Barn owl: description, habitat, photo. barn owl black barn owl

The barn owl is well known to residents of Western European countries, however, little is known about it in Russia. This is the most ancient branch of the owl order. Its Latin name sounds like Tyto alba, and English - Barn owl. The people called her a night owl, a ghostly and screeching owl. Its distinguishing features are a peculiar voice and the shape of the head. Who is this barn owl, and what kind of life does she lead? Let's talk in more detail in this article about one of the most common owls in the world.

Barn owl: description

The name of this one, apparently, came from the peculiarity of her voice, reminiscent of a kind of snoring or vulture. It differs from other representatives of owls in the shape of the facial disk in the form of a heart, while it seems that it is wearing a white mask. The small bird has a light color and a peculiar face. It is about the same size as a long-eared owl or jackdaw. It reaches a length of 33-39 cm, its body weight is 300-355 g, and its wingspan is about 90 cm. By the way, its weight can vary widely and depends individually on a particular individual. It can be either 180 g or 700 g.

In the upper part, its color has acquired a sandy (red) color with white and dark speckles. The barn owl is white in the lower part (rarely yellow), in addition, dark blotches are present in the plumage. The facial disc is light and has a flattened appearance, it also received an ocher border, under the eyes there is a small area of ​​red feathers. Wings - fawn-white, with a golden-striated pattern. - dark brown or black. Her eyes are expressive and large. It has a slender physique, and it also has long paws, which have thick and fluffy plumage to the fingers. She has a short tail. The beak is yellowish white. By the way, the color of the lower part depends on the habitat of the barn owl. For example, in North Africa, Western and Southern Europe, in the Middle East it is white, but in the rest of Europe it is yellow-orange.

By gender, outwardly, they practically do not differ from each other. The females are slightly darker, but this is not very noticeable. Young chicks also do not differ from adults, sometimes they are more colorful.

As we have noticed, such a bird as a barn owl has a very memorable appearance, the photo clearly demonstrates this to us.

Habitat

There are 35 subspecies of the barn owl, which are distributed on all continents, excluding only Antarctica, and they are also found on the islands. Previously, it could be found in the Baltic States and other CIS countries: now it lives there in small numbers. On the territory of Russia, it is found only in the Kaliningrad region. In the European part, it is absent in the northern regions and mountain systems.

On the one hand, the barn owl is adapted to various geographical conditions, as it is distributed almost everywhere, and on the other hand, it does not have the ability to accumulate fat reserves in itself, therefore it does not tolerate a harsh climate. In the northern regions of the United States and in most of Canada, in Northern Europe and almost throughout Russia, for this reason, it is not. The bird cannot also live in the African and Asian deserts.

There were cases when the barn owl was artificially populated by humans in areas where it had never been. Thus, she appeared in the Seychelles and Hawaiian Islands, in New Zealand. After the barn owl was settled in the Seychelles, the kestrel population began to decline, on which it fed.

Favorite places to stay

Barn owl almost always settles near human dwellings. It breeds both in large cities and in rural areas. He likes to settle in attics, in hollows and wall niches. Prefers rooftops and abandoned buildings. The barn owl is most often found in open plains where there are few trees. These can be places such as woodlands, swamps, dense meadows, and the bird also lives along wastelands, reservoirs, ravines and highways.

It can often be found where agricultural farms and human habitations are located. Barn owl tries to avoid dense forests and high mountainous places. For this bird, the following conditions are necessary for distribution: the availability of food, the absence of cold winters and weak competition with other predators. Basically, they do not change their habitat, the exceptions are situations when the food supply in their habitat is depleted.

What does he eat?

Her favorite food is mouse-like rodents, she can also cope with pasyuki (large She can catch up to 15 mice per night. Rarely eats small birds, in particular sparrows, as well as large and amphibious insects. Rats can be used as food , voles, hamsters, shrews, opossums.They can also catch bats, frogs, reptiles and invertebrates.The owl grabs the victim right on the fly, clamps it with its tenacious claws and carries it to a place where it can safely feast on it.

The peculiarities of the location of the hearing aid allow the bird to capture all the sounds that the victim makes, which helps her a lot when hunting. Her ears have an asymmetrical arrangement: one of them is at the level of the nostrils, and the other is in the forehead.

