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Eastern Screech-Owl

Eastern Screech-Owl

Megascops asio

Audubon Illustration

Audubon illustration of Eastern Screech-Owl

John James Audubon, Birds of America (1827-1838). Public domain.

Range & Recent Observations

Eastern Screech-Owlis a year-round resident and doesn't follow a migration flyway. See the Range tab for where it lives.

Last Spotted Near You

View on eBirdWikipedia

About the Eastern Screech-Owl

The eastern screech owl (Megascops asio) or eastern screech-owl is a stocky, short-tailed owl that is relatively common in Eastern North America, from Mexico to Canada. Mid-sized for a screech owl, the species resides in most types of woodland habitats across its range and is relatively adaptable to urban and developed areas compared to other owls. Although it often lives in close proximity to humans, the eastern screech owl frequently avoids detection due to its strictly nocturnal habits.

Source: Wikipedia

Classification

Scientific name
Megascops asio
Family
Owls
Order
Strigiformes

Similar species

Other members of the owls family recorded in North America — a useful place to start if you are not certain of your identification.

  • Balsas Screech-Owl Megascops seductus
  • Barred Owl Strix varia
  • Bearded Screech-Owl Megascops barbarus
  • Black-and-white Owl Strix nigrolineata
  • Boreal Owl Aegolius funereus
  • Burrowing Owl Athene cunicularia
  • Central American Pygmy-Owl Glaucidium griseiceps
  • Cinereous Owl Strix sartorii
  • Colima Pygmy-Owl Glaucidium palmarum
  • Crested Owl Lophostrix cristata
  • Elf Owl Micrathene whitneyi
  • Eurasian Eagle-Owl Bubo bubo

Know when the Eastern Screech-Owl turns up near you

Add it to your watchlist and draw an alert zone around the places you actually bird. Birdr checks eBird reports and tells you when one is seen inside it.

How rare bird alerts work →

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