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| Barn Owl | ||||||||||||||
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| Tyto alba ( Scopoli, 1769) |
The Barn Owl (Tyto alba) is an owl in the barn owl family Tytonidae. This is one of the two groups of owls, the other being the typical owls Strigidae.
These are pale, long-winged, long-legged owls, with an effortless wavering flight as they quarter pastures or similar hunting grounds.
There are a number of races differing in underpart colour. For example, T. a. alba of western Europe is almost pure white below, whereas T.a. guttata of central Europe is orange. All races have grey and ochre upperparts.
These are birds of open country such as farmland. They are fairly sedentary and nocturnal or crepuscular.
Barn Owls occur worldwide, on every continent except Antarctica. Sometimes they are called monkey-faced owls because of their appearance. Other common names are church owl, golden owl, rat owl, and stone owl.
Barn Owls feed on voles, frogs and insects, but are economically valuable birds as they also prey on animal pests like rats, shrews, moles and mice. In the wild, barn owls typically live for 5-11 years.
Other than human persecution, they have few predators, although large owls such as the Eurasian Eagle OwlEurasian Eagle Owl : Animalia : Chordata : Aves : Strigiformes : Strigidae Bubo bubo Binomial name Bubo bubo ( Linnaeus, 1758) The Eurasian Eagle Owl Bubo bubo is a species of horned owl resident in much of Europe and Asia. They are a part of the larger g and the Great Horned OwlGreat Horned Owl : Animalia : Chordata : Aves : Strigiformes : Strigidae Bubo virginianus Binomial name ''Bubo virginianus Gmelin, 1788) The Great Horned Owl Bubo virginianus is a very large owl. Adults have large ear tufts, a reddish face, a white patch will kill smaller species if the opportunity arises. Farmers often encourage barn owl habitations for rodent control by providing nest sites such as a 50 gallon drum installed sideways in a barn. An adult Barn Owl will eat approximately 3 mice per day. A pair raising 3-5 owlets will consume many more rodents.
Barn Owls have a notable scream, ear-shattering at close range. They also hiss like steam kettles. When captured or cornered, they throw themselves on their backs and flail with sharp-taloned feet, an effective defence.