Biologist Eric Forsman was delighted that a breeding pair of wild spotted owls he has studied for years did it again (their 3-week-old hatchlings on a hemlock in Oregon this past May).

In 2008, the owls had fallen to four nesting pairs on the entire site, she said. Last year, they counted nearly 82 pairs of breeding owls and 550 fledglings, Chiono said. A banner year.