Barn owl's characteristic voice

She makes a hoarse whistling noise. Barn owls defiantly flap their wings and click their beaks. By the way, this feature of them can involuntarily terrify people who decide to relax in the silence of the forest and meet with her. Many sounds made by this owl have been noted, but still the hoarse screeching trill that can be heard during its flight is still the predominant one. The call of a female barn owl is lower in tone.

By the way, she got her Russian for a low, rattling, hoarse cry that sounds like “heee”. They emit it more often than the usual owl hoot. Her peculiar hoarse voice resembles a hoarse cough.

nocturnal lifestyle

She flies out to hunt in the late twilight and is strictly nocturnal. As a rule, they live alone, but can be found in small groups in areas where game accumulates. Since barn owls lead at night, they sleep during the day. For sleep, they choose some kind of niche, natural or artificial - it can be a hole in the ground or an unused attic.

During the hunt, they change height - they either rise up, then descend again, flying around the possessions. They can also wait for the victim, hiding in ambush. Their wings are designed in such a way that their flight is as silent and soft as possible, in addition, they have excellent vision and hearing. By the way, in some regions barn owls hunt during the day, for example, in Britain, but at this time of day there is a danger for them in the form of birds of prey, such as gulls.

The barn owl kills its prey with its claws, then steps on it with a long leg and tears it with its beak. It has a very mobile neck, thanks to which it can eat prey without bending over. During the meal, the feathers of the facial disc move, and it seems that the owls grimace.

reproduction

The barn owl is usually monogamous, but cases of polygamy are also not excluded. In a year there is one, less often two clutches. The beginning of the breeding season depends, as a rule, on the climatic conditions of the habitats and the amount of food. In warmer regions and where there is plenty of food, they can breed at any time of the year. For example, in the temperate zone of Europe or North America, this begins in March-June. If there is a re-laying, then the hatching of the chicks will take place in the period March-May and June-August.

The male himself chooses the place where the nest will be, and then begins to call the female. As such, the nest is not built; a closed and dark place is chosen for this. This may be a recess in an old stump, a tree hollow and other niches. The female is engaged in incubating the eggs, while the male brings her food. The conditional nest is located at a height of 2-20 meters above the ground, the clutch size is usually 4-7 eggs, but can be from 2 to 14. There are more of them, as a rule, during periods characterized by an abundance of food. The size of the eggs, which are white or cream in color, averages 30-35 mm.

During the breeding season, birds make various sounds. They scream shrillly and hoarsely, hoot and sniff, making a characteristic “heee” sound. The rest of the time, as a rule, owls are silent. The female incubates the eggs for about a month. Juveniles fly out of the nest on the 50-55th day of life.

By the way, a pair of owls remains together until the death of one of the partners. The female and male live close to each other, but one by one.

Behavior in times of danger

In a calm state, a sitting barn owl holds its body straight, and if the bird is worried, it takes a threatening pose - it spreads its paws, spreads its wings in a horizontal plane and clings to the ground. When she meets the violator of her territorial possessions, she actively flaps her wings, coming closer and closer to the enemy. Hissing loudly and snapping its beak. If this does not help, then she attacks the enemy, falling on his back and striking with her clawed paws.

Barn owl chicks

The hatched chicks are completely dependent on their parents, who take turns feeding them. At birth, they are covered with thick white down. In the event that it is very cold, the barn owl does not leave the nest at all and warms the chicks, which become completely independent after three months. Grown up chicks fly away to new places and find another territory for living and reproduction. A barn owl can have even 10 chicks at a time, if conditions allow, but in a hungry year, as a rule, no more than 4 eggs are expected.

It is noted that the behavior of their chicks is atypical for birds: they show altruism, refusing food in favor of those who are more hungry than they are. Compared to most other birds, in which the cubs literally tear food from each other in order to eat themselves, this fact is of great interest to such a bird as the barn owl. A photo of her chicks shows how they look when they are born.

