A Wildlife Article from All-Creatures.org

A Long-sought Win for Pint-sized Pygmy Owls

From Center for Biological Diversity
July 2023

Cactus ferruginous pygmy owls live in Arizona, Texas and Mexico and are named for the saguaro cacti they live in, their rusty-colored stripes, and their small stature—usually under 7 inches.

Cactus ferruginous pygmy owl

Thanks to multiple petitions and lawsuits by the Center for Biological Diversity, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has again protected cactus ferruginous pygmy owls under the Endangered Species Act, 17 years after illegally stripping away their safeguards. 
 
Threatened by habitat destruction and fragmentation, climate change, and invasive species, the owls first won protection five years after a 1992 Center petition.

But when developers sued, the owls lost that protection in 2006. We’ve been fighting to restore it ever since. 
 
Cactus ferruginous pygmy owls live in Arizona, Texas and Mexico and are named for the saguaro cacti they live in, their rusty-colored stripes, and their small stature—usually under 7 inches. They’re small, but they’re bold, preying on birds twice their size and feeding lizards to their chicks. 
 
“These fierce little owls need our care and protection,” said the Center’s Endangered Species Director Noah Greenwald. “After a long fight, they finally got it.” 

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