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13

Barn Owl (Tyto alba) Alternate name(s): "Common Barn Owl", "Western Barn Owl" German name(s): "Schleiereule" Size: 29-44 cm; wing span 0.7-1.05 m Weight: 225-710 g

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Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Barn Owls are medium-sized owls. Their plumage is highly cryptic. There are two groups of races according to morphology, the "white-fronted" and the "grey-fronted" Barn Owls. The main feature of Barn Owls is their pale, heart-shaped face surrounded by a dark-grey fringe. The sides of the head are rufous, while the cap, nape of the neck and back are grey with very fine vermiculation. The front can be white or grey. Most parts are speckled - the front, underwings and sides of the head with dark specks, and the back with dark-and-light grey double specks. The legs are covered in hairy-looking feathers. The irises are dark; the bill is pinkish-grey. The two sexes are hard to distinguish in the field and the differences are often only clear when both sexes are seen together. Male Barn Owls have a plain-white (or grey) front, with hardly any dark spots, whereas females have more spots on the front. Females are also larger than males. Young chicks are covered in grey down.

Taxonomy, classification See Barn Owl at Wikipedia . Click here for classification information Note that the classification of various races of Barn Owls is complex and currently still under discussion. Many sources still list the Eastern Barn Owl as race "delicatula" of the Barn Owl (Tyto alba).

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Barn Owl is available HERE . There are in total 28 extant races of the Barn Owl, which are sedentary throughout their range. They are the most widely distributed species of owl on earth. Their overall range spans parts of North and South America, Africa, Europe and Asia, and many tropical and subtropical islands. They populate much of the world from about -50 degrees latitude to +55 degrees latitude, with the exception of all of Asia north-eastward of a line connection the Baltic states with the Himalayas. Note that many sources list the Australasian Eastern Barn Owl (Tyto delicatula) as a separate species. In continental Europe there are two races of Barn Owl. Nominate race "alba" populates southern and western Europe, including the British Isles, up to a line connecting roughly the Netherlands with the eastern Alps. Race "guttata" is found north-eastward of that line, to about the Baltic states and western Belarus and Ukraine. Race "ernesti" is endemic to Corsica, while race "schmitzi" is found only on the island of Madeira. Barn Owls are found in a wide variety of habitats. They are sedentary and nest in hollows; therefore they want some kind of suitable hollow available in their range, such as either a (natural) tree hollow or in a building or a ruin. For hunting (voles, frogs, insects) they want access to open country as in scattered copses, along the fringes of woodland or around human habitation.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "alba" J. Pires reports spotting Barn Owls, nominate race "alba", in the Tejo estuary, Portugal, in August 2020. At the time more than 20 Barn Owls were seen there. 18 were found at the same location again in July 2022. All sighting and photographic information presented on this page has kindly been contributed by J. Pires.

Photos

Race "alba"

This race belongs to the pale-bellied "alba group" of Barn Owls.

ADULT

MALE

Near-frontal view of a male Barn Owl; note the paucity of spots (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

Lateral view of a male Barn Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

FEMALE

Near-lateral view of a female Barn Owl; note the specks down the front (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, August 2020]

Lateral view of a female Barn Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, August 2020]

Lateral view of a female Barn Owl looking at the observer (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

Lateral view of a female Barn Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

Lateral view of a resting female Barn Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

Lateral view of a female Barn Owl on the point of departure, showing its underwing (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, August 2020]

Lateral view of a female Barn Owl taking off (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

Near-dorsal view of a female Barn Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, August 2020]

Dorsal view of a female Barn Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

PAIR

Near-frontal/lateral view of a pair of Barn Owls, male on the left (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2022]

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