Parents show concern even after their chicks fly out of the nest: they continue to care for them and feed them until they become completely independent, that is, they reach the age of three months.

people attitude

The barn owl has always been a symbol of wisdom among people, but at the same time they treated this bird with superstitious fear. Now superstitions are becoming a thing of the past, and a person is increasingly showing genuine interest in her. Barn owls instilled fear in people because of some of their features: a white face resembling a mask, frightening sounds, and also because of the habit of this bird to silently fly up and appear sharply in front of a person, for which people called it a ghostly owl.

The barn owl mainly feeds on rodents, thereby benefiting humans. People have long appreciated the help of these owls in the destruction of pests. So, in the 17th century, such a practice spread when special windows were made in houses, barns, mills and other buildings through which barn owls could penetrate and destroy rodents. Thus, the birds remained full, and benefits were brought to man.

If they notice a number of people, they begin to behave very interestingly: they rise high, sway on their feet in different directions and at the same time depict various grimaces. If you get very close to her, then she, as a rule, flies away.

How long does a barn owl live?

Under natural conditions, barn owls can live up to 18 years, but this is the maximum figure. In fact, it turns out that they basically live very little - their average life expectancy is about 2 years. Cases have been recorded when a barn owl was able to live in natural conditions up to 17 years, in North America a bird in captivity died at the age of 11.5 years, but in England a record was broken - the bird lived in captivity for 22 years.

We talked about such an interesting bird as the barn owl, about what habits it has and how it is useful for humans. Unfortunately, due to changes in the environment and the use of pesticides in various parts of Europe, the number of barn owls is declining. It is also not uncommon for birds to die from collisions with cars on the roads. Currently, the barn owl is a bird that is listed in the Red Books of a number of countries in Eastern Europe, where, for unknown reasons, in recent decades there has been a rapid decrease in its numbers.

barn owl bird belongs directly to the barn owl family and is a predator, although its size is quite small. The bird has many names that have been given to it in various legends and folk art, for example: a screeching or ghostly owl, a night owl, a “bird with a monkey face” and others.

Indeed, just look at barn owl photo in order to understand that in the image of this feathered one there is a certain resemblance to a primate.

Barn owl features and habitat

Scientists ornithologists could not rank barn owls in any particular group, so they decided to “assign” them to their own category. barn owl is the most common species, and is found today on virtually all continents except Antarctica.

Despite the fact that the barn owl is a predator, and the most nocturnal of all owls, its dimensions are very modest: body length ranges from twenty-five to fifty centimeters, and weight - from two hundred to eight hundred grams.

Barn owl females are larger than males by about ten percent. The plumage of birds is fluffy and soft. The upper part of the body and head are usually dark gray or brown in color, while the entire surface of the body is strewn with speckles.

The belly, muzzle and chest are white, often with spots. The body of the barn owl is slender, with black claws on dark pink fingers. The eyes of these birds are extremely expressive, with a beautiful iris of a fancy color.

barn owl To date, laziness has settled virtually over the entire surface of the globe, with the exception of Antarctica and some regions and countries with a cold climate, such as North America and Canada.

Since the barn owl's body is not predisposed to the accumulation of fat reserves, low temperatures are absolutely not suitable for these. On the territory of Russia, barn owls can only be found in the region of the Kaliningrad region.

Mountainous areas with high altitudes and arid deserts of Africa also do not suit barn owls. In the twentieth century, the bird was artificially imported to the Canary, Hawaiian and Seychelles, so now many of its varieties live there.

Barn owls live in a huge variety of natural conditions and geographical landscapes, however, the bird prefers to settle on open plains with a sparse forest and with an abundance of swamps and reservoirs nearby.

Ravines, wastelands and meadows are also favorite habitats for barn owls. Often they are located near human habitations and farmlands, since food and, in particular, small rodents can always be found here.

Barn owl mask or australian barn owl distributed not only in Australia, but also in New South Wales, Tasmania and some other territories.

Pictured is a masked barn owl

Australian barn owls differ from other representatives of their species not only in their colorful appearance, but also in size: female barn owls are considered the largest of all other species.

Barn owl- at the current time it is considered the least studied species, since its activity occurs in the dead of night and is hidden from human observation. Settles mainly among eucalyptus forests, edges and meadows of New Guinea and the eastern part of the Australian continent.

