A small owl restricted to specific mountain habitats.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
The whiskered screech owl is a small screech owl found in North and Central America.
Source: Wikipedia — Whiskered screech owl Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Small gray screech-owl with short ear tufts, yellow eyes, and bold dark markings; very similar to Western Screech-Owl but with longer facial bristles and a greener bill.
Similar species. Western Screech-Owl overlaps and is best separated by voice; Whiskered tends to be found at higher elevations in oak woodland.
Voice. A syncopated series of evenly pitched toots in a 'Morse-code' rhythm, and a more regular series.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Small mammals, birds, insects; hunting style varies by species.
Behavior. A small owl of oak and pine-oak canyons in the Southwest borderlands; feeds heavily on insects and is named for the bristly 'whiskers' around its bill.
§ Range
Sky islands of southwestern US
§ Habitat
Oak-pine forests
§ Threats
Habitat loss.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the whiskered screech-owl is currently classified as Least Concern.
§ What helps
Support southwestern sky island conservation.
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Whiskered screech owl
- www.allaboutbirds.org — authoritative profile of Megascops trichopsis
- IUCN Red List — search for Megascops trichopsis
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Megascops trichopsis
§ Sources cited
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology — All About Birds
- National Audubon Society
- iNaturalist
- IUCN Red List
