Barred Owl Facts
Discover answers to the most popular questions with these Barred Owl facts, including classification, identification, habitat and range, hunting and diet, behavior, and conservation status.
Classification
How Are Barred Owls Classified?
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Aves
Order: Strigiformes
Family: Strigidae
Genus: Strix
Species: S. varia
Identification
What Does a Barred Owl Look Like?
This striking owl, one of the larger North American species, is distinguished by its perfectly round head and hypnotic black eyes. Its feather coat features a horizontally speckled brown hood and collar with brown stripes running vertically down the wings and body. It’s the perfect camouflage for hunting among the trees.
How Big Is a Barred Owl?
At 16.9 to 19.7 inches tall, the Barred Owl is only slightly smaller than the Great Horned Owl. It has a wingspan of nearly 3-4 feet and weighs between 16.6 and 37 ounces. Like most owl species, the female Barred Owl is larger than the male. [1]
What Do Barred Owls Sound Like?
The Barred Owl is often referred to as the “hoot owl” due to its distinctive call, but it can be challenging to identify by sound because it has so many calls in its vocal repertoire. The pair caterwauling call is uniquely fascinating, sounding like something you would hear from an exotic creature in the rainforest. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has excellent recorded examples of various Barred Owl calls. [2]
Habitat and Range
Are Barred Owls Only Found in the United States?
The Barred Owl is widely distributed throughout North America, including the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
In Canada, it can be found in British Columbia, Canada, extending eastward through Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia. [3]
In the United States, the owls are found in the east as far south as Texas, the Gulf Coast, and southern Florida. It has recently expanded westward and can be found in southern Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. [4]
Barred Owls can also be found further south into the Plateau of Mexico from Durango to Guerrero and Oaxaca. [5]
Where Do Barred Owls Nest?
Barred Owls prefer to find cover in densely vegetated forests. They make a home of any secure tree hollow that will provide them with adequate protection. Trees of choice are tall and mature, with dense foliage and hollows more than 25 feet from the ground. [6]
Less often, they may occupy large, abandoned nests of crows, hawks, or squirrels. The fact that they are usually found nesting in wetlands has previously led to the conclusion that they prefer to live near a water source. However, current research suggests that this habitat selection may be due in part to the vegetation preferences of these areas rather than a desire to live close to a water source. [7]
Hunting and Diet
What Do Barred Owls Eat?
Barred Owls feed on small mammals, including mice, squirrels, juvenile rabbits, chipmunks, and bats. They will feed on fish, amphibians, reptiles, and birds to a lesser extent. Like all owls, Barred Owls are birds of prey, making a meal of what is available to them in the ecosystem, so their primary prey is whatever is most abundant in the area. For example, in Montana, researchers recorded that meadow and montane voles account for 96.3% of their diet, while in Louisiana, crayfish make up a larger portion of their diet. [8]
Owls do not digest food in the same manner that we do. They swallow their food whole, and the parts that they cannot digest, such as bones, teeth, and fur, are compacted into pellets and coughed up. [9]
How Do Barred Owls Catch Their Prey?
The Barred Owl is a still hunter perching in a favorite spot until it locates prey. They will then swoop down from the perch and grab the prey with their sharp talons. [10]
Do Barred Owls Have Predators?
The Barred Owl has few predators except for the Great Horned Owl. They do need to guard their nest vigilantly against predators such as weasels and raccoons, as well as other owls and hawks that will feed on their eggs or hatchlings. [11]
Behavior
Are Barred Owls Nocturnal?
Barred Owls are primarily nocturnal, generally roosting during daylight hours. Although they cannot see in total darkness, they possess excellent low-light vision and incredible hearing that enables them to locate small prey from impressive distances. [12]
Do Barred Owls Migrate?
Barred owls are non-migratory and vehemently territorial, which can range from one-third to one-and-one-half square miles. [13]
They are initially a solitary species until they mate. They will remain with their mates in one area for their entire lives. Some movement may occur if the environment ceases to provide adequate prey or is threatened. [14]
Barred Owl Facts – Conservation Status
Are Barred Owls Endangered?
As of July 2025, Barred Owls in the United States are currently not protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). The US Fish and Wildlife Service regulates the ESA with cooperation from the National Marine Fisheries Service. [15]
Interestingly, they pose a threat to the Northern Spotted Owl, which is listed as threatened in the United States. Due partly to the recent westward expansion of the more aggressive and larger Barred Owl, the Spotted Owl is being pushed out of its habitat, and its numbers are decreasing.
When Spotted Owls and Barred Owls share the same environment, the latter are generally more aggressive and out-compete the former, leading to decreased populations of the native owls. [16]
References
- [1][11][14] Cornell University Lab of Ornithology – “Great Barred Owl.”
- [2][12] South Carolina Department of Natural Resources – “Species: Barred Owl.”
- [3][4][5] Sibley, Charles Gald, and Burt L. Monroe. Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1990. Print.
- [6][7][8][13] Allen, Arthur W. US Fish and Wildlife Service – “Habit Suitability Index Models: Barred Owl.”
- [9] National Audobon Society – “What Is an Owl Pellet?”
- [10] National Audobon Society – “10 Fun Facts About the Barred Owl.”
- [15] US Fish and Wildlife Service – “Listing a Species as Threatened or Endangered.”
- [16] US Fish and Wildlife Service – “Barred Owl Management.”