A controversial plan to protect the threatened California Northern Spotted Owl is official, and that means 450,000 Barred Owls in the West Coast will be killed over the next three decades. 

While opponents believe this strategy is cruel, scientists insist it's the most effective way to not only protect the Northern Spotted Owl population, but also the forest ecosystems where the threatened bird evolved. 

For a closer look, KCBS Radio news anchors Patti Reising and Bret Burkhart spoke with Jack Dumbacher, Curator of Birds and Mammals at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco.