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sorry., im not sure i believe you.
i also worked on your neighbor forest, the U.S Fremont Forest, late 80’s, and i never even heard of any spotted owl surveys...
and 1979 ? did you mean 1989 ?
you and a budy ? was that a subcontract ? or where you federal employees ?
answer your call ?
what call ?.
we physically grid pattern searched every single acre with the full silviculture crew .
ya, sorry, i dont believe you for a second. . /-)
It was 1979, not 1989. Spotted owls were only starting to become a political and environmental cause. The survey was done by myself and another USFS employee, both seasonal wildlife techs, GS-3 I think. Our boss was back in the office. The method of surveying was not at all rigorous; we had a tape-recorded spotted owl call that we’d play over a portable loudspeaker, and the spotted owls were supposed to hoot back. Then we’d go back in the daytime and locate the nest.
Far from conducting a grid search of every acre, we drove every road on the forest, stopping every half mile to play the call a few times and wait for a response. We also covered whatever trails we could given the time constraints of an 8-hour shift, which meant not getting into the wilderness areas. Compared to an actual search of the entire forest, it was laughably casual; I think the higher-ups were just trying to show that they were doing something.
Now your questions have been answered, and I don’t give a rat’s ass if you believe me or not.