Eastern Screech Owl


    Eastern Screech Owl

    Eastern Screech Owl can be found in the eastern part of North America (hence the name) and is part of the group, Strigidae (True owls). It is found especially in wooded biomes (deciduous forests and such). Note there is western screech owl as well.

    Kingdom Order Family Genus Species
    Animalia Strigiformes Strigidae Megascops Megascops asio

    • anatomy

      Anatomy

      The length of an adult snowy owl ranges from 52 – 71 cm. Their height is anywhere between 55 – 75 cm. The wingspan of an adult ranges from 126 – 145 cm. The weight of an adult ranges from 1600 – 2950 g. Its tail length is 8 ¾ – 10 ¾ in. The females of this species are just a tiny bit bigger.

      Their eyes are golden yellow, but they are pretty small compared to other owl species.

    • appearance

      Appearance

      This bird can be either almost completely grey or almost completely reddish-brown but it has yellow eyes either way. It is good at camouflage because of the spots on its body. This species is one of the smaller ones as the adults are only about 23cm tall, but their feet are pretty big compared to its body.

    • owl-video

      Documentary

    • predators

      Predators

      Predators of this owl includes weasels, American minks, black rat snakes, skunks, ring-tails, and more.

    • Diet

      Diet

      Owls of this species eat a lot of insects and invertebrates take up half its diet which includes moths, cicadas, beetles, crickets, grasshoppers and more but if needed will eat any other insect that can fly. It also eats snails, spiders, leeches, millipedes, and rodents such as rats and squirrels.

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      Lifespan

      In captivity this owl can live up to almost 20 years but they live for only about 14 years in the wild.

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      Interesting Facts

      It adapts surprisingly well to man-made structures. This owl is not easy to be seen and much more likely to be heard. The early Indians thought that owls were the birds of wisdom. This owl is also known as the Arctic Owl or the Great White owl.

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      Subspecies

      There are five subspecies of the Eastern Screech Owl. They are:
      M. a. Asio: Can be found in Canada and U.S.A. and its upper body is cold gray and red.
      M. a. maxwelliae: Can be found in Canada and U.S.A. and their upper body is pale white grey and red.
      M. a. hasbroucki: Can be found in U.S.A. and their upper body is bright grey and red.
      M. a. mccallii: Can be found U.S.A. and Europe and their upper body is also white grey and red.
      M. a. floridanus: Can be found in U.S.A. and their upper body is reddish-brown.

    Cite This Page

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    BioExplorer.net. (2024, March 29). Eastern Screech Owl. Bio Explorer. https://www.bioexplorer.net/animals/birds/eastern-screech-owl/.

    BioExplorer.net. "Eastern Screech Owl" Bio Explorer, 29 March 2024, https://www.bioexplorer.net/animals/birds/eastern-screech-owl/.

    BioExplorer.net. "Eastern Screech Owl" Bio Explorer, March 29 2024. https://www.bioexplorer.net/animals/birds/eastern-screech-owl/.


    Key References

    • [1]“Eastern Screech-Owl, Identification, All About Birds – Cornell Lab of Ornithology”. Accessed August 13, 2017. Link.
    • [2]“Eastern Screech Owl Facts – Eastern Screech Owl Habitat & Behavior”. Accessed August 13, 2017. Link.
    • [3]“Eastern Screech Owls • Kids Corner • Lake Erie Nature & Science Center”. Accessed August 13, 2017. Link.
    • [4]“Eastern Screech Owl | National Geographic”. Accessed August 13, 2017. Link.
    • [5]“BioKIDS – Kids’ Inquiry of Diverse Species, Otus asio, eastern screech owl: INFORMATION”. Accessed August 13, 2017. Link.


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