Pictured is a black barn owl

The nature and lifestyle of the barn owl bird

The barn owl received the nickname "ghostly owl" for its ability to abruptly appear right in the face of an unsuspecting person, without making the slightest sound.

It is believed that the Russian-language name "barn owl", in turn, the bird earned for its own slightly hoarse voice, which is able to frighten a random traveler lost in the forest.

In addition to the ability to silently move through the air, the barn owl has a very developed vision and auditory receptors that allow it to hunt in the middle of the night, perfectly orienting itself in pitch darkness.

During the day, the barn owl sits in a hollow, on the roof or in another reliable shelter. barn owl - owl, which prefers a solitary lifestyle, however, in those places where there is an abundance of food, small groups and clusters of birds can be observed.

The barn owl is often busy flying over its own territory, during which it changes altitude many times. Noticing an unwanted guest, the owl begins to make threatening movements in order to intimidate the opponent.

Flapping its wings, the barn owl can attack the enemy both with the help of its strong paws and by using its beak, frighteningly clicking it during the attack.

It is not uncommon for barn owls to build their nests in close proximity to humans: in the attics of residential buildings, in sheds or outbuildings. In the wild, this owl can easily take someone else's nest or hole.

barn owl nutrition

Barn owl is a bird of prey that hunts mainly in the dead of night. Going hunting, she flies quite low, dropping above the ground, looking out for her potential prey.

The main food in the diet of barn owls are various small rodents: hamsters, rats, field mice, and many others.

The prey of these birds varies depending on the region of habitat, and birds, even predatory ones, frogs, reptiles and some varieties of invertebrates get into the food of owls.

barn owl- not the best option as a pet, because firstly, the body of owls is designed in such a way that they need to eat at least three live rodents a day, so if you decide buy barn owl, then be sure to take this fact into account.

Secondly, the barn owl is a nocturnal bird, so as a pet it is suitable only for people who sleep during the day and stay awake at night.

Barn owl reproduction and lifespan

The breeding season for birds continues during the first two months of spring. The place for the future nest is determined by the male, and it must be carefully hidden from human eyes and all sorts of ill-wishers and enemies.

In the photo barn owl chicks

Usually birds arrange their nests at a respectful height from the ground. For one laying, the female brings from four to seven eggs, of which the first chicks appear in a month. After a month and a half, the offspring grows stronger and leaves the nest for independent living.

About three-quarters of all young offspring die in the first year of life, the rest live to about eleven years. There are cases when, in captivity, barn owls reached a respectable age of several decades.

• Order: Striges, or Strigiformes = Owls, owl-shaped
• Family: Tytonidae = barn owls

Species: Tyto tenebricosa = Black or ash barn owl

The Black or Ash Barn Owl (The Sooty Owl), an elusive and little-studied bird found in the southern Australian rainforests. Among barn owls, she has the largest eyes. Its habitat: coastal and mountainous areas of southeastern Australia from Dandenong (Melbourne area) to Conandale (north of Brisbane). There are reports of their meeting on Flinder Island in Bass Strait, and they are also found in Montene in the rainforests of New Guinea.

The black owl is a medium sized bird. The plumage is ash-black in color, and on the facial disk are very large eyes, outlined in black circles. Against the background of ash-black plumage, there are small white spots on the head and large, but more rare white spots on the wings. The front disk is painted in gray or silvery colors, it is framed by a black border. In plumage there are transitions from ash-black to dark gray or slightly whitish colors. The plumage on the belly is always lighter than on the chest. The tail is very short. The beak of the ashy owl differs in color from the facial disc. Dark gray paws with large black claws. There is no sexual dimorphism, birds of both sexes are colored the same. However, the female is usually slightly larger than the males. Its length is 44-51 cm, weight 750-1000 gr, while the male has a length of 37-43 cm and a weight of 500-700 gr.

The black owl differs from the lesser ash owl in darker plumage and larger size, and white spots located on top are more rare. And where the little ashy owl has dark spots on a light background, the ashen owl has just light spots.

The voice of the ashen owl is a characteristic penetrating low cry, the duration of which is about two seconds. This sound is similar to the sound of a falling bomb, only without the final explosion, which is why such a cry is called - "bomb whistle". "There are many other calls, the production of which is associated with reproduction and mating season.

