First photograph of an endangered masked owl in Takayna logging area

BBF campaigns manager Jenny Weber said:

"On a rare occasion, the endangered masked owl that lives and forages on the Takayna forests currently being flattened by logging has been photographed. We urge the immediate eviction of logging machines from the forest.

"We are taking action nationwide for Takayna, and community members are joining our calls to protect these endangered species habitats from logging immediately.

"Six demonstrations calling for the logging to halt in Takayna are planned today for Melbourne, Hobart, Sydney and Launceston while protests resume at the site of the controversial logging in Takayna," Ms Weber said.

Protester Craig Brown said:

"In sorrow, I bear witness to the destruction of Tasmania's native forests. Save them for the future of life on our island and the planet."

Mr Brown said he was willing to be arrested unless the government takes the necessary action and removes the logging machines from the Takayna forest.

Another protester, Tanya Sneddon said:

"I am taking action today because we have incredible native forests and vital habitats for many animals being destroyed in Takayna.

"I am new to Tasmania and heard masked owls for the first time in my life last week in the coupe. It was such a powerful experience hearing them, and I hope we can do everything we can to protect what we have left."

Ms Sneddon attached herself to the gate that locks up the public land so that the logging can happen.

According to BBF, a breeding pair of endangered masked owls is losing its critical habitat to logging. In the last ten days, the Bob Brown Foundation recorded 111 masked owl calls just a few hundred metres from the bulldozers.

The environmental group claims the resident pair [of masked owls] has been heard communicating across the logging coupe.

BBF claims that their home is still being clear-felled despite this scientific evidence being provided to Premier Rockliff, Forestry Tasmania, and the Forest Practices Authority.

A BBF spokesperson said the forests on the edge of the Arthur and Frankland Rivers are verified as critical habitats that support endangered masked owls, azure kingfishers, and eagles that live and nest there.

The spokesperson said native forests across Australia need protection for their crucial role in mitigating climate change and the extinction crisis.

Resources Minister Eric Abetz said:

"Contrary to BBF propaganda, the Tarkine is an exemplar of multiple land-use management, where recreation, conservation, resource utilisation and tourism have co-existed successfully for generations.

"What's more, any forestry activities underway can only be conducted following approval from the independent forest practices regulator, the Forest Practices Authority.

"BBF's continued attempts to grab a headline say it all.

"They will stop at nothing to end our sustainable native forestry sector and the many regional Tasmanian jobs it supports."

The Examiner contacted Forest Practices Authority regarding the masked owl sighting and have yet to receive a response.