The Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis) is a species of true owl. It is a resident species of old-growth forests in western North America, where it nests in tree holes, old bird of prey nests, or rock crevices. Nests can be between 12 to 60 metres (39 to 200 ft) high and usually contain two eggs (though some will contain as many as four). It is a nocturnal owl, which feeds on small mammals and birds, which has only been discovered recently.
This owl has a length of 43 cm (17 inches), a wingspan of 114 cm (45 in), and a weight of around 600 g (21 oz). Its eggs are a little over 50 mm (2.0 in) long, and are white and smooth with a slightly grainy texture. The female sits on the eggs and cares for the young, while the male provides food for them. Juvenile Spotted Owls have an average survival rate of 11%, with an average birth rate of 0.58 owls per pair.
The Spotted Owl is similar in appearance to the Barred Owl but has cross-shaped markings on the underparts, whereas the Barred Owl is alternately barred on the breast and streaked on the belly. Barred Owls are larger and grayer than Spotted Owls. In recent years the California and Northern subspecies of Spotted Owl have been displaced by Barred Owls, which are more aggressive, have a broader diet and occur in more varied habitats. Though the two species may hybridize in areas where displacement is occurring, they are quite genetically distinct, for example, differing 13.9% in certain gene sequences.
Read more about Spotted Owl: Subspecies, Distribution, Plant Communities, Preferred Habitat, Food Habits, Predators, Conservation
Famous quotes containing the words spotted and/or owl:
“Two feathered guests from Alabama, two together,
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And every day I, a curious boy, never too close, never disturbing
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Cautiously peering, absorbing, translating.”
—Walt Whitman (1819–1892)
“After sitting in my chamber many days, reading the poets, I have been out early on a foggy morning and heard the cry of an owl in a neighboring wood as from a nature behind the common, unexplored by science or by literature.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)