Florida Atlantic University’s nickname, the Owls, comes from the designation of its Boca Raton campus as a burrowing owl sanctuary in 1971 by the National Audubon Society.
The burrowing owl is one of Florida’s smallest owls and spends most of its time on the ground in open areas such as golf courses, pastures and vacant lots, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Development poses a major threat to burrowing owls, which are estimated to have a population under 10,000 in Florida.
As FAU has continued to grow, campus development has raised concerns about the loss of the open habitat preferred by burrowing owls. Most recently, an FAU student started a petition to stop construction of a parking garage on land adjacent to the Tortuga Nature Trail.
Watch the video below to find out more about burrowing owls from Colin Hughes, an associate professor of biological sciences at FAU. The video was produced by FAU students Francesca Dousdebes, Sierra Yetka and Griffin Ambler in an Environmental Media course taught by Robin Taber of the FAU Center for Environmental Studies, who creates content for The Invading Sea.
Sign up for The Invading Sea newsletter by visiting here. If you are interested in submitting an opinion piece to The Invading Sea, email Editor Nathan Crabbe at ncrabbe@fau.edu. Banner photo: Burrowing owls (iStock image).
