Commentary by Carmel Owls

Lasting Stewardship

As a founding member of Carmel Owls, I’d like to explain why our Great Horned Owl platform program shouldn't be limited strictly to Carmel-by-the-Sea.

One important consideration in wildlife conservation — particularly for the Great Horned Owl — is that territorial habitats are interconnected across the Monterey Peninsula. Owls do not recognize municipal boundaries. A breeding pair may roost in Carmel-by-the-Sea, hunt in Pebble Beach, and range into Monterey depending on prey availability, nesting pressure, and seasonal shifts.

Ecological Continuity

The same ecological continuity extends across Carmel Valley, Carmel Highlands, Carmel Knolls, Carmel Vista, High Meadows, Carmel Meadows, and Pacific Grove. These areas function as one continuous habitat system.

If surrounding areas become inhospitable — due to rodenticide use, habitat loss, or lack of safe nesting platforms — those pressures do not stop at Carmel-by-the-Sea’s border. Instead, they ripple inward and can displace our owls entirely. In that scenario, Carmel-by-the-Sea could lose resident pairs not because our local habitat failed, but because the broader peninsula ecosystem weakened.

Peninsula-Wide Network

Strengthening adjacent territories helps stabilize the population, ultimately benefiting Carmel-by-the-Sea itself. In ecological terms, Carmel-by-the-Sea is not an isolated island of habitat; it is part of a peninsula-wide network. Supporting nearby communities like Pebble Beach and Monterey is not mission drift — it is protective buffering for Carmel-by-the-Sea’s own owl populations.

Our shared community goal remains keeping Carmel-by-the-Sea healthy, protected, and thriving. Sustaining a stable owl population directly supports that mission by reducing reliance on rodenticides and reinforcing natural ecological balance.

Conservation is challenging work — whether on land, at sea, or in the air. But lasting stewardship requires us to think regionally in order to protect what we value locally.

Paul Falworth
Founding Member,
Chief Owl Officer (COO)

Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3 deployments of owl platforms illustrate the continual outward expansion of coverage from Carmel by the Sea.