Ash owls live in the deepest ravines. They are little studied precisely because they are active mainly at night - they are the most nocturnal of all Australian owls. Their very large eyes provide excellent vision. Ash owls are strong and agile hunters, so quite often rather large representatives of forest fauna become their prey, which owls track down while sitting on a tree. In this they differ not only from the lesser ash owl, but also from other representatives of the barn owl family, which track prey in flight above the ground.

Opossums make up the majority of the ash owl's prey, but other mammals have also been recorded. There are no detailed descriptions of the hunting methods of these owls. It is only known that the male hunts only late at night and during the mating season, and during the period of incubation and feeding of chicks, and brings the prey to the nest once.

Seasonality in reproduction is not expressed. Ash owl breeding can occur regardless of the time of year, although eggs are mainly laid between January and June, but there are cases of nesting in the spring, from August to September. During this period, the males become very noisy, they often make a “bomb whistle” call. A pair of owls make a nest in a large hollow of an old but living tree, and then lines and insulates it with soft bedding. The nest can be located on a tree at any height from 10 to 50 meters. Several cases of nesting of the ashy owl in caves are known, which, apparently, is due to the lack of suitable hollow trees. Females occupy the hollow a few weeks before the start of laying eggs, and leave it only at night for a very short time. If the nest is located in a cave, then the female does not leave it at all.

Ash owl females usually lay 1-2 rounded white eggs, 44-52 mm long and 36-41 mm wide. Hatching lasts about 42 days. The male feeds the female right in the nest. The chicks are first covered with gray down and fledge by about 3 months. The chick of a newly fledged ashy owl depends on its parents for some time, and then leaves the nest forever.

The ash owl's habitat is deep, damp ravines in eucalyptus forests, usually with large, old, smooth-bore, fern-covered trees. Dappled owls are sedentary birds, they adhere to their own territorial boundaries. But they can also hunt in dry forests, but they need high humidity during the breeding season and for shelters.

Tyto multipunctata (Mathews , )

Tyto multipunctata - a bird of the barn owl family, living in Australia.

area

Tyto multipunctata inhabits dense tropical forests on the plains of Northeast Australia: northeast Queensland (Cooktown - Townsville line, vicinity of Lake Itham). Some researchers include this species in Tyto tenebricosa(black barn owl).

Appearance

Tyto multipunctata noticeably inferior in size to the black barn owl, which lives in forests in northern Queensland. Endemic to the tropical rainforests of this area of ​​Australia. Both types of barn owls are often called silver barn owls, referring to the silvery-white color of the underside of the bird. The barn owl is lighter in color of the upper body, it is often grayish-brown with a large number of light silver-white speckles on the head and wings; there are also black birds, but also very colorful. The facial disc is large - silvery white around the eyes. Around the disk there is a bright border of short dark feathers. The underside of the body is silvery white with many dark spots, which are especially numerous on the chest, which makes the chest look dark gray. The tail is very short. The eyes are large, the iris is black. The beak is light gray, the legs are light gray, the fingers are adapted for capturing prey: two are directed forward, two are backward, the claws are black. Slight sexual dimorphism in size: the female is slightly larger (male 33 cm, female 37 cm). On average, the body length of small barn owls ranges from 31-38 cm.

Lifestyle

Barn owls lead a secretive life, but their location can be determined by the cry, which eyewitnesses identify as "bomb whistle". This is a loud trill-whistle, turning into a loud scream, heard at a great distance. When threatening, the barn owl clicks its tongue, making clacking sounds to irritate its opponent.

Tyto multipunctata- hollow nest. For nesting, it chooses large hollows of a living tree, sometimes in a fork of large knots, giving preference to trees called rose gum. In other cases, it occupies natural depressions between the roots of trees and in natural niches along the slopes of the banks. Male and female adhere to each other for a long time, but outside the nesting season they live alone and spend daytime in different places. The female lays two eggs and incubates them for 42 days. The male brings prey to the female in the nest several times a night. The number of breeding pairs in the rainforests of north Queensland is estimated at 2,000 pairs. Barn owls inhabit the area from the mountains south of Cooktown to the north of this area. For them, the optimal territory is 50 hectares.

