Even with the huge effort that has been expended it is difficult to be sure that current forest management plants are sufficient to ensure persistence. Long-lived animals are buffered from immediate extinction because of the long life span, but that also means that our understanding of the population dynamics is very limited. Understanding something about population dynamics is critical to making intelligent management choices. This overview of the northern spotted owl has also introduced you to one of the most detailed population viability analyses available for any species, plant or animal. There are two reasons that have been put forward to justify this focus.
Large vertebrates garner the greatest public interest and sentiment.
Help attract resources to endangered species conservation. Failure to protect highly visible species, e.g., the California condor, might diminish the credibility of all efforts to protect endangered species. Protection of such species may confer protection on many other less obvious species. Maintenance of viable population of grizzly bears in Yellowstone Park ecosystem requires limits to human alterations in an area much larger than just Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. There are also several reasons not to focus all our efforts on these species, perhaps even to suggest that we have already focused more of our effort than we should on these species.