The Trump administration agrees with the Biden administration on this — how rare is that on this strategy? We’ve heard a lot from timber and some other folks.” What Happens Next The move failed, with 25 votes to 72 votes.
