Owls of Ohio - Ohio Department of Natural Resources

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owl hears a recording of its call, it thinks a rival owl hasentered the area and comes in to investigate. If the recordingis played but briefly and is stopped after a response has beenobtained, probably no harm at all is done. However, if theowl is in an area where frequent “owl walks” are taken orfor whatever reason people are routinely playing owl tapes,problems may occur.N i g ht time Li s ten i n g finding owlsThe easiest way to seek owls is to just be outside in suitablehabitats at night. Rural locations where ambient noises arereduced are best, particularly on clear windless evenings.Owl vocalizations can carry long distances, and by quietlylistening sooner or later you will detect owls. The time ofyear makes a difference; owls tend to be early nesters andvocalizing increases in early winter and continues throughspring, although owls can and will call at any time of year.M o b b i n g finding owlsOwls are generally not well thought of by their avianbrethren, and the hapless owl that is discovered at adaytime roost is often harried mercilessly by other birds.American crows are well known for this, and when theyfind a roosting great horned owl, their loud cawing reachesa fevered, almost maniacal pitch. These calls draw in othercrows, and sometimes quite a mob forms. Great hornedowls and other large owls can occasionally be found withthe help of mobbing crows.Small owls, like the Eastern screech-owl, are sometimesmobbed by smaller songbirds like chickadees andnuthatches. As with crows, the frenzied actions of thesebirds as they swarm an owl can tip off the birder to itspresence.
Ab o u t this Bookle t and CD owls of ohioOf the 12 species of owls that have been recorded in Ohio,only three are common widespread breeders: the Easternscreech-owl, barred owl, and great horned owl. One other,the barn owl, is a rare and local nester, but can be expectedin the limited area in which it occurs. Three other species –long-eared owl, short-eared owl, and Northern saw-whet owl- are regular migrants and/or winter visitors, and probablymuch more numerous than thought as they are easilyoverlooked. Another species, the snowy owl, occurs sparinglyand in varying numbers most winters. Finally, there are tworecords each of these vagrant owls: the Northern hawk owl,burrowing owl, and great gray owl. The last owl added tothe Ohio list is the boreal owl, found in 1997 and to date theonly record of this northern species.Because learning about interrelationships is importantto gaining a better understanding of birds, we have alsoincluded the recordings of the other seven species of owlsthat regularly occur in North America. Althoughan Ohio birder will never encounterthese species in the Buckeye state, itis still interesting and educationalto hear how their sounds differ – orare similar – to Ohio species. Severalof them, such as the western species ofscreech-owl, are closely related to Ohioowl species.Owls belong to the order Strigiformes (Strijih-fore-meez[from Strix or Strigidix, a screechowl])and we have two families within the orderin Ohio. The barn owls are in the family Tytonidae(Tie-toe-nih-dee [night owls]) and are represented here byone species. There are 16 species in the Tytonidae worldwide.All other owls belong to family Strigidae (Strij-ih-dee), thetypical owls. There are 199 species in this family worldwide.This booklet is arranged into four categories: regularlyoccurring Ohio species; rare Ohio species; other NorthAmerican owls; and accidental North American owls.The species are listed alphabetically within each category.
Page 1 and 2: OWLS OF OHIO c d g u i d e b o o kD
Page 3 and 4: OWLS OF OHIO OWLS OF OHIO OWLS OF O
Page 5 and 6: with both eyes simultaneously. Anot
Page 7 and 8: M o d i fi ed Fe ath er s owl morph
Page 9: Pelle t s an d W h ite wa s h findi
Page 13 and 14: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 13O
Page 15 and 16: y people placing nest boxes in barn
Page 17 and 18: BTRACKS7-12arred owlStrix varia (St
Page 19 and 20: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 19D
Page 21 and 22: Eastern screech-owlMegascops asio (
Page 23 and 24: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 23N
Page 25 and 26: Great horned owlBubo virginianus (B
Page 27 and 28: Normally solitary except during the
Page 29 and 30: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 29T
Page 31 and 32: O h i o S tat u s l o ng - e a re d
Page 33 and 34: N e s ting long - e a re d o w lLon
Page 35 and 36: Northern saw-whet owlAegolius acadi
Page 37 and 38: likely. When one is found, a very c
Page 39 and 40: Short-eared owlAsio flammeus (Ay-se
Page 41 and 42: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 41H
Page 43 and 44: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 43i
Page 45 and 46: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 45O
Page 47 and 48: C O M M O N O W L S O F O H I O 47
Page 49 and 50: Like the Northern hawk owl and grea
Page 51 and 52: This is one of North America’s mo
Page 53 and 54: This is the smallest owl in the wor
Page 55 and 56: This small owl has a broad but spot
Page 57 and 58: This species has become a symbol of
Page 59 and 60: O T H E R N O R T H A M E R I C A N
Page 61 and 62:
Publication FundingFunding for this
Page 63 and 64:
A ppa l achi a n Fron tAu du bon So
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Owls of Ohio - Ohio Department of Natural Resources

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