Hunting

When hunting, barn owls are able to overcome dense rainforest at night, locating their prey and attacking it. They feed on terrestrial animals: rats, other rodents, bandicoots, lizards, frogs and other small mammals. Sometimes they prey on arboreal animals, birds and possums. Since barn owls are at the beginning of the food chain, the size of their livestock depends on the food supply. Another deterrent is human anxiety. These are territorial birds that do not move far from their possessions.

Systematics

Russian name - ordinarybarn owl
Latin name - Tyto alba
English name - Barn owl
Bird class - Aves
Order - owls (Strigiformes)
Family - barn owls (Tytonidae)
Genus - barn owls (Tyto)

Barn owls are the most ancient branch of the owl order, as evidenced by the richness of fossil forms. Now they are preserved only in the form of a small relic group.

Conservation status of the species

The barn owl is not among the endangered species, but the reduction in its usual nesting sites is a serious danger to it. In the East of Europe in recent decades, for unknown reasons, there has been a catastrophic decline in the number of barn owls. The species has almost disappeared from the Baltic countries and Belarus, has become rare in Ukraine and Moldova. Now the barn owl is listed in the Red Books of a number of Eastern European countries.

View and person

Barn owls often gravitate towards human dwellings, settling in attics, outbuildings, ruins, churches, and belfries. It is not for nothing that in English “barn owl” is translated as “barn owl”. In cities, where there are always a lot of rats and mice, barn owls always easily find food for themselves. And besides, the "urban" barn owls have learned to hunt nocturnal insects and bats by the light of lanterns.

Like other types of owls, people have always treated barn owls with superstitious fear, especially since they were most often met near their homes. And just like other owls, barn owls were a symbol of wisdom. Now superstitions about owls, fortunately, are a thing of the past, and people treat these birds with obvious sympathy. And the role of barn owls in the fight against urban rodents is obvious and not disputed by anyone.

Distribution and habitats

The barn owl is one of the most common birds in the world. It is found on all continents, with the exception of Antarctica, and on many islands, including remote ones. However, the barn owl does not tolerate the cold northern climate, so it is not found in the northern regions of Canada and Northern Europe. Barn owl has been successfully introduced (settled) on many remote islands: Hawaiian, Seychelles, New Zealand. However, the introduction of the barn owl to the Seychelles in 1949 showed how fragile the natural balance is and how easy it is to break. The fact is that the barn owl in the Seychelles began to hunt not only rats, but also the endemic Seychelles kestrel, whose numbers began to decline sharply.

More than 30 subspecies of barn owls are distinguished on the territory of a vast range.

In our country, barn owl is found only in the Kaliningrad region.

The barn owl lives in a variety of biotopes, avoiding only dense forests. This is one of the few bird species that benefited from human economic activity in deforestation and agricultural development, as this expanded the food base and made it possible to spread very widely. The barn owl willingly settles next to a person's housing.

Appearance and morphology

Barn owl is a slender owl with long legs. It is this somewhat “elongated” upward shape that barn owls differ from all other owls. The body length is 33–39 cm, the wingspan is 80–95 cm, and the average weight is 300–400 g. The plumage is very soft and fluffy. The upper part of the body is usually buffy-red, with transverse gray streaks and numerous small dark stripes and speckles. The bottom is golden-red with a rare dark speck. The facial disc is white and heart-shaped, which also immediately distinguishes the barn owl from other owls.

Males and females almost do not differ from each other in color.

Feeding and feeding behavior

The barn owl's diet is based on various mouse-like rodents and shrews. However, she also catches birds, including birds of prey, and bats, and frogs, and insects. During the hunt, an owl either flies around its possessions, constantly changing height - up and down, or waits for a prey from an ambush. The flight of barn owls is soft and silent, since the wings are designed so that the ends of the flight feathers dampen the sound of flight.

Barn owls kill their prey with their claws, and then, stepping on it with their long foot, they tear it apart with their beak. Their neck is so mobile that they can eat almost without bending over their prey. When eating, the feathers of the owl's facial disc move all the time when opening and closing its mouth, so it seems that barn owls constantly grimace while eating.

