Burrowing owls live in underground burrows, but they don’t do their own burrowing. Instead they live in abandoned ground squirrel burrows. (Maybe they should be called borrowing owls?)
The owls are listed as a species of concern in California, and are an important species in the grassland ecosystem.
In order to boost their numbers the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research is releasing ground squirrels in the hopes of improving the habitat for the owls.
See also: San Diego Zoo Conservation Project Uses Squirrels to Help Owls
