Boreal Owl, Aegolius funereus, is a small owl

Owl

Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...

. It is also known as the Tengmalm's Owl after Swedish naturalist Peter Gustaf Tengmalm

Peter Gustaf Tengmalm

Peter Gustaf Tengmalm was a Swedish physician and naturalist.Tengmalm was born in Stockholm and studied medicine at Uppsala University. He spent his spare time studying birds and became an accomplished taxidermist. He graduated in 1785 and moved to the town of Eskilstuna, where he worked as the...

. Other names for the owl include Richardson's Owl, Funeral Owl (latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

: funereus), Sparrow Owl and Pearl Owl (Finnish

Finnish language

Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...

: helmipöllö). This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owl

Typical owl

True owl or Typical owl are one of the two generally accepted families of Owls, the other being the barn owls . The Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy unites the Caprimulgiformes with the owl order; here, the typical owls are a subfamily Strigidae...

s, Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping is the barn owl

Barn Owl

The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as Common Barn Owl, to distinguish it from other species in the barn-owl family Tytonidae. These form one of two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical...

s, Tytonidae.

Description

The Boreal Owl is 22 – long with a 50 – wingspan. It is brown above, with white flecking on the shoulders. Below it is whitish streaked rust color. The head is large, with yellow eyes and a white facial disc, and a "surprised" appearance. The beak is yellow light colored rather than a dark beak like its relative, the Northern Saw-whet Owl

Northern Saw-whet Owl

The Northern Saw-whet Owl is a small owl native to North America.-Description:The scientific description of one of the sub-species of this owl is attributed to the Rev. John Henry Keen who was a missionary in Canada in 1896. Adults are long with a wingspan. They can weigh from with an average...

. The flight is strong and direct. Young birds are chocolate brown.

Behaviour

An unsociable nocturnal owl.

The bird's call is similar in sound to the "winnowing" of the North American Wilson's Snipe

Wilson's Snipe

Wilson's Snipe is a small, stocky shorebird. This species was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the Common Snipe, G. gallinago. Wilson's Snipe differs from the latter species in having a narrower white edge to the wings, and eight pairs of tail feathers instead of seven.Adults are...

.

This species is not normally migratory

Bird migration

Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...

, but in some autumns significant numbers move further south. It is rarely any great distance south of its breeding range, although this is partly due to the problems of detecting this nocturnal owl outside the breeding season when it is not calling.

Breeding

This bird

Bird

Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...

 breeds in dense coniferous forests across northern North America and Eurasia

Eurasia

Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...

, and in mountain ranges such as the Alps

Alps

The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....

 and the Rockies

Rocky Mountains

The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...

. It lays 3-6 eggs in a tree hole. Across much of Europe, and to a lesser extent in Asia and North America, naturalists and biologists put up nest boxes for these and other small owls.

Feeding and diet

This smallish owl eats mainly vole

Vole

A vole is a small rodent resembling a mouse but with a stouter body, a shorter hairy tail, a slightly rounder head, smaller ears and eyes, and differently formed molars . There are approximately 155 species of voles. They are sometimes known as meadow mice or field mice in North America...

s and other mammal

Mammal

Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...

s but also bird

Bird

Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...

s as well as insect

Insect

Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...

s and other invertebrates. It is largely nocturnal, though in the northern most parts of its range, it is forced to hunt during daylight because of the very short nights in summer.

Mortality

Banded Boreal owls have been known to live up to 16 years. Due to the owl's small stature it is often preyed upon by other owls and large raptors thus decreasing its average life span.

External links

• Boreal Owl at owlpages.com
• Boreal Owl videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection