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Long-eared owl

    Long-eared owl

    Asio otus


Castilian: Búho chico

Catalan: Mussol banyut

Gallego: Bufo pequeno

Euskera: Hontza ertaina


CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Strigiformes

Family: Strigidae

Migratory status: Permanent resident


CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Of Special Interest” category. In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Not Evaluated”.

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THREATS

It does not have any significant threats to conservations except deforestation, changes in traditional land use, being run over by vehicles, and above all illegal hunting in roosts.


Length / size: 31-37 cm / 86-98 cm

Identification: Bird of prey whose plumage is made up of tawny, ochre, and reddish-brown colours, and is mottled and striped, which helps this bird to blend in with the wooded environment that it frequents. It has two cephalic crests that are long and moveable which serve to disguise its bird-like silhouette and to indicate excitement or fear; its white facial feathers are edged in the shape of an "X" that encloses its bill and orange eyes.

Song: In general, it is a silent bird, despite the wide range of vocalisations it possesses. The male's song is a fast, deep and melancholic hoot that it repeats about every two seconds; the female's is higher-pitched, rough and nasal. Its alarm call is a "rooack rooack" that is nasal and hoarse.

Diet: It eats at night even with the worst lighting conditions, and captures everything from small birds to young rabbits, although it prefers moles, rats and field mice. In rare cases it can hunt reptiles, amphibians and large insects.

Reproduction: It can begin before winter is over, and in February the loud calls that mating entails can already be heard. It usually nests in old magpie nests, without using new material, and also in hollow trees or human structures. The female incubates the eggs and the male is responsible for catching prey, although he sometimes replaces the female in incubation. Hatching of the eggs is staggered.


HABITAT

It occupies wooded areas near open spaces, like small wooded islands or riverside meadows, and it strongly prefers pine groves, even if they have been repopulated.


DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: It is distributed throughout the entire peninsula and the Balearic Islands, and is most abundant in Castile and León, Madrid, the high Ebro region, and some areas of Castile-La Mancha and Andalusia.

In Castile and León: It breeds in all the provinces.

Movements and migrations: Depending on its distribution area, in the southern half it acts as sedentary, but in the northern half it behaves as migrant, and winters in temperate latitudes in Europe, northern Africa, the Mediterranean peninsulas and southern France.


POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of at least 3321 breeding pairs.

In Castile and León: There is an estimated population of 3000-4000 breeding pairs.