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Barn Owl
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Overview
Barn Owl: Medium-sized owl with glaring white, heart-shaped facial disk, no ear tufts, and long legs. Upperparts are orange-brown with fine white spots and dark bars. Underparts are white with small black spots. Feeds primarily on small mammals, also takes small birds. Slow silent mothlike flight. |
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Barred Owl
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Overview
Barred Owl: Medium, large-headed owl with large, brown eyes, concentric rings around pale face, 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. |
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Boreal Owl
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Overview
Boreal Owl: Medium owl, white-spotted, brown upperparts and thick brown-streaked, white underparts. Head is black with numerous small white spots, facial disks bordered with black, eyes are yellow-orange. Short flights have rapid wingbeats, longer ones are bouyant with shallow, silent wing beats. |
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Burrowing Owl
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Overview
Burrowing Owl: Small ground-dwelling owl, mostly brown with numerous white spots and no ear tufts. Eyes are yellow. White chin and throat. Tail is short, and legs are long. Bouyant, erratic flight with slow, silent wingbeats. May hover briefly above prey. The scientific name means "little digger." |
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Eastern Screech-Owl
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Overview
Eastern Screech-Owl Gray Morph: Small with gray-mottled upperparts, rows of white spots at shoulders, heavily streaked and barred underparts. Facial disk is lightly mottled with prominent dark rim. Small ear tufts. Yellow eyes, bill is yellow or olive-green. Short, rounded wings and tail are barred. |
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Elf Owl
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Overview
Elf Owl: Small owl, gray-brown body heavily mottled white and cinnamon-brown. Round head lacks ear tufts; facial disk bordered by thin, black line. Eyes are pale yellow highlighted by white eyebrows. Wings are long. Bristly feathers sparsely cover feet and legs. Tail is short with 3 to 5 pale bars. |
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Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl
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Overview
Ferruginous Pygmy Owl: Small owl, plain brown upperparts, white underparts with thick, brown streaks. Round head has stripes and no ear tufts. Nape has two conspicuous black patches outlined in white. Tail is long and rufous with dark brown bars. Flight is rapid and direct with unmuffled wing beats. |
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Flammulated Owl
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Overview
Flammulated Owl: Small owl with two color morphs (gray-brown and rufous) with many intermediate forms. The head has very small ear tufts, and dark eyes surrounded by rust-brown, pale-gray facial disk, and white eyebrows that start at the bill. It is the only small owl with dark, not yellow, eyes. |
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Great Gray Owl
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Overview
Great Gray Owl: Large owl, dark gray body interspersed with bars and flecks of brown, pale gray, and white. Head is large and without ear tufts. Yellow eyes are relatively small. Bulky appearance when perching due to dense, fluffy plumage, long wings extending past body, and relatively long tail. |
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Great Horned Owl
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Overview
Great Horned Owl: Large owl with dark brown, gray-brown mottled upperparts and dark barred underparts. Head has distinct ear tufts and rufous facial disk. Throat and upper breast are white and may have dark spots. Northern birds are paler and grayer. Strong, silent, direct, flap and glide flight. |
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Long-eared Owl
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Overview
Long-eared Owl: Medium-sized owl with gray-brown body with pale bars and heavy streaks on underparts. The facial disc is rufous with white a patch below the bill. The ear tufts are close together, long, black and rufous, and are not visible in flight. Bouyant, mothlike flight with silent wing beats. |
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Northern Hawk Owl
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Overview
Northern Hawk Owl: Medium-sized, slender owl with white-spotted brown upperparts and brown-barred white underparts. The gray facial disk is partially bordered by a thick, brown stripe that extends to the upper breast; lacks ear tufts. Wings are long and relatively pointed. Tail is long and rounded. |
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Northern Pygmy-Owl
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Overview
Northern Pygmy-Owl: Small owl, upperparts and sides range from brown to white-spotted gray-brown or gray. White underparts have brown stripes. Head is brown or gray with white spots; no ear tufts. Yellow eyes have white eyebrows. White-bordered black spots on back of head resemble a pair of eyes. |
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Northern Saw-whet Owl
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Overview
Northern Saw-whet Owl: Small, large headed owl, brown upperparts, white underparts with thick brown stripes. Head has gray facial disk with white "Y” between eyes; lacks ear tufts. Bill is dark. Wings are brown with white spots. White undertail coverts. Direct, silent flight with fluttering wing beats. |
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Short-eared Owl
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Overview
Short-eared Owl: Medium owl, light and dark brown mottled upperparts and dark-streaked, pale buff underparts. Head has large, round, pale buff facial disk with fine, brown tinges, black around eyes, and small ear tufts. Eyes are yellow and bill is black. Flight is erratic with flopping wing beats. |
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Snowy Owl
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Overview
Snowy Owl: Large, white owl with variable black bars and spots. The head is round and lacks tufts, eyes are yellow, and the bill is black. Feathered feet and toes provide protection from the arctic cold. Direct flap-and-glide flight with powerful, deep wingbeats. North America's only all-white owl. |
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Spotted Owl
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Overview
Spotted Owl: Medium owl, white-spotted, brown upperparts, finely barred white underparts. Head lacks ear tufts. Eyes are brown. The wings are brown with white spots. A secretive bird, it inhabits dense old growth forests. An individual needs 3000 acres to survive due to scarcity of its food source. |
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Western Screech-Owl
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Overview
Western Screech-Owl: Small owl (kennicotti), distinct ear tufts, brown- or gray-mottled upperparts, white shoulder spots, streaked, barred underparts. Lightly mottled facial disk, has prominent dark rim. Yellow eyes, dark gray bill. Until recently considered the same species as Eastern Screech-Owl. |
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Whiskered Screech-Owl
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Overview
Whiskered Screech-Owl: Small owl with distinct ear tufts, gray and brown mottled upperparts, and brown-streaked, white-barred underparts. It is named for its facial whiskers, which are longer and denser than in other screech owls. Eyes are yellow. Flight is mothlike with rapid, silent wing beats. |
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