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Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla

The Long-eared Owl (Asio otus), called Hornuggla in Skåne, also known as the northern Long-eared Owl, is a species of owl which breeds in Europe, Asia, and North America. This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, family Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping of owls are the barn owls, family Tytonidae.

The scientific name is from Latin. The genus name Asio is a type of eared owl, and otus also refers to a small eared owl.

Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla

Range map
Range map from www.oiseaux.net - Ornithological Portal Oiseaux.net
www.oiseaux.net is one of those MUST visit pages if you're in to bird watching. You can find just about everything there


Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Asio otus distribution map - Click HERE for full size map

Distribution map of Asio otus
Yellow: breeding summer visitor
Green: breeding resident
Blue: non-breeding winter visitor

Breeding ranges of subspecies
1) Asio otus otus (Europe, Asia, NW Africa, Azores)
2) Asio otus canariensis (Canary Islands)
3) Asio otus wilsonianus (E North America)
4) Asio otus tuftsi (W North America)

CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=111747


Subspecies
Four subspecies are recognized:

• A. o. otus (Linnaeus, 1758) – very large range extending across northern Eurasia as well as Mediterranean islands, northwestern Africa, the Middle East and northern Pakistan, with isolated populations in the Azores and east-central China

• A. o. canariensis Madarasz, 1901 – the Canary Islands

• A. o. tuftsi Godfrey, 1948 – western North America from Canada to Mexico

• A. o. wilsonianus (Lesson, 1830) – eastern North America from Canada to Oklahoma and Virginia


Description
The Long-eared Owl is a medium-sized owl, 31–40 cm in length with an 86–100 cm wingspan and a body mass of 178–435 g. It has erect blackish ear-tufts, which are positioned in the centre of the head. The ear-tufts are used to make the owl appear larger to other owls while perched. The female is larger in size and darker in colouration than the male.

The Long-eared Owl's brownish feathers are vertically streaked. Tarsus and toes are entirely feathered. Eye disks are also characteristic in this species. However, the eye disks of A. otus are darker in colour or rusty-orange. This nocturnal species is perhaps most easily seen perched in a tree in its daytime roost, sometimes in small groups during the winter months. There are about six thousand long eared owls in the United States, and fifty thousand in the whole world.

Separation from short-eared owl
Over much of its range, Long-eared Owls occur with the similar-looking short-eared owl. At rest, the ear-tufts of the Long-eared Owl serve to easily distinguish the two (although Long-eared Owls can sometimes hold their ear-tufts flat). The iris-colour differs: yellow in short-eared, and orange in long-eared, and the black surrounding the eyes is vertical on long-eared, and horizontal on short-eared.

Overall, the short-eared owl tends to be a paler, sandier bird than the long-eared. There are a number of other ways in which the two species differ which are best seen when they are flying:

• short-eared owls often have a broad white band along the rear edge of the wing, which is not shown by Long-eared Owls;

• on the upperwing, the short-eared owl's primary-patches are usually paler and more obvious;

• the band on the upper side of the short-eared owl's tail are usually bolder than those of the long-eared;

• the short-eared's innermost secondaries are often dark-marked, contrasting with the rest of the underwing;

• the Long-eared Owl has streaking throughout its underparts whereas on the short-eared the streaking ends at the breast;

• the dark markings on the underside of the tips of the longest primaries are bolder on short-eared owls;

• the upperparts of short-eared owls are coarsely blotched, whereas on the long-eared they are more finely marked;

• the short-eared owl also differs structurally from the long-eared, having longer, slimmer wings: Long-eared Owls have wings shaped more like those of a tawny owl.

Length: 31 - 40 cm
Wingspan: 86 - 100 cm
Weight: 178 - 435 g
Longevity: 27 Years
Distinctive Feature
Similar Species


From opus at www.birdforum.net the forum for wild birds and birding.


Behaviour
The Long-eared Owl's breeding season is from February to July. This bird is partially migratory, moving south in winter from the northern parts of its temperate range. Its habitat is forest close to open country. Overall, these owls are secretive, and are rarely seen.

Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Eggs, Collection Museum Wiesbaden
By Klaus Rassinger und Gerhard Cammerer, Museum Wiesbaden - Own work,
CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=35796081


It nests in trees, often coniferous, using the old stick nests of other birds such as crows, ravens and magpies and various hawks. The average clutch size is 4–6 eggs, and the incubation time averages from 25–30 days. It will readily use artificial nesting baskets.

Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Long-eared Owl babies in nest
eBird hotspot: Lacul Nuntasi, Constanta, Romania - April 2022

An unusual characteristic of this species is its communal roosting in thickets during the winter months. The young have a characteristic call, likened to a rusty hinge.

The Long-eared Owl hunts over open country by night. It is very long winged, like the similar short-eared owl, and glides slowly on stiff wings when hunting. Its food is mainly rodents, small mammals, and birds.

In Europe it faces competition from the tawny owl and is most numerous in localities where the tawny is absent, notably in Ireland, where the long-eared is the dominant owl; it can occasionally be seen even in Dublin city centre, and breeds in the Phoenix Park to the west of the city.

Listen to the Long-eared Owl

Remarks from the Recordist

Female




www.xeno-canto.org


Conservation status
Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.



From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

www.birdforum.net


Sighted: (Date of first photo that I could use) 14 May 2019
Location: Stenåsabadet and Stora ören, Öland


Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Long-eared Owl / Hornuggla - 14 May 2019 - Stenåsabadet and Stora ören, Öland

Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Long-eared Owl / Hornuggla - 14 May 2019 - Stenåsabadet and Stora ören, Öland

Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Long-eared Owl / Hornuggla - 14 May 2019 - Stenåsabadet and Stora ören, Öland
We can see on the ears that it is very strong wind

Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, Hornuggla
Long-eared Owl / Hornuggla - 17 May 2019 - Stenåsabadet and Stora ören, Öland



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