Visual Search | Wizard | Browse
Bird name:

Barred Owl

Strix varia

Order

STRIGIFORMES

Family

True Owls (Strigidae)

Code 4

BADO

Code 6

STRVAR

ITIS

177921

Breeding Location:

Forest edge, Marshes, freshwater, Forest, Swamps



Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Thought to pair for life



Breeding Population:

Widespread, Very common to common



Egg Color:

White



Number of Eggs:

2 - 3



Incubation Days:

28 - 33



Egg Incubator:

Female



Nest Material:

Uses abandoned nests.



Migration:

Nonmigratory



RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS

Jelly Jar Jelly Feeder
The orange "blossum" replaces the lid of a jelly jar.
Attract Orioles with Fruit
Sliced orange secures easily to the center of the ring. Low cost.
Attract with Nectar
Hex shaped nectar feeds several Orioles. Nectar kept in fridge.
Charm and Attraction
Lovely copper umbrella keeps fruit cool and looks great.

General

Barred Owl: Medium-sized, large-headed owl with large, brown eyes, concentric rings around pale face, and no ear tufts. Upperparts are brown with white markings. Underparts are white with dark bars on breast and dark streaks on belly. Heavily streaked, spotted, and variegated brown, white, and buff overall. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Barred Owl: Widespread in the eastern half of North America; spreading westward in the northern portion of range, already occurring in Washington State, is causing concern that competition and hybridization may impact populations of endangered Spotted Owls. Preferred habitats include deep, moist forests, wooded swamps, and woodlands near waterways.

Breeding and Nesting

Barred Owl: Nests in cavities or use abandoned Red-shouldered Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, squirrel, or crow nests. Lays two to three white eggs. Incubation ranges from 28 to 33 days and is carried out by the female; male brings her food on the nest.

Foraging and Feeding

Barred Owl: Mostly nocturnal and crepuscular; feeds on a wide variety of prey, including voles, shrews, mice, rats, squirrels, young rabbits, bats, moles, opossums, mink, weasels, and some birds; also eats small fish, turtles, frogs, snakes, lizards, crayfish, scorpions, beetles, crickets, and grasshoppers.

Vocalization

Barred Owl: Call is a resounding "hoo, hoo, too-HOO; hoo, hoo, too-HOO, ooo", often phrased as "Who, cooks, for-you Who, cooks, for-you, all" with the last syllable dropping off noticeably.

Similar Species

Barred Owl: Great Gray Owl is larger, grayer, and has yellow eyes and longer tail. Spotted Owl has white spots underparts.

.
UnderpartsX
Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.
UpperpartsX
Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.
BellyX
The ventral part of the bird, or the area between the flanks on each side and the crissum and breast. Flight muscles are located between the belly and the breast.
BreastX
The upper front part of a bird.
FaceX
The front part of the head consisting of the bill, eyes, cheeks and chin.
4 and 6 letter alpha codesX

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Read more...
ITIS CodesX

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.

Read more...
Parts of a Standing birdX
Head Feathers and MarkingsX
Parts of a Flying birdX