Barred Owl

Scientific Name: Strix varia

Range / Habitat: Year-round in large, mature, deciduous or mixed forests, often near water in the eastern US, across a swath of Canada and in the Pacific Northwest.

Field Notes: Unmistakable in range. Classic "who cooks for you?" song at night.

Personal Notes: Part of a wonderful "large bird day" at the MN Landscape Arboretum in early May, 2014.

Snowy Owl

Scientific Name: Nyctea scandiaca

Population Estimate: Unknown but Least Concern status. Not globally threatened, but uncommon to scarce.

Range / Habitat: Summers in open Arctic tundra from near tree-line to edge of polar seas. Winter irruptions to lower latitudes were found in marshes and dunes.

Field Notes: Large white owl with small yellow eyes, rudimentary ear-tufts normally invisible. Male entirely white, female and juveniles with brown barring above and below.

Personal Notes: A bird that eluded us for over four years. Finally on a winter walk in Acadia National Park (during a extensive East Coast irruption year, after we looked unsuccessfully the weekend before) I said "wouldn't it be funny if that log were a Snowy Owl….." Thankfully, Richard thought to actually look through the binoculars!

Morepork

Scientific Name: Ninox novaeseelandiae

Population Estimate: Unknown, but Least Concern status

Range / Habitat: Forested areas throughout both islands of New Zealand and Tasmania.

Field Notes: Dark brown owl, spotted and barred buff. Yellow eyes set in dark facial mask. Call a loud double hoot - "more-pork". Little Owl is a locally common European introduction in the South Island of New Zealand but is smaller, lighter and has a shorter tail.

Personal Notes: Maori name Ruru. Some sources consider this to be Southern Boobook. We were so excited to get a daytime sighting of this bird at Karori Wildlife Sanctuary.

Burrowing Owl

Scientific Name: Athene cunicularia

Population Estimate: 2M

Range / Habitat: Year-round throughout the American Southwest, and parts of South America. Summers in the American West and winters in Mexico. Builds or inhabits burrows on the ground.

Field Notes: Small owl with no ear tufts. Bars on front, spots on back. Found on open ground as in the photo above.

Personal Notes: Thanks to Birdchick for this photo!

Great Horned Owl

Scientific Name: Bubo virginianus

Population Estimate: 5M, Least Concern status

Range / Habitat: Year-round in a wide range of wooded habitats throughout all of North America, extending through Mexico into Central America. Also found in northwestern and eastern South America.

Field Notes: Large owl with long ear tufts and yellow eyes. Coloration varies regionally but is overall mottled grey-brown with a reddish facial disc.

Personal Notes: We've seen this bird twice in Utah. Aways an amazing sight. 

Northern Hawk Owl

Scientific Name: Surnia ulula

Population Estimate: 130K

Range / Habitat: The Northern Hawk-Owl (Surnia ulula), or Northern Hawk Owl in North America, is a non-migratory owl that usually stays within its breeding range, though it sometimes irrupts southward.Three subspecies exist across the northern holarctic.The North American subspecies S.u.caparoch spans from eastern Alaska through to Newfoundland and in some areas extends south into northern United States. The other two subspecies are found in Eurasia: S. u. tianschanica breeds in central Asia reaching Xinjiang (China) and S. u. ulula resides across Eurasia reaching Siberia at its most eastern range. Occasionally, S.u.caparoch can extend its territory as far south as northern Minnesota and many other states in the northern United States including more central states such as West Virginia, New York, and South Dakota.

Field Notes: The Northern Hawk-Owl plumage is relatively dark brown with an off white spotting pattern on all dorsal parts of the body with the exception of the back of the neck which boasts a black v-shaped pattern. The underbelly is generally white or off-white which continues to the toes with brown bands on the breast and stomach. It also boasts a long tail with brown banding. The Northern Hawk-Owl has a smokey white face with a black border, a flat head, yellow eyes and a yellow curved beak.

Personal Notes: First seen in an irruptive year in Sax-Zim Bog, northern Minnesota. Later seen in Yoho National Park, British Columbia.