Eurasian Eagle Owl. © Valery Shokhrin.

Blakiston’s Fish Owl and Eurasian Eagle Owl are the largest owls in the world. They are non-migration. Their requirements for habitats are precise: clean unfreezing rivers with fish and broadleaf forests with old-grown trees for Fish Owl and rocky cavities among mosaic landscapes full of available guarry. These owls were never numerous in the Far East despite of the fact that optimal breeding range of Blakiston’s Fish Owl is situated here. Both species are endangered and listed in national and international Red Data lists.

Recently large attention was turned to Blakiston’s Fish Owl and its conservation, however all activities are concentrated in relatively undisturbed forests of Primorye and Khabarovsk Region. This is to a less degree true for the Eurasian Eagle Owl. A small breeding populations still exist in transformed ecosystems of roads, villages and agricultural fields with inclusions of small mountain forests. There are no studies dealing with the owls in densly populated areas of Southern Primorye. According to our surveys of 1999-2005 about 15 pairs of Blakiston’s Fish Owl and the same number of Eurasian Eagle Owl living in the Lasovskiy, Olginskiy, Kavalerovskiy and Chuguevskiy administrative regions.

Survival of pairs which are able to live permanently in the transformed landscapes, is extremely important for entire species survival because up-to-date tendency is directed to resource exploitation and subsequent transformation of ecosystems of the region. Human population increases here and the future belongs to the species that can co-exist with people.

We are going to locate and map breeding territories and nests of Blakiston’s Fish Owl and Eurasian Eagle Owl in four regions of Primorye: Lasovskiy, Olginskiy, Kavalerovskiy and Chuguevskiy. We hope to reach full coverage of the region because our preliminary work allows us to pinpoint suitable areas of surveys and due to spring vocalisations of a pair it is possible to detect the presence of the species from a distance. Our work objectives include:

- spring nocturnal surveys of breeding calls with mapping of pair/single male territory's;

- searching for nest;

- detailed description of habitats within owl territories (landscape mosaic);

- evaluation of impact and negative factors of environment;

- information and education directed to owl conservation.

This project will provide basic information for long-term conservation of Blakiston’s Fish Owl and Eurasian Eagle Owl in human transformed landscapes.