BARN OWL
HABITAT/LOCATION: The Barn owl is the most widely distributed nocturnal bird in the world. In North
America it can be found as far north as south western British Columbia, North Dakota, southern Minnesota,
southern Wisconsin, southern Michigan, southern Ontario, and southern Quebec; to as far south as Baja
California, through Mexico to eastern Guatemala, from Texas through the Gulf States to southern Florida.
UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS:
 Acute sense of hearing allows them to locate their prey by sounds alone without the use of their vision.
 Able to hear a mouse’s feet patter at a distance of 46 metres, which is equal to half of a football field.
 Have a large facial disk around eyes and ears earning them the nickname “monkey faced owl”. One of
the most nocturnal owls, they tend to stand statue-still with their eyes closed and heads bowed during the
day.
 Eats prey items whole and later regurgitates a “pellet” which has the indigestible parts of the prey such
as bones, fur or feathers balled together.
 Spends more time flying than any other owl species.
 They can live 5 to 11 years in the wild although 90% die in the first year (starvation, collisions, killed by
predators).
 An excited Barn owl stamps its feet and looks and sounds like it is tap dancing.
 A frightened or irritated Barn owl spreads its wings, puffs out its body feathers so it looks much larger,
drops its head and swings it from side to side, sticks its tongue out from the corner of its mouth and will
even make a blood curdling screaming sound.
 One Barn owl eats two or three mice each night; or almost 1,000 mice a year!
WHAT THEY EAT: They mainly eat small rodents such as mice, rats, moles and voles. However, they are
opportunistic hunters and will also eat insects, moths, frogs, snakes, lizards and small birds such as sparrows.
SIZE AND WEIGHT: On average the Barn owl weighs about 442 grams and is about 441 millimetres in
length. The female is considerably larger in weight and height; weighing about 100 grams more and is about 37
millimetres taller. The wingspan of this species is about 1,044 millimetres (2 ¾ feet).
EGGS: Barn owls lay four to seven eggs in a clutch. They are pure white and resemble a small chicken egg
with one end being larger than the other. Barn owls become sexually mature at the young age of nine months
and unlike most owl species, they are capable of laying eggs at various times of the year.
REASONS FOR ENDANGERED STATUS: While the Barn owl is found all over the world and is
successfully surviving in many regions, it is officially a very threatened species in Ontario. This is due to the
fact that they lack readily available nest sites as old wooden barns are disappearing. The wooden barns burn
down or are torn down and are replaced by metal barns that lack cracks and crevices for the owls to sneak
through. Their natural predator, the Great Horned owl is a much larger and more powerful opponent, which can
easily kill the timid and rather fragile Barn owl. Southern Ontario is located at the northern most part of their
range. During the winter temperatures rodents hiding in the deep snow become too challenging for this delicate
bird whose feet are rather exposed and not protected by fluffy feathers such as those found on the Snowy owls
and Great Horned owls who winter here. Barn owls released in Ontario have been retrieved by bird banders and
rehabilitators 600 to 800 kilometres south of Lake Ontario. In other parts of the world where the Barn owl is
successful, there is a steady year round food supply and they are not forced to migrate due to the cold and lack
of prey.
WHERE TO SEE THEM WHILE “ON SAFARI”: The Barn owls are housed in the Birds of Prey
Conservation Centre and can be seen there. They may also be featured in the Birds of Prey Flying
demonstration.
AFRICAN LION SAFARI’S ACHIEVEMENTS: One female laid a clutch of 13 eggs so we put seven eggs
in the incubator and let her incubate the remaining 6. All thirteen owlets hatched and survived; this would
never happen in the wild. We constructed a Barn Owl nest box that is on display at the Discovery Centre so
that visitors could build their own nest boxes like it. We have released many of the young Barn owls hatched at
our nearby sheep farm where the owls can return to roost for safety and where they have a good chance of
survival with a healthy supply of mice and rats and several nearby barns for hiding spots. In 2010 African Lion
Safari was presented with the Col. G.D. Dailley, Innovation in Breeding Programs Award by Canada’s
Accredited Zoos and Aquariums (CAZA). This award is presented to institutions for their success in breeding
programs dealing with rare or endangered species. African Lion Safari’s Endangered Barn Owl Programme
hatched 13 Barn owls that were released into the wild. The Barn owls were equipped with a satellite transmitter
for tracking. The data collected provided valuable information on distribution, habitat and behaviour.
INTERESTING FACTS:
 A group of owls is knows as a “Parliament”
 There are 13 owl species native to Ontario.
 Most owls, including the Barn Owl, are completely silent flyers due to the fluffy and serrated design of
their feathers. In this way they can hear the subtle sounds of their prey and are not encumbered by the
distracting sound of their own flapping wings.
 Barn Owls frequent barns. When people saw these floating white forms silently cruising through the
barn rafters at night, they thought their barns were haunted with ghosts.