Long-eared Owl

Small banner

Long-eared Owl

	Scientific name: Asio otus
	Family name: Strigidae
	Are they endangered? No, they are not threatened worldwide. [IUCN Red list: Least concern] They are endangered in some places around the world. An example of this is in the United States [New Jersey].
	What are their past/present problems? Owl numbers decrease when they lose their nesting and hunting areas because man builds on them. This is called loss of habitat.
	What do they look like? They are brown and black with yellow eyes. They have ear tufts that are mostly black. Their chests and bellies are beige with brown lines on them.

How big are they? They are about 1 – ½ feet long. If their wings were spread out, they would be about 3 – 3 ½ feet wide.

How many eggs do they lay? The female lays between 2 and 10 white eggs once a year. They take a month to hatch.

How long do the fledglings stay in the nest? Their nests are usually ones left by other birds. Sometimes the nest is inside a hole in a tree. The young birds [fledglings] start to fly in about 23-24 days.

When do they hunt? They hunt at night.

What do they eat? They like to eat birds. Insects, and MICE!

Where do they live? They live in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and North America.

What kind of place do they like to live in? They like to live in forests and woods areas so that they are protected from the weather and can hide. Long-eared Owls like to perch in pine trees. They need to be around open land and wetlands for hunting.

Interesting facts:

	Their brown, beige, and black spotted colors help to camouflage, or hide, them.
	They will migrate if they live in colder areas or if they can’t find enough prey. They usually don’t go very far, though.
	In city areas, Long-eared Owls have been killed by rat poison.
	Long-eared Owls hide their prey that is in their talons by spreading their wings over it.

Works Cited:

Alsop, Fred. Birds of North America. New York: DK Publishing, 2001.

“Asio otus.” 10 Jan. 2008. <http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/48605/all>.

Blood, Michael R. “Owls swoop back into Central Park, but poisoned rats are deadly snacks.” Daily News. 15 Nov. 2002.

Donovan, Amy. Birds of Prey. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 1998.

“Long-eared owl.” Encyclopedia of animals. 2006 ed.

“Long-eared owl.” 4 Oct. 2007. <http://www.peregrinefund.org/Explore_Raptors/owls/longeard.html>.

“Long-eared Owl, Asio otus.” 10 Jan. 2008. <http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/ensp/pdf/end-thrtened/lngearedowl.pdf>.

Schmoker, Bill. “Re: Owl pictures (etc.).” E-mail to Club Web. 2 Nov. 2007.

Vanner, Michael. Field guide to the birds of North America. United Kingdom: Parragon, 2006.

Our site is best viewed with: 1024x768 screen resolution, Acrobat Reader 7+,
Adobe Flash Player 9, and Windows Media Player.

Links

Citations

Site Map

Team

About

Mouse Mail

Dictionary