Vocalization

The barn owl's voice - a special hoarse "heee" - was the origin of the Russian name for the bird. In general, barn owls are the most "talkative" during the nesting period. At this time, they hoarsely or shrillly scream and hoot. Barn owls are usually silent outside the breeding season. In addition to vocal sounds, they sometimes click their beaks or flap their wings defiantly.

Lifestyle and social structure

Barn owls lead a solitary lifestyle, but in places rich in prey, they can stay in small groups. This is one of the most "nocturnal" owls. Barn owls sleep during the day, and for the night they choose some natural or artificial niche: a hollow, a hole or an old attic in the house. They live, as a rule, settled, but in the absence of prey (“not mouse years”), they can migrate to a new place.

When meeting a violator of its territorial possessions, the barn owl spreads its wings and waves them, approaching the enemy closely. At this time, the owl hisses loudly and clicks its beak. The posture of threat, such as that of other owls, is absent in barn owls. Instead, it spreads its wings in a horizontal plane and lies flat on the ground with its plumage tightly pressed. If such a display does not help, the barn owl may attack the enemy, falling on his back and striking with clawed feet.

When a person approaches, barn owls usually rise high on their long legs and gently sway, while actively moving the feathers of the facial disc, “grimacing”, and then fly away
The sight of barn owls is very well developed, they see perfectly both in the dark and in bright light.

Hearing, like all other owls, is also well developed. The ears are located on the sides of the head asymmetrically, the left one is higher, the right one is lower. This structure of the hearing aid helps birds to hear the sounds made by potential victims from different angles. Short thick feathers framing the faceplate are good sound reflectors. Barn owls are very susceptible to all sound signals, and in case of too loud sound, they cover their ear holes with peculiar plugs covered with small feathers.

Reproduction and parenting behavior

Since barn owls live in different climatic conditions, their breeding season also falls at different times. In the tropics, there is no seasonality of breeding at all; in temperate latitudes, owls start breeding in March-April.

Barn owls are monogamous, but sometimes there are cases of polygamy (1 male and several females). They nest in separate pairs, in natural conditions - in hollows, burrows, nests of other birds; barn owls do not build their own nests. In the anthropogenic landscape, they nest in attics, on bell towers, in barns. Nests are located at different heights, but usually not higher than 20 m above the ground.

With the onset of the mating season, the male flies around the tree chosen for the nest, making sharp hoarse sounds to attract the attention of the female. Then he starts chasing the female, and during the chase, both birds already scream hoarsely together. After mating, the female lays 4–8 (in "mouse years" up to 16) rather small oblong eggs (other owls have round eggs), white or cream in color. Eggs are laid at intervals of 1 or 2 days. The incubation period lasts 29–34 days, only the female incubates, and the male feeds her all this time. The hatched chicks are covered with thick white fluff and are completely helpless. Their parents take turns bringing them food. After 35–45 days, the chicks leave the nest, and at the age of 50–55 days they begin to fly. They become completely independent at the age of 3 months, and then scatter. The last week of life with their parents, the young hunt with them, adopting the hunting experience of the elders. Barn owls are characterized by a very large radius of flight of young ones - hundreds and even thousands of kilometers.

In "mouse years", barn owls, even in temperate latitudes, can have 2 successful clutches per season.

The young can start breeding as early as 10 months of age.

Lifespan

According to ringing, barn owls can live in nature up to 18 years, but their average life expectancy is much less - about 2 years. However, there are also "champion" results: in North America, the barn owl lived in captivity for 11 years and 6 months; in Holland, a barn owl lived in nature up to 17 years and the record holder is a barn owl from England, who lived in captivity for 22 years.

Keeping animals in the Moscow Zoo

In our zoo, barn owls live in the Night World pavilion, which, of course, is optimal for this species. Now there are 5 birds. At the exposition, you can always see 1 pair, the rest “rest” in a non-exhibition room, the birds are changed once a year. Most barn owls are sourced from nature. One pair of barn owls breeds regularly, they already had 4 broods. They incubate the clutch and feed the chicks themselves.

The diet of the barn owl in the zoo consists of 6 mice daily.