Barred Owl

Strix varia
Owl family (Strigidae)

Habitat:
Deciduous forest.

Description:
Large, 17” long, 44” wingspan.  Round head, brownish gray head and back, barred chest and belly, dark eyes, no ear tufts.

Nesting:
Nests in a large cavity in a dead tree.  May use the same nest site for many years.  Eggs are white. Clutch size – 2 to 3 eggs.  Young leave nest 4 to 5 weeks after hatching.

Voice:
“Hoo hoo hoohoo”, sounds like “who cooks for you”. 

Name Origin:
Strix, Latin for “screech owl” (an inappropriate name assigned by Linnaeus); varia, Latin for “variegated” for its plumage.

In the Nature Park:
We have seen a pair of Barred Owls several times during the day along the Rail Trail and in the deep woods.  Other species of owls occur in the Nature Park, but the Barred Owl is the one that is most likely to be seen during the day in the park. 

Other Notes:
The Barred Owl is adapted to the disturbed forest landscape of eastern North America and has recently expanded its range through western Canada and into the Pacific Northwest because logging of old-growth forests has created a more patchy mosaic of forest in that region.  Populations of the closely related Spotted Owl in the Pacific Northwest are declining in part due to competitive displacement by the more aggressive Barred Owl.