A large owl of extensive woodlands, the Barred Owl is familiar for its distinctive "who-cooks-for-you, who-cooks-for-you-all" hooting.
Cool Facts:
The belly feathers of some Barred Owls are pink. This coloring may be the result of eating alot of crayfish. Barred Owl populations have expanded westward in the last century. The more aggressive Barred Owl may displace the endangered Spotted Owl. Hybrids of the two species are also known. The Great Horned Owl is the most serious predator threat to the Barred Owl. Although they often live in the same areas, the Barred Owl will avoid all parts of its territory occupied by the Great Horned Owl.
Habitat:
Forested areas, from swamps and riparian areas to uplands. Prefers large blocks of forest.
Food:
Small mammals, Rabbits, Birds, amphibians, reptiles and invertabrates.
Nesting:
Builds in cavities in deciduous trees or uses open nests made by Hawks or Crows. Also uses nest boxes.
Behavior:
Barred Owls typically hunt at night or at dusk by sitting on a high perch and looking and listening for prey which they catch with a short flight or drop to the ground. Barred Owls can be aggressive, flying at and fighting rivals at the edges of its territoty. This tendency extends to encounters witht he closely related Spotted Owl; where the two species overlap the more aggressive Barred Owl often displaces the Spotted Owl.
Conservation:
Most populations increasing
Be sure to stop by the Barred Owl Habitat and see our Barred Owls on your next visit
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GREAT HORNED OWL
Found from the Artic Tundra to the Tropical Rainforest, from the desert to suburban backyards, the Great Horned Owl is one of the most widespread and common owls in North America.
Cool Facts:
The Great Horned Owl is the only animal that regularly eats skunks. The Great Horned Owl will take large prey, even other raptorial birds. It regularly kilss and eats other owls, and is an important predator on nestling Ospreys. The reintroduction of Peregrine Falcons has been hampered in some areas by owls killing both adult and nestling Falcons. The Great Horned Owl is a regular victim of harrassment from flocks of American Crows. Crows congregatefrom long distances to mob owls, and may continue yelling at them for hours. The enmity of the crows is well earned, however, as the owl is probably the most important predator on adult crows and nestlings. Even though the female Great Horned Owl is larger than her mate, the male has a deeper voice. Pairs often call together, with audible differences in pitch.
Habitat:
Found in a wide variety of habitats, but prefers open ans secondary growth woodlands and agricultural areas. Also in boreal forest, desert, urban and suburban areas.
Food:
Broad diet of animals, from small mammals to Rabbits, geese and Herons. Some Birds, amphibians, reptiles and invertibrates, but mostly mammals.
Nesting:
Uses a variety of nest sites including trees, cliffs, buildings and the ground. Does not make its own nest. Typically takes over nests in trees made by other bird species. Often puts nest in hollows or broken off snags in trees.
Behavior:
Hunts at night, mostly from perches next to open areas.
Conservation:
Not endangered; populations robust. Individuals may be threats to endangered species.
Be sure to stop by the Great Horned Owl Habitat and see our Great Horned Owls on your next visit
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SOUTHEASTERN SCREECH OWL
If a mysterious trill catches your attention in the night, bear in mind the spooky sound may come from an owl no bigger than a pint glass.
Common east of the Rockies in woods, suburbs, and parks, the Eastern Screech-Owl is found wherever trees are, and they’re even willing to nest in backyard nest boxes.
These supremely camouflaged birds hide out in nooks and tree crannies through the day, so train your ears and listen for them at night.
SCREECH's STORY
Cool Facts:
Like most raptors, male Eastern Screech-Owls are smaller than females, and are more agile fliers and hunters. The female doesn’t hunt while on the nest; she and the chicks depend on food brought them by the male. Though the male is smaller, his voice is deeper than the female’s. Smaller birds can help you find screech-owls during the day. Listen for a commotion of Blue Jays, chickadees, and titmice—they may be mobbing a screech-owl (or other raptor), swooping around it with noisy calls. This can be enough of a nuisance to make the owl move on, and it alerts other birds to the predator’s presence and teaches younger members of the flock about the danger. Screech-owls regurgitate the bones, fur, and feathers of their prey in an oval pellet, usually once or twice a day. The ground beneath habitual owl roosts can be littered with pellets, and you can learn a lot from them about the owl’s diet. However, data from pellets may underestimate the number of soft-bodied animals, like worms and insects, the owl has eaten. Nestling Screech-owls fight fiercely among themselves for food, and sometimes even kill and eat their smallest sibling. Eastern Screech-Owls of the suburbs may fledge more young than their rural counterparts, probably because their predators are scarcer in the suburbs. Red and gray individuals occur across the range of the Eastern Screech-Owl, with about one-third of all individuals being red. Rufous owls are more common in the East, with fewer than 15% red at the western edge of the range. No red owls are known from southern Texas, although they occur further north in Texas and further south in Mexico. Intermediate brownish individuals also occur in most populations. Eastern Screech-Owl pairs usually are monogamous and remain together for life. Some males, however, will mate with two different females. The second female may evict the first female, lay her own eggs in the nest, and incubate both clutches. The Eastern Screech-Owl is known to eat a variety of songbirds, including the European Starling. Despite this fact, the starling regularly displaces the owl from nesting sites and takes over the hole to raise its own brood.
