[Length 16 in. Wingspan 42 in.]

This captive Barn Owl was photographed at an aviary in Lyndhurst, England, Great Britain. Photo taken with a Nikkor EDAF 180 f2.8 lens on Kodak Elitechrome 200 film. (Date: April 2002)

[Length 16 in. Wingspan 42 in.]

This captive Barn Owl was photographed at an aviary in Lyndhurst, England, Great Britain. Photo taken with a Nikkor EDAF 180 f2.8 lens on Kodak Elitechrome 200 film. (Date: April 2002)

[Length 6.75 in. Wingspan 12 in.]

This Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl was photographed at El Canelo Ranch, Raymondville, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm EDAF-S f4 lens (EFL=450mm) on a Nikon D100 camera. (Date: March 25, 2004)

[Length 6.75 in. Wingspan 12 in.]

This Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl was photographed at a private residence in Tucson, Arizona, USA. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Ektachrome 200 film. (Date: May 1985)

[Length 6.75 in. Wingspan 12 in.]

This Northern Pygmy-Owl was photographed at a mountain road, Lompoc, California, USA. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens on a Nikon D7100 camera. (Date: June 29, 2013)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

Screech-Owls are probably the most common owls in the United States. They are small, gray or reddish colored owls, with heavy streaking, small ear tufts, and glaring yellow eyes. They occur in a variety of habitats throughout the US and southern and western Canada, including forests, swamps, orchards, parks, and suburban woodlots. In the southwest, they also occur in desert areas. The Western Screech-Owl (Otus kennicottii) and the Eastern Screech-Owl (Otus asio) were once considered to be the same species. They are identical in plumage and overall appearance, and are best separated by range and vocalization differences. The songs and vocalizations of the two Screech-Owls are very different. The Eastern Screech-Owl gives either a quavering, descending series of whistled notes (which sounds a little like the "whinnying" of a horse), or a long, hollow-sounding trill. The Western Screech-Owl gives either a series of hollow, whistled notes which accelerate like the rhythm of a bouncing ball, or a short trill followed immediately by a longer trill. This captive gray-phase Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at a wildlife rehabilitation center in central New Jersey, USA. Photo taken with a 50mm f1.4 Pentax SMC Macro Lens on Kodachrome 64 film (photo courtesy Art and Hanna Richard). (Date: Unknown)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

Screech-Owls are probably the most common owls in the United States. They are small, gray or reddish colored owls, with heavy streaking, small ear tufts, and glaring yellow eyes. They occur in a variety of habitats throughout the US and southern and western Canada, including forests, swamps, orchards, parks, and suburban woodlots. In the southwest, they also occur in desert areas. The Western Screech-Owl (Otus kennicottii) and the Eastern Screech-Owl (Otus asio) were once considered to be the same species. They are identical in plumage and overall appearance, and are best separated by range and vocalization differences. The songs and vocalizations of the two Screech-Owls are very different. The Eastern Screech-Owl gives either a quavering, descending series of whistled notes (which sounds a little like the "whinnying" of a horse), or a long, hollow-sounding trill. The Western Screech-Owl gives either a series of hollow, whistled notes which accelerate like the rhythm of a bouncing ball, or a short trill followed immediately by a longer trill. This captive red-phase Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at a wildlife rehabilitation center in central New Jersey, USA. (photo courtesy Art and Hanna Richard). Photo taken with a 50mm f1.4 Pentax SMC Macro Lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: Unknown)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

This Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at the Magee Marsh boardwalk, Oak Harbor, Ohio, USA. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens (EFL=450mm) on a Nikon D300 camera. (Date: May 16, 2012)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

This Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at Anzalduas County Park, Mission, Texas, USA. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens on a Nikon D7100 camera. (Date: January 3, 2014)