The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) plans to begin culling up to about 450,000 barred owls from California forests next spring should it approve a new proposal later this year.

A federal effort to preserve the northern spotted owls and California spotted owls, two native owl species declining in California, has been ongoing for years. The owls faced threats from logging, but despite efforts to preserve their habitats, both species have declined over the past few decades as the barred owl, a non-native bird of prey larger than the other birds, arrived on the West Coast and began outhunting the smaller species and edging them out of their natural environments.

Officials began killing barred owls identified in spotted owl habitats 15 years ago to see if culling the larger species prompted an upward trend for the spotted owls. Roughly 4,500 barred owls have been killed since 2009, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday.

Should the proposal be approved, many more thousands of barred owls could be shot and killed over the next 30 years after hunters lure them with megaphones that mimic owl calls. Once the barred owls arrive, they will be shot with shotguns and buried where they died. If approved, the killing could begin as early as next spring. Less than 1 percent of the barred owl population will be killed annually, according to the AP report.

U.S. wildlife officials said the macabre tactic is the only way to preserve the spotted owl species.

"Without actively managing barred owls, northern spotted owls will likely go extinct in all or the majority of their range, despite decades of collaborative conservation efforts," said FWS Oregon state supervisor Kessina Lee said in the AP's report.

Newsweek has reached out to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by online contact form for comment.

Some wildlife entities, such as the American Bird Conservancy, support the culling process to save the other owls. However, other people consider it a step too far and worry for the safety of the spotted owls should they be misidentified as a barred owl and killed.

The FWS plans to designate certain entities for the macabre job—not just anyone can kill the owls. According to the AP, shooters would need to provide documentation of training or experience in owl identification and firearm skills.

The final environmental study on the strategy was published on Wednesday, spurring a 30-day comment period on the proposal before the service makes its final decision.

Meanwhile, this isn't the first time the U.S. FWS have authorized the killing of one animal to save another. In Michigan, a similar effort permitted the snapping of cowbird necks to save the Kirtland's warbler. Cowbirds are brood parasites, meaning that they lay their eggs in the nest of another, smaller bird known as a host species. The smaller bird then raises the cowbird's babies as its own. Although the cowbird babies don't malevolently target the host species' young, their larger size often leads to the death of the smaller birds.