Habitat:
Almost any habitat with sufficient tree cover will do for this cosmopolitan owl. Tree cavities or nest boxes are essential, and fairly open understories are preferred, but Eastern Screech-Owls live and breed successfully in farmland, suburban landscapes, and city parks. On the Great Plains, at the westernmost edge of its range, Eastern Screech-Owls occur in the uneven traces of wooded land along streams and rivers. Screech-owls cannot survive if all trees are removed, but the species readily recolonizes once trees are replanted, especially if nest boxes are also provided.
Food:
Eastern Screech-Owls eat most kinds of small animals, including birds and mammals as well as surprisingly large numbers of invertebrates, including earthworms, insects, crayfish, tadpoles, frogs, and lizards. They eat many kinds of mammals, including rats, mice, squirrels, moles, and rabbits. Small birds taken as prey include flycatchers, swallows, thrushes, waxwings, and finches, as well as larger species such as jays, grouse, doves, shorebirds, and woodpeckers. This owl is agile enough to occasionally prey on bats, and can rarely even be cannibalistic. When prey is plentiful, Eastern Screech-Owls cache extra food in tree holes for as long as four days.
Nesting:
Eastern Screech-Owls build no nest. The female lays her eggs on whatever debris is at the bottom of her nesting cavity, be it wood-chips, twigs, or the cast-off feathers and droppings from a previous year’s nest. Settling in, she makes a body-shaped depression where her eggs lie.
Nest Placement:
Eastern Screech-Owls nest in holes and cavities, but never dig a cavity themselves. Thus, they depend on tree holes opened or enlarged by woodpeckers, fungus, rot, or squirrels. They often occupy abandoned woodpecker nest holes. Eastern Screech-Owls readily accept nest boxes, including those built for Wood Ducks or Purple Martins, and sometimes nest in wood piles, mailboxes, or crates left on the ground.
Behavior:
Eastern Screech-Owls are chiefly active at night, though they often hunt at dawn or dusk, and occasionally in daylight. These versatile hunters sit and wait in the trees for prey to pass below. They tend to pounce from perches six to ten feet off the ground, occasionally snatching an insect or bat on the wing or hitting shallow water talons-first to snag fish or tadpoles. Most flights are short (less than 75 feet or so). When traveling between perches, these owls often drop, fly straight, then rise again, in a characteristic U-shaped pattern. Eastern Screech-Owls form stable matches, usually one male with one female but occasionally one male with two females. Males defend small territories containing several cavity roost spots. When nesting, the female stays in the nest hole except for brief dawn and dusk excursions. She and the nestlings are fed by her mate, though it is the female who tears the prey into small bits for the babies. At fledging, the young first hop to the ground or nearby branches, using feet and fluttering wings to climb laboriously back to safety. Young gain flight and hunting skills slowly; they depend on their parents for food for 8–10 weeks after fledging. Both parents feed the youngsters at this stage, and adults, especially the females, shelter together with the young in communal tree roosts. Gradually, as the young gain skill, they begin to roost and hunt apart from their parents and siblings.
Conservation:
The Eastern Screech Owl is in no current conservation danger. This little owl is a generalist, with unfussy eating and nesting habits, and it adjusts well to the presence of humans. In fact, suburban birds often survive better than their rural kin, as suburbs provide more prey, milder climates, and fewer predators. Eastern Screech-Owls need trees to nest in, or, at least, nest boxes and brushy cover, but their small size, territorial tolerance, and broadly varied diet make this owl a successful survivor.
Be sure to stop by the Screech Owl Habitat and see "SCREECH" and our Screech Owls on your next visit
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BURROWING OWL
True to its name, the Burrowing Owl nests in a hole in the ground.
Although it is quite willing to dig its own burrow, it often uses one already provided by prairie dogs, skunks, armadillos, or tortoises.
DUG's STORY
Cool Facts:
Unlike most owls in which the female is larger than the male, the sexes of the Burrowing Owl are the same size. The Burrowing Owl appears to be diurnal because it can often be seen foraging during the day. In fact, it hunts all day and night long and is most active in the morning and evening. It catches more insects during the day and more mammals at night. The Burrowing Owl sometimes is placed into its own genus (Speotyto). Genetic similarity and overall appearance unite it with the other members of Athene. These are the Little Owl of Eurasia and northern Africa, the Spotted Owlet of southeastern Asia, and the extremely rare Forest Owlet, known only from a handful of specimens and sightings in India. Although the Little Owl is found in deserts and open areas, it is not nearly as terrestrial as the Burrowing Owl. It usually nests in tree cavities, although it will use a hole in a building or wall, and sometimes nests in rabbit holes. The Burrowing Owl collects mammal dung and puts it in and around its burrow. The dung attracts dung beetles, which the owl then captures and eats.
Habitat:
Lives in dry, open areas with no trees and short grass. Found on golf courses, cemeteries, airports, vacant lots, university campuses, pastures, and prairie dog towns.
Food:
Insects, scorpions, small mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles.
Nesting:
Nests in burrow, often dug by a mammal. Burrow can be several meters long, with numerous twists and turns. Often lined with horse or cow manure.
Behavior:
Catches food with feet. Hunts by walking, hopping, or running along the ground, or by flying from perch.
Conservation:
Populations declining in many areas; listed as endangered or threatened in some states and provinces. Collision with cars is a major source of mortality. Human activities have increased the species' range in Florida.
Be sure to stop by the Burrowing Owl Habitat and see "DUG" and our Burrowing Owls on your next visit
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