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Little Owl (Athene noctua) German name(s): "Steinkauz" Size: 21-23 cm; wing span 54-58 cm Body mass: 140-250 g Wing loading [g/cm2]: 0.30-0.35

Europe: Family Group 13 Family Group 13 Table Common Cuckoo Great Spotted Cuckoo Oriental Cuckoo Little Owl Tawny Owl Short-eared Owl Long-eared Owl Eurasian Eagle Owl Barn Owl European Nightjar Red-necked Nightjar Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names European birds home page

Similar species

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

Physical description Click here for a physical description Little Owls are small owls. Their plumage is highly cryptic. The plumage varies not only across different races, but there is also a lot of variability within each race. They all have a flat-topped squarish head, a compact body and a short tail. The ground colour of nominate race "noctua" varies from grey-brown to pale yellowish-brown (the latter especially towards the south-eastern parts of its distribution). The face is dominated by a prominent white "X" around the eyes; the rest of the head is streaked above the semi-collar around the front of the neck. The rest of the front is boldly streaked off-white to creamy. Only the vent, undertail coverts and legs are off-white to light-grey. The back, ontop of the base colour, has large light-grey blotches. The irises are striking yellow, the bill is greyish-yellow, while the legs and feet are all covered with feathers. Juvenile birds do not have streaking on the head and breast, which makes them look much plainer than adults.

Taxonomy, classification See Little Owl at Wikipedia .

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 Little Owl is available HERE . The Little Owl is a sedentary Eurasian species. There are several recognized extant races (some of which, depending on authority, may have to be split off into a new species), with a total range extending from parts of northern Africa and Arabia and all of western Europe (including England, where they were introduced) through central and eastern Europe into mid-latitude Asia, as far eastward as the Pacific coastline in northern China. In Asia their range is limited roughly by a line connecting Helsinki, Finland, with northern Mongolia (northern boundary) and a line connecting Israel/Palestine with the northern edge of the Himalayas (southern boundary). For more details see, e.g., Wikipedia . In Europe there are three extant races of the Little Owl. The range of nominate race "noctua" extends across central Europe, from southern Germany to Sardinia and Sicily, and from there eastward, as far as Romania. Race "indigena", the "South-east European Little Owl", is found in Albania and south-eastern former Yugoslavia (where its range overlaps with that of nominate race "noctua"), through southern and eastern Romania, southern Ukraine and European Russia, to the Caucasus and south-western Siberia. Their range also extends southward to Crete, Asia Minor and the Middle East, as far south as northern Israel. Race "vidalii", the "North-western Little Owl", is found in an area spanning from western and northern Europe (the southern Baltic Sea to Iberia, including the Balearic Islands) eastwards into north-western Russia (where its range overlaps with that of race "indigena"). Little Owls are extremely flexible and can therefore be found in a very wide range of habitats. While largely at home in cultural landscapes in Europe, around fields, vineyards, orchards, gardens, parks, meadows and even buildings, farther southward they can also be found in semi-arid areas and in mountainous terrain. They will nest in any kind of hollow, tunnel or crevace, including nest boxes.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "noctua" A. Sarok reports finding a Little Owl, nominate race "noctua", in Vojvodina, Serbia, in the timeframe 2010-2024. Race "indigena" We have not seen a Little Owl of race "indigena", in Europe yet. The birds shown below, of race "indigena", were found by D. Wilczynska in Georgia, on the southern slopes of the Caucasus mountains. Race "vidalii" J. Pires reports finding Little Owls, race "vidalii", occasionally in the area from Mora, Evora, to the Tejo estuary in Portugal. Another was found at Parque Natural do Vale do Guadiana, Mertola-Beja, Portugal, in February 2023.

Photos

Race "noctua"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of an adult Little Owl (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Frontal view of an adult Little Owl (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Near-frontal view of a Little Owl looking at the observer (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Near-lateral view of a Little Owl looking at the observer (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Lateral view of a Little Owl looking at the observer (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Lateral view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Lateral view of a Little Owl chick looking at the observer (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Race "indigena"

This race is also called the "South-east European Little Owl".

ADULT

Sex unknown

Near-lateral view of an adult Little Owl at the entrance to its nest hollow (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[June 2018]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Lateral view of a fledgling Little Owl on one of its first outings, still close to the nest hollow; this bird may not be able to fly yet (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[June 2018]

Race "vidalii"

This race is also called the "North-western Little Owl".

ADULT

Sex unknown

Full-frontal view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Vila Franca de Xira, Tejo estuary, Portugal, January 2020]

Frontal view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Vila Franca de Xira, Tejo estuary, Portugal, January 2020]

Frontal view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Vila Franca de Xira, Tejo estuary, Portugal, May 2020]

Near-lateral view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Vila Franca de Xira, Tejo estuary, Portugal, May 2020]

Near-lateral view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, January 2019]

Near-lateral/ventral view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, December 2022]

Lateral view of a Little Owl looking at the observer (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, January 2019]

Lateral view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2019]

Lateral view of a Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, August 2019]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Frontal view of a juvenile Little Owl batting its eyelids; note the plain crown and chest (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, July 2019]

Near-frontal view of a juvenile Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, July 2019]

Near-frontal view of a juvenile Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, July 2019]

Near-lateral view of a juvenile Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, July 2019]

Frontal view of a fledgling(?) Little Owl (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Tejo estuary, Portugal, August 2019]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Mar - June

Eggs: 3 - 4

Incubation period: 29 - 31 days

Fledging age: 7 - 9 weeks

Young Little Owls leave the nest at about 7 weeks of age, before they can fly (1-2 weeks later). They usually have one brood per season; only in times of abundance there can be two (in which case a pair's breeding season is much longer than usual).

Nest building: ?

Incubation: Female

Dependent care: Female & male

Nest

Type: Tree hollow, tunnel, crevace

Material: N/A

Height above ground: 1 - ? m

Little Owls do not line their nests.

Lateral view of an adult Little Owl at the entrance to its nest hollow looking at the observer (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[June 2018]

Eggs

Size: 36 x 30 mm

Colour: Satin white

Shape: Elliptical

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Sedentary

Elementary unit: Solitary

Note that Little Owls are partly diurnal.

Food, Diet

Little Owls have a preference for earth worms, but will also take other small prey.

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

litowl_jp_20200204.m4a	vidalii (Portugal)	Contact calls + ?	© JP
litowl_jp_20190704.m4a	vidalii (Portugal)	Alarm calls	© JP
litowl_jp_20201026.m4a	vidalii (Portugal)	? (+ 2nd unid caller)	© JP

More Little Owl sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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