Elf Owl

Micrathene whitneyiOrder: STRIGIFORMESFamily: True Owls (Strigidae)

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Elf Owl

Elf Owl: Small owl, gray-brown body heavily mottled white and cinnamon-brown. Round head lacks ear tufts; facial disk bordered by thin, black line. Eyes are pale yellow highlighted by white eyebrows. Wings are long. Bristly feathers sparsely cover feet and legs. Tail is short with 3 to 5 pale bars.

● Song: "CHU-ur-ur-ur", "cheeur"

● Foraging & Feeding: Elf Owl: Eats insects, other arthropods, small mammals, and small birds. Often hovers to spook insect prey into flight, and then captures it in mid-air.

● Breeding & nesting: Elf Owl: One to five white eggs are laid in an abandoned woodpecker hole in a tree or large cactus. Incubation ranges from 14 to 24 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Elf Owl: Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl and Northern Pygmy owls have longer tails, black eyespots on napes, and heavily streaked underparts.

Flight Pattern

Silent wing beats., Mothlike flight.

● Range & Habitat: Elf Owl: Resident in southwest U.S. and Mexico. Preferred habitats include deserts, thorn scrub, and mesquite or deciduous riparian woodlands; most abundant in deserts dominated by giant saguaro.

^BreedingMonogamous

^PopulationFairly common to common, Widespread

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight1.4 Ounces

Field Guide to Birds of North America

Elf Owl

Elf Owl

Flight Pattern