Undercover Investigations

Urban Bird Foundation is on the frontlines defending native bird populations and habitat in and around communities across the United States. With a particular focus on saving burrowing owls in and adjacent to urban and suburban environments, we discovered early on that despite state and federal protections, these unique raptors are often accidentally overlooked by uninformed workers or strategically persecuted for obstructing development projects.

Over the last decade, staff and volunteers have successfully posed as company employees, recruited corporate and government agency whistleblowers, and at personal risk slipped into development project sites during the day or undercover of night to protect burrowing owls (and other native birds) from behind closed doors – jumping in to action or facing down bulldozers when necessary to save owls, eggs and young.