The head has very small ear tufts, and dark eyes surrounded by rust-brown, pale-gray facial disk, and white eyebrows that start at the bill. Most have fairly long wings and all have sharp talons on powerful zygodactyl feet (two toes facing one way and two the other way) used to kill their prey. Owls are mostly known for their nocturnal behavior although a few species such as the Snowy Owl and pygmy owls are also active during the day. It is believed to completely leave for Central America in the winter. 2020. eBird Status and Trends, Data Version: 2018; Released: 2020. Learn more. Open habitats such as weedy fields with a healthy rodent population are the preferred habitat of the Short-eared Owl and occasional wintering Snowy Owls that breed in the Arctic tundra. Spends winters in central and southern Mexico and as far south as Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. [CDATA[ Members of this family include small species such as the screech owls and Elf Owl, the diurnal Snowy Owl of the arctic and the huge Great Horned Owl, a top predator. Flammulated Owls that nest in North America retreat to southern parts of the species' range, as far south as Guatemala and El Salvador, in the winter. var sc_project=965006; The Flammulated Owl has a current rating of Least Concern. In the Pacific Northwest, the Spotted Owl requires old growth forest while the pygmy owl requires old growth cacti and thorn forest in Arizona and Texas. The Flammulated Owl is the only small owl with dark blackish-brown eyes (all other small owls have yellow iris), making it very distinctive. The STRIGIFORMES (strih-jih-FOR-meez) is an order of mostly nocturnal birds with two families; the barn owls and the true owls. This dependence on insects may explain this bird's migration. https://doi.org/10.2173/ebirdst.2018, Certain products may be unavailable due to insufficient data. . var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "statcounter.com/counter/counter_xhtml.js'>"); document.write("