How to Identify aBarn Owl
Tyto alba · 12.6–15.8 in (32–40 cm)
Male vs. female
Male
Golden-buff above finely speckled gray, pure white below, with a white heart-shaped facial disc and black eyes.
Female
Like the male but usually buffier below with more dark speckling.
Male photo: USFWS Mountain-Prairie / Wikimedia, Public domain · Second photo: Bill Bouton from San Luis Obispo, CA, USA / Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 2.0
Field marks
- White heart-shaped facial disc
- Solid black eyes with no yellow
- Very pale, almost white, underparts
- Long legs dangling in flight
Similar species
What it sounds like
A long, harsh, rasping shriek — not a hoot — often described as a scream.
Behaviour that gives it away
Its ears sit at different heights on the skull, letting it pinpoint prey in total darkness by sound alone.
Habitat & range
Farmland, grassland, marshes and open country, nesting in barns, silos, church towers and nest boxes.
When you'll see it
Present all year in North America.
What it eats
Voles, mice, rats and shrews, swallowed whole.
Did you know?
Its ear openings are asymmetrically placed, letting it locate a mouse in complete darkness by sound alone.
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