American Barn Owl. Birds Loja Ecuador

American Barn Owl, Tyto furcata contempta 

Distribution.

Widespread in semiopen and agricultural areas, mainly in lowlands of west and arid interior valleys; scarce and local in east.

In Loja this Owl is not common bird. But is seen around the city in agricultural areas. Often is hunted by people who believes that this bird attracts bad luck. Also in the city use some tall buildings for living.

Barn Owl. Birds Loja Ecuador

Description. 35,5 – 40,5 cm (14 – 16″)

American Barn Owl. Birds Loja Ecuador. Iris dark brown. Distinctive heart-shaped facial disks white to buffy whitish, outlined with dark rim. Light morph mixed grayish and golden buff above, sparsely flecked white; white below with sparse scattering of dark spots. Tawny morph dark and grayer above; rich buff below with same sparse scattering of dark spots. Flight feathers barred darker; underwing whitish, imparting characteristic pale ghostly appereance at night.

Habits.

Primarily nocturnal but sometimes active in late afternoon or early morning, speacially in dark weather. Hunts mainly through slow and bouyant flapping low overground, quartering back and forth, ofteh with legs dangled; feeds mainly on smalls mammals but also on birds and large insects. Usually most numerous around human habitations, feeding in agricultural areas and roosting by day in dark recesses of a tower or other structure, sometimes a natural tree cavity. Barn Owl. Birds Loja Ecuador

Voice.

Has no hooting call. Flying birds give a loud rasping shriek, “sh-h-h-h-h-h.” A bird disturbed at its day roost crouches, spreads wings, and sways from side to side, all the while hissing and snapping bill.

Information taken from the book Birds Of Ecuador of Robert Ridgely and Paul Greenfield.